There are a number of characteristics of gifted children reported by teachers and researchers. Such characteristics may include curiosity, advanced mathematical skills, large vocabulary, acute sense of humour. This paper examines the demands that humour, as a creative activity, makes on cognitive and social development. It is derived from research…

"Talent in the New Millennium" was a research study into gifted education, conducted over a two-year period in 68 centres and schools in three disparate regions of New Zealand. Using questionnaires, oral interviews and sample case studies, the study drew input from educators of the gifted, from children and students identified as gifted, and from…

Educators exert a tremendous influence on gifted children's academic and social-emotional development, thus their perceptions of these students is critical. Many factors are associated with a successful classroom experience for the gifted child, and the classroom teacher plays a vital role in that success. The teacher influences not only the…

The study explores the link between general social environment and self-concept, and giftedness and self-concept. A total of 135 high school and 64 university students with an average age of 16 years from China took part in the research, consisting of four groups: gifted and non-gifted adolescents of Year 1993, and gifted and non-gifted…

The quest for perfection has been anecdotally associated with great achievement and despair; with adjustment and maladjustment. No population has more frequently been associated with perfectionism than the gifted. This study was designed to (i) identify the types of perfectionism observed in a sample of Australian school students, and (ii) to…

From my study in the field of gifted education it became apparent that published works related to perceptions of what constitutes giftedness began with a narrow view focused on achievement in intelligence tests and in the latter part of the twentieth century developed to a much broader view. In the New Zealand context the work of Bevan-Brown…

A number of studies investigating the brain characteristics of mathematically gifted youth indicate that they possess a unique functional organisation as compared to those of average math ability (O'Boyle, et al., 1995). Specifically, data from a variety of behavioural and psychophysiological experiments tend to suggest enhanced processing…

In this study we investigated relationships between convergent and divergent thinking with an emphasis on fluency, originality, flexibility and elaboration in the mathematical domain. A related purpose was to examine relationships between problem types in mathematical tasks. The math section of a performance-based assessment was used to assess 857…

The evaluation of an elementary classroom self-regulated learning program aimed at the central causes of academic underachievement is recounted. The participants of the study were 36 Fourth Grade gifted underachievers in mathematics, who were identified in a sample of 1200 students. The training program developed by Zimmerman, Bonner and Kovach…

The Test for Creative Thinking-Drawing Production (TCT-DP), its design, concept and evaluation scheme as well as experiences and results of application are described. The test was designed to mirror a more holistic concept of creativity than the mere quantitatively oriented, traditional divergent thinking tests. The specific design using figural…

Disruptive students are often perceived to be unmotivated, low in self-concept, and lacking in creative characteristics such as originality in thinking and imagination. A total of 99 students from 6th Grade classes of a primary school in Hong Kong completed a survey asking about their effort goal orientation in school motivation, academic…

This is a report of the strategies adopted by the University of Malaya (UM), Malaysia, to address the issues and complexities involved in its search for excellence in teaching and learning, research and service. The story is told how the university sought accreditation through the International Standards Organisation (ISO) and how by uniting their…

Academic administrators are frequently asked to make difficult decisions related to resource allocation. Should a new academic program be approved? Should an old program be discontinued? How should resources be allocated between programs? Although resource allocation decisions are based on many factors, administrators must always consider the…

Data from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study carried out in 1999 and canonical correlation analysis were used to investigate the effects of school inputs, environmental inputs and gender influence in the production of a joint educational production function in mathematics and science subjects for eighth grade students in…

This paper presents an analysis of the Nigerian National Policy for Information Technology. The analysis reveals that the policy is inadequate to impact positively on the Nigerian education system, and that the philosophical frame of reference is market driven. The policy places little emphasis on the integration and infusion of ICT in the…