Publication Date

2025

Advisor(s) - Committee Chair

Sarah Bonis, Tyler Clark, Mary Evans, Julia Roberts

Degree Program

Department of Psychology

Degree Type

Specialist in Education

Abstract

Gifted students possess unique needs that require appropriately challenging opportunities to develop their advanced abilities. To meet these needs, gifted students must be correctly identified, which is often through teacher referral, thus subjecting the identification process to teachers’ knowledge and perceptions of giftedness. Teachers can also implement practices, such as differentiation, to meet gifted needs within their own classrooms. Thus, teachers must hold accurate perceptions of gifted students and their needs. However, teacher preparation programs often offer minimal training in giftedness. The purpose of the current study was to examine preservice teachers’ perceptions of gifted students’ characteristics and needs. Thirty-one preservice teachers completed the Survey of Practices with Students of Varying Needs (SOP) to assess their attitudes and beliefs about academically diverse learners and differentiation. Descriptive statistics revealed participants overall possessed perceptions slightly more accurate than a neutral stance. Specifically, preservice teachers held accurate perceptions toward the importance of differentiation but inaccurate ones toward specific practices of differentiation. Additionally, preservice teachers held mixed perceptions about characteristics of both gifted learners and special education students. Participants also indicated beliefs that special education students require the most time and attention in the classroom and that gifted students require the least. Lastly, participants indicated overall confidence levels about differentiation practices slightly higher than a neutral stance. They felt the most confident in their skills as they relate to special education students and least confident in their skills related to gifted students. Implications, limitations, and future directions are also discussed.

Disciplines

Education | Educational Methods | Gifted Education | Teacher Education and Professional Development

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