Mathematically gifted students’ differentiated needs: what kind of support do they need?

Abstract

ABSTRACT Mathematically gifted students have skills that may help to improve the country. However, those gifted students attend to regular mathematics classes and undertake the same curriculum at the same pace with other students. Their cognitive or psychosocial needs may go undetected in these classrooms. Thus, the aim of this study is to explore differentiated needs of mathematically gifted students in Turkey by examining how they perceive mathematical tasks given to them in regular mathematics classes and as homework and how they are perceived by their teachers, classmates and family members. Based on these perceptions, the kind of support they anticipate from their teachers, classmates and family members in order to satisfy their mathematics-related needs was also examined within the context of this study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eleven mathematically gifted students enrolled in a gifted centre in Ankara, Turkey. The qualitative analysis of compiled data indicated that based on their perceptions, mathematically gifted students need to be intellectually and emotionally supported by their teachers, classmates and family members. The findings of this study would provide valuable recommendations for compensating the lack of educational opportunities encountered by gifted students in regular classrooms.