Bias in Gifted Identification and Education: Giftedness In Its Essence Is From The Inside Out

Welcome to Vanguard Gifted Academy’s educational blog. This blog is our fifth installment in our Bias in Gifted Identification and Education series. I’m Dr. Linda Silverman. I founded and currently direct the Gifted Development Center in Westminster, Colorado. We’re 43 years old now, and we’ve tested about 6,500 children. Today we’ll be talking about Giftedness In Its Essence Is From The Inside Out. 

Giftedness Perspectives

Our field began with a child-centered perspective from Leta Stetter Hollingworth. She was the one who wrote the first book, she taught the first course and she’s my matron saint. Leta Stetter Hollingworth is a name you might want to look up at some point and learn more about her. She set the tone for what gifted education should be about. She developed the first major programs for gifted children in New York. 

I’m going to share today an inside-out perspective of giftedness rather than an outside-in perspective. What we see very often in the schools and in academia is a belief that giftedness is all about achievement, high grades and who’s going to be famous. I consider these based on masculine values, but they don’t really reflect feminine values. If you can put that on the shelf and think about giftedness differently, you can join me in looking at giftedness from the inside out. Inside Out Giftedness Checklist

I’ve created a set of characteristics for kids to respond to from the inside-out perspective. I’ve tried the list with a group of children in Denmark and found that the girls related to it much better than the boys, not surprising since it is a feminine perspective. 

Giftedness, in its essence, is from the inside out. 

Giftedness is a way of experiencing that is aware, sensitive, intense, empathic, curious, complex, intuitive, imaginative, creative, excited about ideas, and committed to the greater good. 

Do you relate to most of the following characteristics? 

  • I feel things deeply. 

  • I want to understand. 

  • I want to know what is true. 

  • I long to be understood and accepted. 

  • I get excited about ideas. 

  • I know things I cannot explain. 

There’s an appreciation of the intuitive in here.

  • I love to learn. 

  • I love to think. 

  • I love to create. 

  • I love beauty. 

  • I long for perfection. 

  • I want the world to be fair. 

  • I want to be someone I respect. 

When I shared this with a 20-year-old woman who works with me, she said that was the one she resonated with the most.

  • I love being in nature.

  • I feel the pain of others.

  • I imagine how things might be different. 

  • I seek a life of meaning and purpose. 

  • I want to make a difference. 

  • I want to help. 

If this list describes who you are, then you are gifted. No matter what happens in your life, commit yourself to finding your way back to your true self. I hope you’ll join me in embracing this more feminine perspective of giftedness. 

Thank you for continuing to follow our series on Bias in Gifted Education. We hope that Vanguard Gifted Academy’s educational blog will continue to be a valuable resource for you. To learn more about this series, check out our previous blog on gifted girls in STEM or call Vanguard at (224) 213-0087 – we would love to hear from you!

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