Talent and Creativity in Preschool Age Children: A Pilot Study

Jana M Havigerová,Veronika Smetanová,Iva Křoustková-Moravcová

doi:10.5817/sp2016-4-4

Abstract

This paper analyses the relationship between giftedness and two types of creativity (figural and verbal) in preschool age children. The paper aims to describe and analyze the relationship between the two types of creativity, their relationship to the overall level of giftedness, and to explore the predictive model for the overall level of giftedness as a dependent variable. The overall level of giftedness was measured with the C haracteristics of giftedness scale , verbal creativity was measured with a test of verbal creativity known as Telling of stories , and figural creativity was measured with Urban’s Test for creative thinking. The research data was gathered through testing 32 randomly selected children of preschool age. The results suggest that there is a moderate level of correlation between the two types of creativity (which is statistically significant) and a statistically non-significant weak correlation between creativity and giftedness (verbal creativity r=0.361; figural creativity r=0.222). As for partial characteristics, the fact that a child gives imaginary names to imaginary animals has the closest relationship with the overall level of giftedness. The same applies to a child’s ability to conceive an unfinished drawing as a conceptually whole drawing. These two elements are also most strongly represented in the included predictive model. The paper also describes that the overall level of giftedness in preschool age children has weak correlation with the achieved education of their fathers (r=0.248) and instead posits a correlation with the achieved education of their mothers (r=0.363) . The paper also discusses limits of the presented research and directions for further research.

Highlights

Interest in identifying gifted children so that they can be provided with care suited to their academic and social needs has been growing immensely in recent years (Demetrikulos & Pecore, 2015; Limont, Dreszer-Drogoróba, Bedyńska, Śliwińska, & Jastrzębska, 2014; McCormick & Plucker, 2013)
This study focused on a pilot analysis of correlation in preschool children between overall giftedness and two types of creativity
The test of figural creativity is easier for preschool children to complete because drawing is an activity characteristic of this age, as such children are generally unburdened with criticism or self-criticism

Summary

Introduction

Interest in identifying gifted children so that they can be provided with care suited to their academic and social needs has been growing immensely in recent years (Demetrikulos & Pecore, 2015; Limont, Dreszer-Drogoróba, Bedyńska, Śliwińska, & Jastrzębska, 2014; McCormick & Plucker, 2013). Many studies have offered strong arguments in favor of initiatives focused on identifying gifted children and subsequently providing them with accelerated education, or even segregated education and special support. In a conventional classroom and without special support, gifted children face internal conflicts in having to cope with a “forced choice between their intellectual needs and their desire for acceptance by less-advanced classmates” Considering these facts, identifying gifted children at preschool age seems meaningful, desirable, and useful as it may provide the basis for timely decisions concerning early school attendance, accelerated education (skipping a grade), segregated education, and early initiation of other methods and forms of education corresponding with gifted children’s special psychological and educational needs

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