Abstract
Gifted students are not necessarily motivated students. In Iceland, where this study was conducted, a lower percentage of students reach the highest level of scholastic performance, according to Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) compared to the other Nordic countries (Almar M. Halldórsson, Ragnar F. Ólafsson, Óskar H. Níelsson & Júlíus K. Björnsson, 2010). This suggests there is a group of students who do not maximize their academic potential. However, few researches have focused on gifted students in Iceland. Student engagement is considered important for their academic achievement and attainment (Kristjana Stella Blöndal & Sigrún Aðalbjarnardóttir, 2012, 2014; Alexander et al., 1997; Rumberger, 2011). Fredricks and her colleagues (2004) define three broad dimensions of engagement: behavioral, emotional, and cognitive. By exploring whether engagement differentiates those who are high achieving from other students, we gain an insight into how we can support students to optimize their potential.
The aim of this study was to explore in what way gifted students differ from other students with regard to student engagement in upper secondary school. Also we explored their participation in organized recreation activities outside of school and their need for career counseling and guidance, compared to other students. It may be expected that because of their abilities, gifted students need career counseling and guidance just as other students, taking into consideration their diverse educational and job opportunities. Based on students’ academic achievement on standardized national tests in the 10th grade (age 15) they were arranged into five groups: Gifted, good, average, fairly poor and poor students. This study is part of a larger, ongoing longitudinal study among all Icelandic upper secondary schools. The focus is on 2,504 students at the age of 16 to 19 who participated in the survey in 2007. The findings indicate that cognitive, emotional and behavioral engagement differentiated gifted students from other students. The findings indicate that compared to other students, gifted students were more ambitious in their studies; they had clearer aims in their studies and thought it was important to get good grades. They were also more active in organized recreational activities outside school. Moreover gifted and good students identified stronger with school than other student groups; they were satisfied with their school, thought that the school atmosphere was good, and felt well at school. Furthermore, gifted and good students were more active in the social aspect of school
compared to fairly poor and poor students. However, gifted students were as likely as other students to feel like they needed career counseling and one in four felt the need for counseling on studying techniques. Findings of ordinal regression indicated that ambition
and identification with school were the factors that most strongly discriminated gifted students from other students taking into account the influential factor of parental education. In addition, a higher proportion of gifted students had parents with a university education.
The main finding of our research, that gifted students are more engaged with their studies and their school, is important. It is in line with other studies showing that student engagement is related to educational outcomes, such as academic achievement and school dropout, and is considered vital to educational success (Alexander, Entwisle and Horsey, 1997; Kristjana Stella Blöndal & Sigrún Aðalbjarnardóttir, 2012, 2014; Rumberger, 2011). Furthermore, student engagement seems to be amenable. For example students who get guidance and support are more engaged to school than other students (Kristjana Stella Blöndal & Bjarney Sif Ægisdóttir, 2013; Wangs & Eccles, 2013). Our findings indicate that by fostering students’ engagement more students will get the chance to maximize their academic potential. Moreover, our findings suggest that, like other students, gifted students need the attention and guidance of career counselors. The above findings should be informative to teachers, career counselors and parents.
The aim of this study was to explore in what way gifted students differ from other students with regard to student engagement in upper secondary school. Also we explored their participation in organized recreation activities outside of school and their need for career counseling and guidance, compared to other students. It may be expected that because of their abilities, gifted students need career counseling and guidance just as other students, taking into consideration their diverse educational and job opportunities. Based on students’ academic achievement on standardized national tests in the 10th grade (age 15) they were arranged into five groups: Gifted, good, average, fairly poor and poor students. This study is part of a larger, ongoing longitudinal study among all Icelandic upper secondary schools. The focus is on 2,504 students at the age of 16 to 19 who participated in the survey in 2007. The findings indicate that cognitive, emotional and behavioral engagement differentiated gifted students from other students. The findings indicate that compared to other students, gifted students were more ambitious in their studies; they had clearer aims in their studies and thought it was important to get good grades. They were also more active in organized recreational activities outside school. Moreover gifted and good students identified stronger with school than other student groups; they were satisfied with their school, thought that the school atmosphere was good, and felt well at school. Furthermore, gifted and good students were more active in the social aspect of school
compared to fairly poor and poor students. However, gifted students were as likely as other students to feel like they needed career counseling and one in four felt the need for counseling on studying techniques. Findings of ordinal regression indicated that ambition
and identification with school were the factors that most strongly discriminated gifted students from other students taking into account the influential factor of parental education. In addition, a higher proportion of gifted students had parents with a university education.
The main finding of our research, that gifted students are more engaged with their studies and their school, is important. It is in line with other studies showing that student engagement is related to educational outcomes, such as academic achievement and school dropout, and is considered vital to educational success (Alexander, Entwisle and Horsey, 1997; Kristjana Stella Blöndal & Sigrún Aðalbjarnardóttir, 2012, 2014; Rumberger, 2011). Furthermore, student engagement seems to be amenable. For example students who get guidance and support are more engaged to school than other students (Kristjana Stella Blöndal & Bjarney Sif Ægisdóttir, 2013; Wangs & Eccles, 2013). Our findings indicate that by fostering students’ engagement more students will get the chance to maximize their academic potential. Moreover, our findings suggest that, like other students, gifted students need the attention and guidance of career counselors. The above findings should be informative to teachers, career counselors and parents.
| Translated title of the contribution | Gifted students: Student engagement, recreational activities and their need for career counselling and guidance |
|---|---|
| Original language | Icelandic |
| Journal | Tímarit um uppeldi og menntun |
| Publication status | Published - 2016 |
Other keywords
- Gifted students
- Student engagement
- Career counseling and guidance
- Upper secondary school