Mariam
klyohoFor decades, myths related to gifted education have had detrimental effects on providing quality environments for our nation’s high-ability learners. These myths have affected every facet of the field, and in turn have distorted the perception of not only what gifted students need, but also what they can or should offer the nation now and into the future.
Persistent belief and the subsequent response associated with gifted education myths contribute to an overall lack of attention and challenge for high-ability students in our schools and communities. As a result, gifted education programs remain underfunded, achievement gaps continue to widen, and too many children across the nation who require “something different,” have no place to thrive.
NAGC is committed to thoughtfully responding to myths about the gifted that continue to be engaged by various media outlets.
Myths are created and continue to exist because they explain phenomena that are not easily understood or appear to validate ambiguous ideas with ambiguous evidence. [Kaplan, 2009, p. 38]
| * Gifted students don’t need help; they’ll do fine on their own | * That student can’t be gifted; he’s receiving poor grades |
| * Teachers challenge all the students, so gifted kids will be fine in the regular classroom | * Gifted students are happy, popular, and well adjusted in school |
| * Gifted students make everyone else in the class smarter by providing a role model or a challenge | * This child can’t be gifted; he has a disability |
| * All children are gifted | * Our district has a gifted and talented program; we have AP courses |
| * Acceleration placement options are socially harmful for gifted students | * Gifted education requires an abundance of resources |
| * Gifted education programs are elitist |
