UNDERACHIEVEMENT IN GIFTED AND TALENTED STUDENTS: UNRAVELLING THE PARADOX

Chiara D'Alessio, Martina Errico

Abstract


Underachievement in gifted students is a complex issue influenced by internal factors like low motivation, emotional issues, and external factors such as family dynamics, school environment, and socio-economic status. Neuroscientific findings suggest that gifted students have enhanced brain connectivity, which allows them to process information efficiently. Tools like the GUT and GRS-S are essential for early identification and intervention. Talent promotion requires a collaborative approach involving schools, families, and communities to nurture gifted students’ potential effectively.

Keywords


Underachievement; Gifted students; Talent promotion; Neuroscience; Educational interventions

Full Text:

PDF

References


Adelodun, G. A. (2013). Parental involvement as a determinant of academic performance of gifted underachieving students. Journal of Education and Practice, 4(12), 95-100.

Çakır, L. (2014). The relationship between underachievement of gifted students and their attitudes toward school environment. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 152, 1034–1038. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.09.269

Costa-Lobo, C., de Sá S., Ribeiro A. (2021). Talent Promotion & Psychological Intervention: literature contributions. Dossier - Creativity, emotion and education, Educ. rev. 37.

Cross, T. L. (2001). Handbook of giftedness in children: Psycho-educational theory, research, and best practices. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.

D'Alessio, C. (2002). Il fanciullo dotato: Identificazione e ambiente educativo. Edisud Salerno.

Dowdall, C. B., & Colangelo, N. (1982). Underachieving gifted students: Review and implications. Gifted Child Quarterly, 26(4), 179–184.

Einstein, A. (2000). Pensieri degli anni difficili (A. La Porta, Trans.). Edizioni Comunistiche. (Original work published 1934).

Ford, D. Y., Grantham, T. C., & Whiting, G. W. (2008). Culturally and linguistically diverse students in gifted education: Recruitment and retention issues. Exceptional Children, 74(3), 285-300. https://doi.org/10.1177/001440290807400302

Gagnè, F. (2000) A Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent. Year 2000 Update.

Gardner, H. (1999). Intelligence reframed. Multiple intelligences for the 21st century. New York: Basic Books.

Gross, M. U. M. (2004). Exceptionally gifted children. Routledge.

Jackson, R. L., & Jung, J. Y. (2022). The identification of gifted underachievement: Validity evidence for the commonly used methods. The British Journal of Educational Psychology, 92(3), 1133–1159.

Johnsen, S. K. (Ed.). (2018). Identifying gifted students: A practical guide. Prufrock Press Inc.

Kanapathy, S., Hazir, N. M., Hamuzan, H. A., Menon, P., & Woon, Y. H. (2022). Gifted and Talented Students “Underachievement” and Intervention: A Case Study. European Journal of Education and Pedagogy, 3(5), 114-122. https://doi.org/10.24018/ejedu.2022.3.5.453

Karaduman, G. B. (2013). Underachievement in gifted students. International Journal on New Trends in Education and Their Implications, 4(4), 165-172.

Kuhn T, Blades R, Gottlieb L, Knudsen K, Ashdown C, Martin-Harris L, Ghahremani D, Dang BH, Bilder RM, Bookheimer SY. Neuroanatomical differences in the memory systems of intellectual giftedness and typical development. Brain Behav. 2021 Nov;11(11):e2348. doi: 10.1002/brb3.2348. Epub 2021 Oct 14. PMID: 34651457; PMCID: PMC8613411.

Leana-Taşcılar, M. Z. (2024). Psychometric analysis of underachievement tool for gifted students. Cogent Education, 11(1), 2397167. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2024.2397167

Margulies, A.S., e Floyd, R.G. (2004). Review of gifted rating scales (GRS). Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 22(3), 275-282.

Neihart, M., Reis, S. M., Robinson, N. M., & Moon, S. M. (Eds.). (2002). The social and emotional development of gifted children: What do we know?. Waco, TX: Prufrock Press.

Olivieri, D. (2018). Modelli di plusdotazione e sviluppo dei talenti: i gifted children. Formazione & Insegnamento, 16(2), 153–172.

Pfeiffer, S. I. (2013). Serving the gifted: Evidence-based clinical interventions. Routledge.

Pfeiffer, S.I., Petscher, Y., e Kumtepe, A. (2008). The Gifted Rating Scales—School Form: A validation study based on age, gender, and race. Roeper Review, 30, 140–146.

Prescott, J., Gavrilescu, M., Cunnington, R., O’Boyle, M. W., & Egan, G. F. (2010). Enhanced brain connectivity in math-gifted adolescents: An fMRI study using mental rotation. Cognitive Neuroscience, 1(4), 277–288. https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2010.506951

Raoof, K., Shokri, O., Fathabadi, J., & Panaghi, L. (2024). Unpacking the underachievement of gifted students: A systematic review of internal and external factors. Heliyon, 10, e36908. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e36908

Reis, S. M., & McCoach, D. B. (2000). The underachievement of gifted students: What do we know and where do we go? Gifted Child Quarterly, 44(3), 152–170.

Sak, U. (2004). About creativity, giftedness, and teaching the creatively gifted in the classroom. Roeper Review, 26(4), 216–222. https://doi.org/10.1080/02783190409554272

Schmitt A, Wollschläger R, Blanchette Sarrasin J, Masson S, Fischbach A, Schiltz C. (2023). Neuromyths and knowledge about intellectual giftedness in a highly educated multilingual country. Front Psychol. 2023 Oct 20;14:1252239. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1252239. PMID: 37928578; PMCID: PMC10623439.

Sternberg, R. J. (2024). Reframing Social and Emotional Development of the Gifted. Behavioral Sciences, 14(9), 752. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs14090752

Sternberg, R.J., e Davidson, J.E. (a cura di) (2005). Conceptions of giftedness. (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Veas, A., Castejón, J.-L., O’Reilly, C., & Ziegler, A. (2018). Mediation analysis of the relationship between educational capital, learning capital, and underachievement among gifted secondary school students. Journal of Education of the Gifted, 41(4), 369–385. https://doi.org/10.1177/0162353218799436

White, S. L. J., Graham, L. J., & Blaas, S. (2018). Why do we know so little about the factors associated with gifted underachievement? A systematic literature review. Educational Research Review, 24, 55–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2018.03.001

Zigler, A., e Heller, K.A. (2000). Conceptions of giftedness from a meta-theoretical perspective. In K.A. Heller, F.J. Monks, R.J. Sternberg e R.F. Subotnik, International handbook of giftedness and talent (2nd ed., pp. 2-21). Amsterdam: Elsevier.

Zimmerman, B. J. (2000). Attaining self-regulation: A social cognitive perspective. In M. Boekaerts, P. R. Pintrich, & M. Zeidner (Eds.), Handbook of self-regulation (pp. 13-39). Academic Press.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.32043/gsd.v9i1.1316

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2025 ITALIAN JOURNAL OF HEALTH EDUCATION, SPORT AND INCLUSIVE DIDACTICS

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Italian Journal of Health Education, Sports and Inclusive Didactics 
ISSN printed: 2532-3296