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The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of different counseling strategies on the self acceptance, personal adjustment, and social adjustment of gifted adolescents. Subjects, age 13 to 16, were identified as gifted based upon a performance of 120 IQ or above on the Raven Advanced Progressive Matrices. The 89 subjects were assigned to one of four groups and the groups were randomly assigned to treatments: counseling only, consultation only, counseling-consultation, or control. Counseling included 25 gifted adolescents in a 12-week group counseling program focusing on communication skills. Consultation included the parents of 21 gifted adolescents in a six-week program focusing on communication skills. Counseling-consultation included 23 subjects in a 12-week group counseling program and their parents in a six-week consultation program, both focusing on communication skills. The control group included 20 subjects who received a standard developmental counseling program. The design of the study was a multi-group pretest-posttest control group design. Scales of the California Psychological Inventory, Adjective Check List, and writing sample were determined in an a priori manner as being appropriate measures of the dependent variables. Data was analyzed by an analysis of variance, Bartlett's-Box F test of homogeneity of variance, and Scheffe's post hoc comparison test. Further analysis was performed when necessary by an analysis of covariance. The results of the study indicated that there were significant differences among counseling strategies on self acceptance when measured by the writing sample and on personal adjustment when measured by the California Psychological Inventory and the writing sample. There were no significant differences among counseling strategies, however, on self acceptance when measured by the California Psychological Inventory and the Adjective Check List; on personal adjustment when measured by the Adjective Check List; and on social adjustment when measured by the California Psychological Inventory, Adjective Check List, and writing sample. / Ed. D.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the areas of disagreement among experts on important issues in the education of the gifted in the United States, and to answer the following questions: (1) Which key issues are perceived by the panel of experts as being the most important? (2) Which of the issues deserves top priority? (3) On issues deemed most important, what action should be taken at the national, state, and local levels? (4) What are the experts' definitions of the term "gifted"? Two pilot studies were conducted in which 12 issues important to gifted education emerged. Data for the main study were collected by means of a modified Policy Delphi method in which a selected panel of people knowledgeable about the issues was surveyed. The study, consisting of three rounds of questions, was conducted by mail over several months with a panel of 29 acknowledged experts in the field. The six critical issues in gifted education, in order of panelists' priorities, were: (a) curriculum for the gifted; (b) procedures for identifying children for gifted programs; (c) selection and training of teachers for the gifted; (d) special populations of gifted (handicapped, females, minorities, underachievers, pre-school, and the highly gifted); (e) goals of gifted programs; and (f) definition of the term "gifted." Panelists agreed on 53 actions that should be taken at the federal, state and local levels. At the federal level, actions should be in the form of catalytic support, research on the issues, and dissemination of research results. At the state level, guidelines, standards, and procedures regarding the various issues were suggested. At the local level, the majority of panelists' suggestions concerned policies and procedures regarding curriculum for the gifted and teacher training. The definition of the term "gifted" was divided into three components: giftedness, the gifted child, and the gifted adult. The definition statements agreed upon by panelists for the gifted child emphasized potential; for the gifted adult, performance; and for giftedness, both potential and performance. / Ed. D.

M.S.

Although gifted underachievers have been the subject of many studies, the possible connection between depression and underachievement had not been previously investigated. Effective counseling programs for high school student.s were lacking. A technique from family counseling literature, reframing, was recommended for use in the school setting. Sixty underachieving gifted students from local high schools were randomly selected and assigned to treatment/no treatment groups. A randomized pretest/posttest design was used to examine the effect of a brief intervention strategy in a single counseling session on Beck Hopelessness Scale scores, progress reported by teachers, and grade point averages. Various attribute variables were also considered. Results from a stepwise multiple regression support the effectiveness of the intervention in improving grade point averages. One of the significant factors on higher Hopelessness Scale scores was higher mothers' income. However, many mothers were not working outside the home making results difficult to interpret. On the other hand, the lower fathers' income contributed significantly to explaining· variance in higher Hopelessness Scale scores. Females and lower pre-GPA were also significant factors in explaining higher Hopelessness Scale scores. Family status (having an intact family) and higher pre-teachers reports accounted for higher post teachers' reports. The pre teachers' report, second quarter of the study, the intervention, and pre-GPA were significant factors in improved postGPA. Indications are that the underachievers group have higher rates of hopelessness than achievers. Some of the recommendations include reframing as a tool of the school counselor, (1) use of (2) use of the Beck Hopelessness Scale as a screening tool for identifying depression in the high school gifted, and (3) examination of depression in gifted underachievers in further studies. / Ed. D.

