Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Tulsa, 1994. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 174-191).

In the field of gifted education, there is little research on the perceptions of high school teachers of the gifted about giftedness, good gifted education practices, and the nature and needs of gifted learners. The purpose of this study was to form a deeper understanding of how those educators who guide gifted learners out of high school and into adulthood perceive giftedness and gifted education. This qualitative study, conducted in two phases, took place in a large suburban school district with three large high school systems and was focused on the responses of high school teachers to assess their attitudes, feelings, and opinions about the nature and needs of gifted learners using a grounded theory model of analysis. Data collected from the 11 participants in the first phase of the analysis was combined with that collected from the 13 participants in phase two and validated throughout with continual comparison through memoing. Participants reported a general lack of engagement with scholarly work in the gifted education field as well as a dependence on the school district for effective training in classroom practice. Evidence also suggested a view of giftedness among the participants as an inherent quality of some people who needed to be properly trained in the instructional environment. Implications from this study suggest further research, both qualitative and quantitative, needs to focus on clarifying the perception of giftedness among high school teachers as well as how the delivery of effective training to those teachers can be implemented.

Summaries in Afrikaans and Engish / Hierdie studie handel oor 'n hulpverleningsprogram vir die begaafde seun wat onderpresteer in die sekondere skool. Navorsing toon dat aansienlik meer seuns as meisies met hierdie probleem worstel en gevolglik word hulle voile potensiaal nie verwesenlik nie. Dit het 'n doeltreffende hulpverleningsprogram in die brandpunt van die studie gestel. Literatuurstudie toon dat baie bestaande hulpverleningsprogramme gerig is op primereskoolleerders en dat Suid-Afiikaanse hulpverleningsprogramme beperk is. Die doelstelling van die studie fokus op hulpverlening deur 'n interdissiplinere spanbenadering aan die adolessente begaafde seun wat onderpresteer. Die twee vraelyste vergemaklik identifisering van die eiesoortige probleme en behoeftes van die kind en fokus op die funksioneringsbeeld van die kind-in-totaliteit. Hulpverleningsvoorstelle word in die Akkumulatiewe BINGO-Plantabel vervat. Hulpverlening geskied intensief op 'n een-tot-een-basis en moet ortodidakties en ortopedagogies verantwoordbaar wees. Volgehoue bemoeienis met die opvoedeling lei tot noukeurige evaluering van die leerder, asook van die hulpverleningsprogram / This study deals with a support programme for the gifted boy who underachieves in the secondary school Research shows that more boys than girls experience these problems and consequently their full potential is not realised. Hence the focus on an effective assistance and support programme. Literary studies show that many existing support programmes target the primary school pupils and that South Afiican support programmes are limited. The aim of the study focuses on assistance to the gifted adolescent boy who underachieves, through an interdisciplinary team approach. The two questionnaires facilitate identification of the unique problems and needs of the child and focus on his totality. The Accumulative BINGO Plan chart contains suggestions for assistance. Support is intensive on a one-to-one basis and must be according to orthodidactic and orthopedagogical principles. Continuous involvement with the educand leads to an accurate evaluation of the learner and the support programme. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Orthopedagogiek)

Programmes developed specifically for the gifted and talented pupil are not a novel idea. Yet, by comparison, the history of gifted education is a brief one. Highly gifted and talented pupils often have difficulty being challenged in a conventional classroom situation. Since classroom instruction is usually designed for the benefit of pupils who function at the level of the majority of their peer age-group, this teaching, no matter how well done, may not be appropriate for the extremely gifted pupil whose abilities differ greatly from this group. Even special programmes for gifted and talented students may be designed for a broad group of gifted students and may not meet the specific needs of the gifted child, especially ones with a special intellectual talent. While it is important to bear aspects such as the characteristics of giftedness and the attributes of the talented individual in mind, the basis of this dissertation examines what enrichment and acceleration strategies may be utilised by the English First Language (HG) teacher when presented with a preselected group of pupils who are gifted in English, utilising a composite gifted educational model as a mechanism for the development of this specific programme.

