Investigating Potential Differences in the Approaches to Studying of Gifted and Normative Learners via PISA Math Tests Results

Abstract

For the past few decades, the way students learn, that is, their “approaches to studying” have been characterized by the students’ perception of their academic environment, conceptions about learning, and the perception of oneself as a learning agent. Equally, the differences between gifted and average learners in terms of their approaches to learning remain unclear. Hence, this research utilized the data from the American edition of the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA-2009) to assess the aforementioned potential differences in 15-year-old students. The research utilized structural equation modelling, wherein multigroup analysis was performed. Invariance was revealed between the two groups, and subsequent mean testing revealed all three approaches significantly differed between the groups. Gifted learners employed higher levels of control and monitoring strategies, while average students employed higher levels of memorization. Implications of this study for teaching practices are discussed in terms of adjusting the curriculum to allow gifted learners to be more a part of the classroom learning experience, through teachers’ use of classroom differentiation techniques. Equally, non-gifted students should be supported in moving away from memorization techniques and employing more elaboration strategies.