This qualitative investigation of the use of humor in written expression of sixth-grade children was conducted with two major questions as focus: 1. Are there identifiable conventions of initiated usage in the types and frequency of humor expression in written work of sixth-grade gifted students? 2. Are there identifiable conditions which tend to elicit humorous written expression from sixth-grade gifted children? An analysis of three examples of written work by each of 169 students in five Gifted Center classes indicated considerable use of humor. Patterns of usage emerged, the most conspicuous pertaining to frequency of humor use in the three assignments. Frequency of humor use paralleled the continuum of intimacy of the assignments. Humor appeared most often in the most intimate assignment. Humor was used least in the least intimate assignment. Interpretations of this pattern are suggested in terms of societal awareness and self-disclosure. Wit appeared more often than any other category of humor technique, indicating a preference by these youngsters for that form of humor which involves the greatest amount of cognitive ability. The relatively little use of Dig, the biting humor technique, is viewed as possibly related to the absence of emotionally laden subject matter. Students identified as gifted in all areas with no distinguishable bent used humor more often than any other group. Although those students gifted in Math used Wit less than did any other group, this may not have indicated a lack of creativity in these high IQ children as Creativity was considered an attribute of intelligence. Children of working mothers used humor to a greater degree than did those whose mothers were at home, possibly related to the greater independence and lesser conformity fostered in the former. The teacher's manner of dealing with the behavior and work of students: informal, demanding, non-directive, traditional, appeared to be more highly related to student humor production than was the personality/style (static or dynamic) of the teacher. Implications for education were discernible and areas for future investigation became evident. / Ed. D.

There is little attention and consensus in science education for gifted learners, leading to insufficient support and understanding of their needs, which hinders their potential development as future scientists and professionals. Utilizing a narrative research design, the study explores the experiences of nine scientists identified as gifted in childhood, through semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, and document reviews. The research addresses three pivotal questions: (1) How do scientists, who were identified as gifted in their childhood, navigate their gifted identity from childhood to adulthood, and how does this affect their social relationships and self-perception? (2) How do scientists, who were identified as gifted in their childhood, perceive and describe the critical elements that contribute to their exceptional performance? (3) How do scientists, who were identified as gifted in their childhood, reflect on the impact of their K-12 science education on their development and career choice? Findings reveal that participants’ exceptional performance in science was influenced by various factors such as individual abilities, family background, motivation, support, opportunities, and luck, and education. The impact of K-12 science education varied, with dissatisfaction in early years due to a lack of challenging curriculum, but more satisfaction in high school due to advanced classes and programs. These insights contribute to the development of educational policies and programs that better meet the needs of gifted learners in science, ultimately helping them to realize their full potential as future scientists and professionals.

M.A. (Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine whether gifted pupils can master an enriched advanced level curriculum in mathematics using self-regulated learning strategies. A mathematics curriculum for class five primary school learners in Nigeria was developed for this study. An empirical study was conducted on primary five pupils who were seen to be significantly gifted in mathematics. The study employed the quantitative method of research, that is, the true experimental research. The pre-test, post-test control group design was used. Sixty gifted pupils who participated in a mathematics enrichment programme (MEP) were assigned into two groups of the control group and experimental group with thirty pupils forming each group. The control group was exposed to direct teaching (DT) while the experimental group used self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies. Four teachers served as facilitators in the MEP. The teaching and learning activities were carried out at a higher cognitive level as opposed to the regular curriculum, ensuring that the contents of the MEP were enriched and accelerated. Pupils in both the experimental group and the control group were administered a pre-test, problem-solving exercises, and post-test. These pupils also completed an attitudinal questionnaire to provide feedback about the MEP. The empirical results show that gifted pupils in primary five are capable of self-regulating their own learning through self-monitoring, self-evaluation, and self-reinforcement. The empirical results also show that there is a significant relationship between self-regulated learning, gifted learners, and an enriched advanced level differentiated curriculum as a realistic alternative to the present regular curriculum for gifted pupils in the mainstream of education. The findings further show that the lack of differentiation of instruction, lack of facilities such as libraries, media centres, and support materials contributes to low achievement of gifted pupils. Furthermore, the findings show that pupils were challenged and motivated with the MEP to the extent that they were engaged to think divergently and applied their metacognitive skills in finding solutions to mathematical problems. Therefore, the findings of this study could have significant implications for the future direction of gifted primary school education as well as teacher education. This study has made a significant contribution to the existing body of knowledge for implementing an enriched advanced level curriculum using SRL strategies for mathematically gifted pupils in the mainstream of primary school education.