The effect of individual teachers’ content knowledge on the identification of gifted students

This article outlines research in which six primary teachers were interviewed and asked to discuss their ability to identify giftedness in a range of domains. Teachers seemed more likely to identify giftedness in domains in which they perceived themselves to have a higher level of content knowledge. This small-scale study suggests that variations in individual teachers’ content knowledge may determine which students are or are not identified as gifted in a particular domain. Furthermore, knowledge of giftedness also seemed to support teachers’ confidence in identifying students. Finally, some recommendations for schools to consider are presented, including the suggestion that more collaborative approaches to the identification of gifted students could be beneficial.