Roles of Parents and Teachers in the Identification and Development of Gifted/Talented Students

Abstract

Gifted and talented students are the hinges and future hopes of any human society. They are like precious metals which need to be hold tenaciously and nurture carefully starting with parents at home to teachers in variant classrooms. In the Nigerian context, innumerable gifted and talented students have faded away unnoticed, several are still diminishing each day like a flower, and many more are yet to be spotted out and developed. To this effect, parents and teachers are indispensible in the discovering and developing many hidden gifts and talents of children and students. This essay is a snapshot and attempt to reflect on how parents and teachers can help in the discovering and developing of gifts and talents in so many Nigerian children and students. Furthermore, the author wishes to examine some concepts of some writers regarding gifted/talented students, characteristics of gifted/talented students, ways to identify and assess them, challenges they may face, impacts of undeveloped gifts/talents on individual and society, and some recommendations on what to do to see that no gifted/talented child or student is left behind.

DOI: 10.5901/ajis.2013.v2n10p25