Not Gifted (Yet)? Don’t Worry |
When schools or psychologists identify some kids as gifted, they’re implicitly identifying a whole lot more kids as not-gifted. This artificial distinction can do a lot of damage, both for those who are identified as gifted and for those who miss the cutoff.
A child who misses the cutoff for the gifted label may be just as capable as another child who’s made the cut. Some kids are better test-takers and enjoy performing well on the kinds of problems that IQ tests provide. Other children are slower and more careful in their responses, or do better in real-world contexts.
Some kids, meanwhile, haven’t yet had the learning opportunities required for high scores. Still others have learning disabilities or other challenges that interfere with their ability to do well in a test-taking situation. And sometimes kids are sick, hungry, tired, or grumpy at the time of the test.
A high score on a test of intelligence is a narrow and highly controversial method for identifying giftedness, and has the additional disadvantage of having no clear or direct connection to........