Paula Olszewski-Kubilius - Gifted Adolescents: The Practical Strategies Series in Gifted Education

In order to understand the interplay between adolescence and giftedness, one must first understand what is important in terms of talent development during this period. During elementary school, a childs giftedness may become apparent to teachers and parents. Parents try to ascertain and nurture their childs interests and potential talents through out-of-school programs and activities. They watch, observe, and stimulate in the hopes of nurturing their childs talents. Teachers must be attuned to those students who require specialized programs to support their abilities and talents and refer such students for participation in gifted programs, if they are available.

It is in middle school, however, when talent development becomes even more focused. During these years, many schools move students into programs that are differentiated by content area, such as advanced math or language arts classes. This transition is consistent with the differentiation of gifted students abilities that occurs as they grow older. As students progress through elementary school into middle school and high school, intellectual giftedness begins to receive less focus and relative areas of strength and weakness emerge. Adolescents generally have domains (e.g., verbal or math) in which they are stronger and perhaps more interested. This means that schools may group students into advanced math or language arts classes depending on their academic strengths. As they progress into high school, this kind of specialization continues, and students take honors and Advanced Placement (AP) classes in their areas of strength and interest.

As students move from the elementary years to middle and high school, specialization occurs both in terms of their abilities and the educational programs offered. Rena Subotnik (Subotnik & Jarvin, 2005) has proposed a stage model of talent development that offers a useful perspective for viewing how the talent development process changes as students age. According to this theory, there are several broad periods that comprise the talent development process. The first consists of the identification of ability, which through training and learning, develops into competence. During the second stage, further development of competence into expertise occurs, and in the third broad stage, the development of expertise into scholarly productivity or artistry in adulthood is initiated. The period of adolescence corresponds to stage 2 of this model and the beginning of stage 3. During this time, students are gaining knowledge and honing skills related to their talent area. They do this through courses in school, clubs, independent reading and work at home, and out-of-school programs. According to Subotnik, critical to this period is a students (1) teachability or willingness to be taught and receive criticism, (2) motivation and desire to learn and achieve, (3) persistence in the face of challenges, (4) self-confidence, (5) ability to delay gratification, (6) ability to work and study independently, and (7) ability to set and work toward goals. In addition, students need to acquire tacit knowledge about educational paths and careers, so they can determine whether an occupation is a good match to their abilities and interests. Following this determination, students can make appropriate choices regarding courses, schools, and out-of-school activities. Mentors and contact with adult professionals working in the talent field are critical for providing tacit knowledge that can be acquired through authentic work experiences via apprenticeships, internships, or job shadowing.