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Intellectual giftedness is an intellectual ability significantly higher than average. Gifted children often develop asynchronously; their minds are often ahead of their physical growth, and specific Cognitive and Emotional functions are often developed differently (or to differing extents) at different stages of development. One frequently cited example of asynchronicity in early cognitive development is Albert Einstein , who did not speak until the age of three, but whose later fluency and accomplishments belied this initial delay. In regards to this fact, neuroscientist Steven Pinker theorized that, rather than viewing Einstein's (and other famously gifted late-talking individuals) adult accomplishments as existing distinct from, or in spite of, his early language deficits, and rather than viewing Einstein's lingual delay itself as a "disorder", it may be that Einstein's genius and his delay in speaking were developmentally intrinsic to one another.1 DEVELOPMENTAL THEORY It has been said that gifted children may advance more quickly through Stages established by post-Freudian Developmentalists such as Jean Piaget . Gifted individuals also experience the world differently, resulting in unique social and emotional issues. The work of Kazimierz Dabrowski suggests that gifted children have greater psychomotor, sensual, imaginative, intellectual, and emotional " Overexcitabilities ". IDENTIFYING GIFTEDNESS Overview The formal identification of giftedness first emerged as an important issue for schools, as the Instruction Of Gifted Students often presents Special Challenges . During the 20th Century , gifted children were often classified via IQ tests, however, recent developments in theories of intelligence have raised serious questions regarding the appropriate uses and limits of such testing. Many Schools in North America and Europe have attempted to identify students who are not challenged by standard school curricula and offer additional or specialized education for them in the hope of nurturing their talents. Because of the key role that gifted education plays in the identification of gifted people (children or adults), it is worthwhile to examine how that discipline uses the term "gifted". Definitions of giftedness In ''Identifying Gifted Children: A Practical Guide'', Susan K. Johnsen explains that gifted children all exhibit the potential for high performance in the areas included in the United States' federal definition of gifted and talented students:Johnsen, S. K. (2004). Identifying Gifted Students: A Practical Guide." Waco, Texas: Prufrock Press, Inc. This definition has been adopted partially or completely by the majority of the states in the United States. The majority of them have some definition similar to that used in the State of Texas, whose definition states
The major characteristics of these definitions are (a) the diversity of areas in which performance may be exhibited (e.g., intellectual, creativity, artistical, leadership, academicaly), (b) the comparison with other groups (e.g., those in general education classrooms or of the same age, experience, or environment), and (c) the use of terms that imply a need for development of the gift (e.g., capability and potential). Identification methods Many schools use a variety of measures of students' capability and potential when identifying gifted children. These may include portfolios of student work, classroom observations, achievement measures, and Intelligence scores. Most educational professionals accept that no single measure can be used in isolation to accurately identify a gifted child. One of the measures used in identification is the score derived from an intelligence measure. The general cutoff for many programs is often placed near the Sigma 2 level on a standardized Intelligence test, children above this level being labeled 'gifted'. Some IQ testers use these classifications to describe differing levels of giftedness. The following bands apply with a Standard Deviation of σ = 15 on a standardized IQ test. Each band represents a difference of one standard deviation from the Mean of a Standard Distribution .
Most IQ tests do not have the capacity to Discriminate Accurately At Higher IQ Levels , and are perhaps only effective at determining whether a student is gifted rather than distinguishing among levels of giftedness. Although the Wechsler tests have a ceiling of about 160, their creator has admitted that they are intended to be used within the average range (between 70 and 130), and are not intended for use at the extreme ends of the population. The Stanford-Binet form L-M, currently outdated, was the only test that had a sufficient ceiling to identify the exceptionally and profoundly gifted. However, because the instrument is outdated, current results derived from the instrument generate inflated and inaccurate scores. The Stanford-Binet form V and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fourth Revision, both recently released, are currently being evaluated for this population. Mensa offers IQ testing but these are only suitable for persons over the age of ten and a half years. Younger children need to be assessed by an Educational Psychologist to determine their IQ score. Also, those who are more gifted in areas such as the Arts and Literature tend to do poorly on IQ tests, which are generally verbal- and mathematical-skills related. While many people believe giftedness is a strictly Quantitative difference, measurable by IQ tests, a number of people have described giftedness as a fundamentally different way of perceiving the world, which in turn affects every experience had by the gifted individual. These differences do not disappear when gifted children become adults or leave school. Gifted adults are seldom recognized as a special population, but they still have unique psychological, social, and emotional needs related to their high intelligence.2 SAVANTISM Savant s are people that perform exceptionally in one field of learning. ' Autistic Savantism ' refers to the exceptional abilities exhibited by autistics or people with Developmental Disorders . In a 1978 article in '' Psychology Today '', Dr. Bernard Rimland introduced the term 'autistic savant' to describe this condition. CHARACTERISTICS OF GIFTEDNESS |
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