All respected educators share one ultimate goal: to enhance the lives of students in their care. Few make impacts that get lauded worldwide; instead, most are content to know that, at day?s end, one child is more knowledgeable, more secure, or more fired up to learn thanks to that presence in their lives.

Many factors influence students' growth and development. Nugent (2000) stated that the perfectionist attitude is established in childhood and suggested that identification of perfectionistic traits and recognition of problem areas is a first step to finding an alternative to the all or nothing attitude of many gifted students. Awareness of…

Given that the potential for leadership ability is one quality of some gifted and talented students, how can teachers incorporate leadership training into the school day for these learners? A look at the concept of leadership may provide direction. Karnes and Bean (1996) reported differing views among theorists regarding leadership acquisition.…

So, "What makes a teacher of the gifted great?" First of all, they establish an atmosphere that fosters critical thinking about questions students find interesting and provocative. "Critical thinking" included making decisions, defending choices, reasoning from evidence, examining quality, and making improvements all reinforced by ongoing teacher…

Parents, classroom teachers, and teachers of the gifted cannot be all things to the young people in their charge. The nature and diversity of gifted students' interests demand resources beyond the confines of the school and sometimes beyond the confines of the community. These demands demonstrate the need for mentors and other resources. One of…

Parents and educators must recognize that culturally diverse students are gifted and culturally diverse. Like gifted students, they need to have their abilities recognized and they need to be challenged. Like diverse students, they need to have their culture (e.g., values, traditions, customs, etc.) acknowledged, respected, and otherwise affirmed.…

Teachers are faced with the challenge of making sure that their gifted students are not forgotten. This document shares three separate accounts of how three individuals assisted to better develop the talents of gifted students. The first account describes a counselor in a rural school district who selected three middle school students and took…

While equality of eduation is an important value, the overriding quest for equity has jeopardized the pursuit of excellence in public schools. Without advanced or enriched programs, gifted students may fall short of their potential or lose interest in school. Since curricula have been "dumbed down" to help weaker students, gifted students perceive…

Both teachers and parents have similar agendas when it comes to children: the fulfillment of academic potential and the creation of lifelong learners who are well-adjusted, productive members of society. However, basic communication between parents and teachers is often difficult. When children are exceptional, problems with communication are only…

This article describes the components of a scholar identity and sets forth two propositions: (1) Black and Hispanic males are more likely to achieve academically when they have a scholar identity; and (2) Black and Hispanic males are more likely to be viewed as gifted if they achieve at higher levels. Both of these propositions have clear…

What are the basic truths about giftedness that parents have seen and experienced as they follow, and, direct the development of their children? In what ways did sandstorms of misinformation or geological upheavals among theories about just who is or is not gifted bury good sense about nurturing the creative responses seen on a daily basis in…

As society grows more cooperative, the importance of finding emerging leaders has become incrasingly crucial. Not only should these potential leaders be identified, but their talents need the opportunity to develop. Leadership education continues to be a concern in gifted education but remains an abstract concept that is often ignored in school…

Whether math problems require computation skills, problem solving strategies, inferential thinking skills, or deductive reasoning, mathematically talented students are often able to discern answers with unusual speed and accuracy. Mathematically gifted students are able to see relationships among topics, concepts, and ideas without the…

While the attention of the country is focused on the global and national war on terrorism, the war on academic terrorism is being waged in classrooms, infiltrating the gifted programs, and altering the outcomes derived for students participating in gifted programs. The war on academic terrorism is related to the broad areas of curriculum and…

Empirical research on the philosophies, beliefs, and actions of school administrators such as principals or superintendents toward talented students is largely nonexistent in the published literature. What little is known suggests that administrators are crucial, but that advocates of services for high-ability learners need to carry the message…