Some Thoughts on the Training of Teachers of Gifted Learners

Abstract

Ten years after the demise of the apartheid system in South Africa (SA), the ratio achieving gifted: non-achieving gifted is still woefully inadequate. The need for gifted learners to be better equipped for the challenges of a post-modern society and tertiary study needs to be highlighted, since far too many of the gifted currently do not stand even the remotest chance of achieving up to near their potential.Furthermore, the narrative of democratic change in SA during the final decade of the 20 th century has been a chronicle of the demise of a "racially and culturally segregated and differentiated education system based on the ideology of Christian National Education" (Porteus, 2003: 13).The equality clause in the Constitution implies that all citizens will be treated equally, viz. "Equality includes the full and equal enjoyment of all rights and freedoms … The state may not discriminate directly or indirectly against anyone on one or more grounds …" (1996, Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Section 9, Chapter 2). Yet, there is some concern about the possibility that gifted children might be "viewed with mistrust and dislike and deliberately ostracised" and that their human rights will not be recognised (Kokot, 1998: 2) under the new dispensation (also see Sherman, 1997: 3). Despite the publication of a number of official and media reports on challenges in education, "the plight of the gifted learner is seldom mentioned" (Kokot, 1999: 270).In the light of the aforementioned, the purpose of this article is to examine the necessity for and the provision of suitable training for teachers who are required to provide for the needs of gifted learners in the mainstream. 1 We express our gratitude to Mrs. Elsabè Olivier, Academic Information Services: University of Pretoria, who provided invaluable support during the process of retrieving information. Research designWe chose a multimethod (QUAL-quan) mode of inquiry, involving a combination of qualitative and semi-quantitative methods. We selected an explorative, interpretative approach, implying that the aim was to understand epistemologically in a trustworthy way, but nonetheless accepting that researchersʹ perceptions of reality not only vary, but, in fact, differ greatly. Sample SelectionThree and four universities respectively (see next section) were randomly selected to ascertain (by examining the relevant yearbooks) the extent of courses on gifted education. In addition twelve universities were included in a brief telephonic survey (including the seven in the yearbook survey) to determine whether the curricula had changed after 2004. Data Collection, Intervention, Processing of Data and ResultsThe qualitative part of the research comprises a literature study to obtain information regarding possible ways in which teachers could be trained to plan and teach the

From Human to Humankind: Facilitating Global Awareness Among the Gifted

“…Gifted education should be regarded as special education (Van der Westhuizen & Maree, 2006) as it is in Canada, as well as in a growing number of other countries around the world. These programs need to become globally aware as early as possible so that the gifted can learn and develop together, without running the risk of experiencing feelings of social isolation, boredom and low self-esteem that often lead to underachievement (Reis & Renzulli, 2004;Robinson, 2002;Seevers & Shaughnessy, 2003;Swiatek, 1995).…”