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1. What exactly is giftedness?
Giftedness is a broad concept. Its meaning shifts with the era, the culture and the research orientation of individual specialists, and there is no single internationally agreed definition.
Our Center adopts the Asynchronous Development definition reached by the Columbus Group at its 1991 meeting. It focuses on the difficulties and struggles that arise when a gifted person's inner and outer development are out of step. Our services therefore concentrate on understanding each person's uniqueness, so as to help gifted individuals develop well and fulfil their own aspirations.
2. How do I recognise the characteristics of a gifted student?
Everyone's characteristics differ, and gifted people are no exception. You may refer to the 25 characteristics of giftedness listed by Dr. Linda Silverman, a specialist in the psychological counselling of the gifted.
3. What is a gifted assessment? Is an IQ test enough?
The purpose of a gifted assessment is to identify the individual needs of a gifted person, so that an all-round development plan can be drawn up early. An IQ test — or intelligence test — is only one of many psychological tools, and many versions are in use around the world. The ones commonly used in Hong Kong are the Wechsler scales (WISC) and SB IV; both are internationally recognised and have Chinese versions.
An IQ test can only reveal some of a person's intellectual needs. It usually shows a few of a child's thinking strengths and weaknesses. But the IQ result alone is not enough to determine a gifted child's individual needs — an intelligence test is only the first step in drawing up a development plan. We still need to understand much more about the child's other characteristics and difficulties, because a person's growth involves the physical, emotional, intellectual, social and spiritual sides of life. Knowing the IQ figure alone is of limited help.
4. My child is only three and a half. Is he old enough for a gifted assessment?
Some American intelligence tests can be used from three and a half, but five and a half is more suitable. Gifted assessment, however, is not limited to IQ testing: the child's developmental history, long-term observation by parents and teachers, and the child's own interests are all important parts of it. If parents notice that their child's characteristics are very pronounced, it is worth seeking a specialist assessment so that appropriate planning and preparation can begin early.
5. If parents raise a gifted child like any other child, will the gifted characteristics disappear?
The key is “respect and inspiration”. If a child faces an environment that does not match his development for a long time, and his interests and characteristics are not respected, it is like forcing him to lower his ideals and pretend to be ordinary. His confidence and his emotions are both suppressed, and some children will hide their giftedness — becoming less motivated, lowering their goals, playing dumb — in order to fit in with an environment that does not suit them.
6. Does giftedness mean being better than other people in one area — for example gifted in sport, in maths, or in English?
Outstanding performance in one area can be called a talent, and talent usually contains a large element of nurture. The giftedness we speak of here refers mainly to innate potential: these children usually grasp things quickly and can infer a great deal from a single point. Whether the talent surfaces, however, depends on the environment they grow up in and the opportunities they meet.
7. Why are gifted students not always top of the class?
Results depend on study habits. Without good habits, even a very able child may not keep his results up as he moves through the grades. Some gifted people also carry specific learning difficulties that affect their results.
Beyond results, interest matters more. Highly able people have many interests — some read constantly, some throw themselves into a particular extra-curricular activity and shine at it, and some are natural leaders in a group and are happily busy. School curricula, by contrast, are fairly monotonous and the work is mechanical; the content is often grasped “at high speed” with hardly any effort. So without the understanding and support of parents and teachers, they often gain neither the enjoyment of learning nor the growth in confidence, and the pressure only increases. Studying purely “for marks” can be very dull for many gifted children, and coming top may cost far more than it gains.
8. My gifted child buries himself all day in what interests him and pays little attention to daily life, socialising, or even family gatherings. What should we do as parents?
If a child enjoys reading outside class or is absorbed in an interest, parents should pay attention to those choices — understanding their interests is an important step in supporting their development. But if they turn a deaf ear to their other responsibilities and become passive, parents should step in. Once a child starts primary school, parents should guide him into good daily habits and help him understand the importance of taking personal responsibility. Life requires commitment; it stands on four legs — intellectual, physical, social and aesthetic — and all four must develop in balance for it to stand firm. Not one of them can be missing.
9. My gifted child often loses his temper for no reason. Does he need to see a psychiatrist?
When a child loses his temper or expresses emotion, parents can note what the situations have in common each time and analyse them; something usually emerges. If no answer is found, speak to the teacher first, then discuss it with the paediatrician or family doctor before deciding on further steps. Seeing a psychologist or psychiatric consultant need not be the first move.
10. Should parents let a child know that he or she is gifted?
Everyone wants to understand themselves and to be understood by others. There is no absolute right or wrong about telling a child he is gifted; what matters most is understanding the feelings and needs that come with giftedness, and knowing how to care for that particular psychological make-up. Helping the child and the family understand what giftedness means and what the child's characteristics are therefore matters more than knowing whether he is gifted — just as understanding the ways a gifted person needs to be nurtured is more important than knowing how high the IQ is.
11. If I am gifted, what does that mean?
It means your thoughts and feelings are richer than those of most people your age, and that you are more sensitive to knowledge, ideas, philosophy and feeling. But if you have not yet met a kindred spirit, your inner life may become complicated and lonely.
Finding your own path of growth is a rich and meaningful journey. The most important thing is to keep equipping yourself with learning; start from the heart, and you will find your way.
12. How can a teacher help a gifted student in the classroom?
Listen to what other subject teachers observe about the student's behaviour, then invite the parents to talk about how the child is doing, and hear about the child's development. If signs of high ability have been there all along, it is worth suggesting early that the parents seek a gifted assessment and follow-up service. Once the specialist report arrives, the teacher can follow its guidance in classroom activities, teaching sequence and extra-curricular activities, giving appropriate encouragement and support, and giving the student chances to show and share his distinctive ideas and strengths — building both his confidence and his acceptance among peers.
13. My son is three and a half. He can write about 95% of the MTR station names, and at two he already recognised seven hundred characters. Is he gifted?
At such a young age he is interested in language and words and wants to use them to express his thinking, so his language ability is clearly developing fast. But how many characters a child knows is not enough on its own to decide whether he is gifted; his overall thinking ability and the development of abstract reasoning also matter. An assessment helps give a more objective picture of a child's strengths and characteristics.
14. How should we prepare a child before an assessment?
Just make sure he sleeps well and is in good spirits. He can bring a snack in case he needs one. Tell him he will be doing some activities and games, with questions and answers, and that it is fun. The results will be used to understand his own interests and to help choose activities that suit his needs.
15. How can parents explain the assessment results to their child?
Parents can tell the child the results simply — for example that he is brighter than most children his age, or that he is around the usual level — and describe the areas where he did especially well as things he does quickly and accurately, with ability and confidence. Do not dwell too much on scores. Tell him that you will use the results to plan courses or activities that will add to his learning and his interests.
16. Why are the fees so expensive?
Understanding a child or young person who is highly able and unusual in personality is not simple. The professional handling such a case must know how to open up their inner world and uncover their vision before the individual struggles and needs become clear.
Parents do not always understand their child's inner state either, so the professional must also be able to help parents get to know themselves and their child afresh, and help the family grow in mutual respect and acceptance. Finally, new resources in the family, the school or the community have to be found to support the child's development.
So helping a family understand their child's needs and providing support takes time and effort from both the specialist and the family. Whether the process succeeds depends of course on the family's determination to seek a breakthrough, and the specialist needs wide-ranging expertise, clinical experience, planning and case management to see the service through.
Families who have used our professional services generally feel it was “worth it”, because we helped them improve the parent-child relationship and both sides' attitudes changed for the better. Parents understand their child's psychological state and needs better, gain confidence, feel they know how to help their child, and family relationships improve — and most importantly, the child is finally understood.