Summaries in Afrikaans and Engish / Hierdie studie handel oor 'n hulpverleningsprogram vir die begaafde seun wat onderpresteer in die sekondere skool. Navorsing toon dat aansienlik meer seuns as meisies met hierdie probleem worstel en gevolglik word hulle voile potensiaal nie verwesenlik nie. Dit het 'n doeltreffende hulpverleningsprogram in die brandpunt van die studie gestel. Literatuurstudie toon dat baie bestaande hulpverleningsprogramme gerig is op primereskoolleerders en dat Suid-Afiikaanse hulpverleningsprogramme beperk is. Die doelstelling van die studie fokus op hulpverlening deur 'n interdissiplinere spanbenadering aan die adolessente begaafde seun wat onderpresteer. Die twee vraelyste vergemaklik identifisering van die eiesoortige probleme en behoeftes van die kind en fokus op die funksioneringsbeeld van die kind-in-totaliteit. Hulpverleningsvoorstelle word in die Akkumulatiewe BINGO-Plantabel vervat. Hulpverlening geskied intensief op 'n een-tot-een-basis en moet ortodidakties en ortopedagogies verantwoordbaar wees. Volgehoue bemoeienis met die opvoedeling lei tot noukeurige evaluering van die leerder, asook van die hulpverleningsprogram / This study deals with a support programme for the gifted boy who underachieves in the secondary school Research shows that more boys than girls experience these problems and consequently their full potential is not realised. Hence the focus on an effective assistance and support programme. Literary studies show that many existing support programmes target the primary school pupils and that South Afiican support programmes are limited. The aim of the study focuses on assistance to the gifted adolescent boy who underachieves, through an interdisciplinary team approach. The two questionnaires facilitate identification of the unique problems and needs of the child and focus on his totality. The Accumulative BINGO Plan chart contains suggestions for assistance. Support is intensive on a one-to-one basis and must be according to orthodidactic and orthopedagogical principles. Continuous involvement with the educand leads to an accurate evaluation of the learner and the support programme. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Orthopedagogiek)

This research sought to discover whether minority and economically disadvantaged students are underrepresented in gifted and honors programs. Another goal was to ascertain attitudes of students and teachers currently participating in gifted and honors programs regarding: admission criteria; adequacy of teacher preparation to meet special needs of gifted and honors students; levels of needs satisfaction of gifted and honors students; perceptions of students and teachers about program modification.

Analysis of a particular north-central Texas public high school revealed a strong representation of Hispanic females in advanced academic programs, i.e., AP and GT in proportion to their representation in the overall student population. Research seems to indicate that a progressive approach to academic-potential identification; culturally effective mentoring, traditional Hispanic values, and newly emerging personal and social characteristics all seem to be contributing factors. This study seems to indicate that a new type of Hispanic female is emerging who is more assertive academically, more visible in the classroom, and less marriage-and-family oriented as might be believed by teachers, society, their peers, and perhaps even their parents.

The foregoing fable casts much doubt on some elements of the instructional process. All children cannot fit in the same shoe size just as all children cannot learn the same things at the same rate, following the same teaching strategies. These individual differences should be taken into consideration. The situation is not at all helped by attaching labels to the students. Children are not cows that we herd from one grade to another, all needing the same nutritional requirements. They should be compared more to various species of plants. Some may be like the cactus which only needs water once a month, and too much water would kill it. Other plants may need watering every day. Likewise, all students are individuals and have many different needs.The problem to be examined here concerns the “gifted feet" which were put into the "red shoes". The word "gifted", in referring to students, seems to imply that these students are all geniuses, and, therefore, the term needs some clarification. For the purpose of this paper, the term "gifted" is broadened to also include the "talented" and/or “highly motivated.” For the sake of simplicity, the term "talented" will be used throughout the rest of this paper, but with the understanding that the other two terms are included in the meaning.

The curriculum developed in this project was designed to meet the requirements of the Clay County gifted program. It provides a comprehensive American history curriculum, discovery through the Civil War, to promote mastery of the content area, increase involvement and interest of students in learning through the reduction of irrelevant and redundant material, and encourage individual initiative for one/sown investigations. The program consists of a series of independent studies in which the teacher is a facilitator who sets the stage and encourages students' endeavors. The study units developed for this project include objectives representing all levels in Bloom/s Taxonomy. The curriculum was evaluated by pilot-testing and surveying the students involved, as well as by surveying a team of teachers of the gifted and a university faculty member in social studies education.

The unique characteristics and needs of artistically talented students were explored. World history students at the Douglas Anderson School of the Arts were used as a test group for the utilization of a variety of art forms in teaching world history. Lesson plans using art media for each unit of study in world history were constructed. Students responded to each lesson by completing an attitude survey. The conclusion was that the use of a variety of art in world history increased student interest and motivation. The increased student motivation resulted in a failure rate of approximately 5%, significantly lower than the previous failure rate of 12%.