Giftedness Among Handicapped Children: Identification and Programming Development
The gifted child may appear in programs designed for handicapped children because giftedness is found in all student groups. Three relevant tasks are discussed: (a) developing staff sensitivity to the existence of gifted students who are also handicapped; (b) formulating an identification process that will not allow the weaknesses of children to mask their giftedness; and (c) developing a transdisciplinary team approach composed of regular class teachers, special program teachers, and gifted program teachers all working together with parents in creating an individualized educational program for each child. Within the identification process a major new element is the Teacher Observational Item (TOI) list, which contains 7 generally accepted indicators of giftedness that appear to not be influenced by a diverse culture, disadvantaged background, or handicapping condition.