This information was produced by the staff of the Belin-Blank International Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development (B-BC) at the University of Iowa (belinblank.org). The resources and information listed here are for informational purposes; there is no direct or implied endorsement by the B-BC. Services provided by the B-BC include programs for academically talented K-12 and college students, professional development for teachers, the Assessment and Counseling Clinic, the Acceleration Institute (accelerationinstitute.org), and graduate programs and research in gifted education.

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Annotated Bibliography

Articles are listed in descending order by year (most recent first), and then by first author's last name.

Characteristics

Olszewski-Kubilius, P., Makel, M. C., Plucker, J. A., Subotnik, R. F. (2017). Universal principles of learning require unique applications for gifted students. Canadian Psychology, 58, 271-275. doi: 10.1037/cap0000118  

Olszewski-Kubilius, P., Makel, M. C., Plucker, J. A., Subotnik, R. F. (2017). Universal principles of learning require unique applications for gifted students. Canadian Psychology, 58, 271-275. doi: 10.1037/cap0000118. [Keywords: Program Model, Talent Identification, Characteristics of Gifted Youth]

The question of whether gifted students learn differently from other students has long plagued the psychology and education communities. On the one hand, the field of gifted education has promoted special programs that capitalize on gifted children’s individual abilities and needs. At the same time, evidence from rigorous studies has supported the notion that gifted children, like their age peers, learn optimally in classrooms that apply proven psychological principles. Are gifted students unique, or not? In this commentary, we rely on two versions of recent publications on teaching and learning to make the case that gifted students may be simultaneously unique from—and the same as—typical students. Gifted students are the same as other students in that their learning hinges on general psychological learning principles. However, to be effective, the application of those principles may be different for gifted students than for their classmates. We use four examples of the varied ways in which psychology promotes the application of principles based on the needs of special groups of learners.