High School Teachers’ Perceptions of Giftedness, Gifted Education, and Talent Development

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to form a deeper understanding of how high school teachers view giftedness and gifted education. Open-ended surveys and interviews were conducted with high school teachers in a suburban school district with three large high school, and data were analyzed using a grounded theory methodology. Data were collected and analyzed in two phases with two groups of teachers ( n1 = 7 and n2 = 13). Text data from both phases were analyzed separately and then validated using constant comparison processes. Initial coding, focused coding, and theoretical coding led to data categories and an emergent theory to explain high school teachers’ perceptions regarding gifted education. Results indicated a need to clarify the perception of giftedness among high school teachers, as well as how effective training of those teachers can be implemented.