Mystery to mastery: Shifting paradigms in gifted education |
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| Authors: | Dona J Matthews Joanne F Foster |
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| Institution: | 1. Director of the Hunter College Center for Gifted Studies and Education, and an Associate Professor of Special Education at Hunter College , City University of New York , E-mail: dmatt@hunter.cuny.edu;2. Teaches Psychological Foundations of Learning and Development as well as Gifted Education at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education , University of Toronto , E-mail: jfoster@oise.utoronto.ca |
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| Abstract: | We provide here a brief historical analysis of a movement in progress from a belief‐based “mystery” model to an evidence‐based “mastery” model of giftedness and talent development. We have observed that educators concerned about exceptionally capable learners are moving from a categorical notion of “the typical gifted child” with somewhat mysteriously defined attributes and learning needs, toward the perspective that some children have exceptionally advanced learning needs that require more flexibly responsive educational attention. We discuss factors that differentiate the two models, and observe some benefits of the shifting paradigm, arguing that by conceptualizing gifted education as providing a dynamically responsive educational match for students who otherwise experience a mismatch with the curriculum normally provided, the mastery model is socially, educationally, and politically more defensible. We discuss some practical implications of this shift in perspective. |
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