Gifted students in the Spanish education system: Reflections on conceptualization and identification issues

Abstract

This paper presents a synthesis of some of the conceptual problems related with the development of services offered to gifted students in the Spanish education system, mainly in the nonuniversity levels. Thus, it seems essential to focus on the theoretical approach of the preeminent models in the most relevant scientific literature that allow us to get a minimum operational conceptualization of the concepts of ability and talent. On the other hand, the problems derived from the lacking identification processes in public and private schools are analyzed. Some considerations to relevant identification models based on the "out of level" measures are payed particular attention for their methodological and practical importance and for having been implemented by the author for years in Spain.