engleski

Different pedagogical approaches to the education of gifted pupils in European cultural tradition

It was Plato who already observed gifted individuals and looked for causal effects that make one a ruler, presenting the myth that it is a god who during birth assigns gold to those who are predestined to be rulers, silver to those who ought to be assistants, and iron and brass to peasants and craftsmen. The stated idea belongs to a theoretical framework which accentuates genetic factors. There is a growing number of theoreticians who emphasize the influence of the environmental and social surrounding in the development of an individual, with the education of the gifted being of the highest importance within social structures. Education is greatly determined by cultural factors which also affect the area of education of gifted pupils, which is becoming more intense, complex and recognised within the education of pupils with special educational needs. This trend is followed by most of the European countries which, in regards to their specific cultural differences, differentiate in their views on ‘giftedness'. The importance of cultural differences changed over time, particularly under the influence of specific determinants in recent history: the fall of the Soviet Union, migration, generally more inclusive attitude towards those different and foreign, and the creation of the European Union. The comparative analysis of the European cultural tradition in this paper focuses on European Union country members, clearly distinguishing terminological inconsistency and discrepancy. The pedagogical approaches to the education of gifted pupils are observed through the process of diagnostics and pupil identification ; answering different didactical challenges in working with gifted pupils ; methodological pluralism directed at the educational process, and process of following and evaluating the gifted. Highlighting examples of good practice, authors leave some questions open-ended and offer different possibilities and directions of pedagogical and didactic-methodological approach.

education of gifted pupils, European pedagogical tradition, comparative analysis

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