Giftedness and Education of Gifted Children in Turkey

Abstract

What is giftedness? Who are the gifted? What are the identifiable characteristics of the gifted? How should they be educated? Whose job to educate the gifted children? Many definitions have been used to describe gifted individuals. One of them is; According to Gardner, ability in one area of intelligence is not necessarily related to ability in other areas. Gardner parcelled intelligence into seven domains; linguistic, musical, logical, mathematical, visual, spatial, conceptualization, bodily kinesthetic, interpersonal and intrapersonal (Gardner, 1 983). All students should have well qualified teachers, the relatively greater demands made upon teacher by vigorous and imaginative young mind require that special attention be given to the selection and training of teacher for gifted and talented students. That does not mean teachers have to be gifted too. The curriculum for gifted should be recognizably different from the general educational program. The curriculum for gifted should be designed to improve and develop superior behavioural potentialities in academic areas and performing arts. The curriculum should be differentiated and based on needs of each type of giftedness. The public schools in Turkey have not got a basic purpose that each child to achieve the maximum development of his potential abilities. Therefore Ministry of Education Service in Turkey should have an educational commission for gifted children, which works at state and local levels. This commission provide all teachers with inservice training on content and teaching strategies for gifted children, also to develop and to standardize IQ tests to identify gifted children all around Turkey.