Identifying “Good” Teachers for Gifted Students

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to identify the unique features that gifted students perceive to be essential in their teachers. In this qualitative, one-year study, data and responses from 15 gifted students in a high school in an Arab village in northern Israel were gathered from interviews, students’ personal diaries, and “letters of recommendation” that they were asked to write. The findings revealed that gifted students defined a good teacher through three major categories: 1) qualities in teachers; 2) excellent teaching; and 3) the unique qualities of the individual student-teacher relationship. Teachers of gifted students should ideally have unique personal, intellectual, and didactic characteristics and a unique attitude that empowers their students to realize their potential. Students place more importance on the inherent personality of the teacher than on acquired teaching skills. The findings point to a need for assessment of teachers for both personality and professional qualifications before they are assigned to the gifted classroom, and for special courses to train teachers of gifted students.