The current study aims at better understanding the factors that promote and hinder chemistry teachers in teaching a gifted student in their regular chemistry class. In addition, it provides evidence of ways that teachers perceive a professional development course dealing with a gifted student in a mixed-abilities science classroom. Eighty-four photonarratives were collected from 14 chemistry teachers that participated in the course about teaching a gifted student in a regular classroom (41 promoting, 43 hindering factors). Factors that concern chemistry education specifically as well as general practices were raised by the teachers. The teachers were asked to “take a picture” (namely, of an external object or person); they considered most of the factors to be internal factors that are dependent on themselves and therefore concluded that they have the power to influence them. The internal factors can be addressed in the PD course; however the external factors should be managed by the school principal and district educational administration.
Gifted students should continually utilize their high abilities in order to keep developing their academic skills and their eminent thinking abilities. They should establish their basic cognitive ability in order to prepare themselves for future challenges [
Intellectual gifted students have a natural inner interest in natural sciences. They seek to discover and better understand the “rules” behind natural phenomena and how to apply them [
Two trends in researching teachers’ behavior in class were pointed out. The first emphasizes the teacher’s personality and attitudes. The other trend emphasizes the cognitive dimensions of teachers’ behavior. There is a consensus regarding the importance of both trends [
Across five subject areas and over a period of 92 days of observation, gifted students received instruction in homogeneous groups only 21% of the time [
However, it is not easy for teachers to make changes in the way they teach [
Teachers’ beliefs about particular students and classrooms become critical components in their choice of using specific methods of instruction [
The existing PD courses for teaching the gifted student in a regular classroom were focused on the general aspects of teaching gifted students [
The objectives of the PD course “best practices for gifted students” were to become acquainted with and to get a better understanding of the field of gifted and talented student education, and to learn models and strategies that can support them teaching a gifted student in a regular class. Based on the literature of teachers’ PD the course consisted of 14 meetings of two hours (during one school year) and provided the teachers with an opportunity to implement what they learn in their class during the course. The PD presented an overview of the concepts and the main characteristics of gifted students and provided the teachers with an opportunity to reflect on their own beliefs regarding gifted students [ Characteristics and needs of gifted students. Addressing the social and emotional needs of gifted students in the classroom. Science education for gifted students. Modified instruction and strategies for best practices. Developing creative thinking and creativity. Technological tools and platforms for teaching the gifted student in a regular classroom. Hindering and promoting factors for teaching a gifted student in a regular science classroom.
Each week the students participated in a class meeting and read a given article, a book chapter or watched a movie and focused on one of the class topics. After each topic the teachers were given an assignment in which they were asked to implement what they learn in their teaching in different ways. For example, after learning the first topic of characteristics and needs of gifted students the teachers were asked to identify a gifted student (or more than one) in their class and to write his (or her) characterizations, and in the next meeting the teachers discussed their findings in the group and found differences between the ways each perceived the definition of giftedness. Another example, after learning about modified instruction and strategies for best practices they were asked to read the paper of VanTassel-Baska [
In order to support teachers’ implementation of the course content in their science teaching (related to the gifted student in their regular classroom), we introduced the photonarrative assignment that shed light on factors that inhibit and factors that support teachers to teach the gifted students in their regular science classroom.
Towards the end of the course, the participants heard a lecture about two studies: (1) Goldston and Nichols [ For this assignment, you will create a photonarrative specific to your own teaching and school environment, keeping in mind that our focus is gifted students in a regular class. You should take 6 digital photographs around your school and community: three that
Each participant created a photonarrative and submitted it to the two course instructors, who provided written feedback using a rubric. Rubric categories included the style, the connection between photographs and the course content, and the richness of the rationale for each photograph chosen. Next, each participant selected four photographs from their photonarrative (two helping and two hindering factors most representative of their teaching) to share with the class during a class presentation. This act of sharing their individual teaching context was done in order to discuss the photonarratives among the teachers and to find together with the teachers common factors that influence their teaching of the gifted student in their regular classroom.
The photonarrative assignment was chosen for two reasons: (I) During the course the teachers read VanTassel-Baska’s article [
The current study is intended for learning about chemistry teachers who underwent a professional development program on teaching a gifted student in a regular chemistry class. It is aimed at understanding those factors that promote chemistry teachers, who went through a professional development program, in teaching a gifted student in their regular chemistry class, and those factors that hinder them. In addition, it provides evidence on the usefulness of PD about teaching a gifted student in their class. More specifically, we focused on the following questions: Which features do teachers consider as helpful or hindering to their teaching of gifted students in their chemistry class when they develop a task-structured photonarrative? What are teachers’ perceptions of the usefulness of a professional development course dealing with the gifted student in a regular chemistry classroom?
Fourteen teachers enrolled in the professional development (PD) course “Best practices for gifted and talented students." Eleven of the teachers were female; three were male. The PD took place during one school year. Thirteen participants were practicing middle- or high-school teachers in regular schools; one was a teacher in a special school for gifted children. All the teachers taught in science disciplines. The participants teach 15–18-year-old students in mixed-ability chemistry classrooms. Namely, the students’ abilities ranged from high ability students to students who straggle with the subject matter. That abilities range is realized in their prior knowledge, learning pace, the amount of practice they need, and so forth. As was mentioned above, in Israel gifted students learn the scientific courses in regular (mixed-ability) classrooms and therefore the PD course was focused on teaching the gifted student in a regular science classroom. The teachers came from different geographical areas in the country and taught in schools from different ethnic groups (Arab, Jewish, Religious, and Secular). All of the participants had received a M.S. degree in Science Education and had varying levels of teaching experience, ranging from 2 to more than 20 years. This PD was an obligatory course in the M.S. degree in the second year (last year) of their studies.
Data sources used in this study included three sources: (1) teachers’ photonarratives and their written explanation of the meaning of the photos they included, (2) their presentations of their work during the class presentation and the group discussion, and (3) a written reflective feedback at the end of the course.
The participants were given grading criteria for the photonarrative assignment in advance; one of these criteria was to make connections between their photonarratives and the content conveyed in our course. Those connections that were made by the teachers with the reflective feedback at the end of the course provided evidence regarding the effectiveness of the professional development course. A grounded approach was used to identify the main aspects of the teachers’ views regarding the factors that promote and factors that inhibit their teaching of the gifted student in the class, which will be described next.
Analysis of the photonarratives was based on a constructivist/interpretive qualitative framework [
Then, the teachers discussed the different photonarratives in the oral presentation meeting and were asked to write which of the presented photonarratives were identical and which differed from their own photonarratives. Namely, the primary coding scheme of the photonarratives was done by the teachers themselves during the group discussion that followed the photonarrative presentation. This categorization was followed by one researcher choosing independently identified themes in all the photonarratives in order to better understand any potential patterns. The teachers’ written text that supported their images was examined and was used to explain and clarify the pictorial data in the images. To ensure that the categories used to understand the photonarratives were meaningful and valid, a second researcher coded the photonarratives using the codes developed and refined by the first author. The researchers discussed the three photonarratives that were differentially categorized until they reached a consensus.
The teachers’ views regarding the effectiveness of the different components of the professional development course were deduced from the analysis of their reflections [
In this section we will present the results and discussion according to research questions.
The participants listed a total of 41 helping and 43 hindering factors in their written photonarratives, and several key themes emerged among the images. Figure
Frequency of helping (a) and hindering (b) factors listed in teachers’ photonarratives.
Twelve different helping factors emerged in the coding system (Figure
An interesting photonarrative of a promoting factor that emerged from the analysis is “teachers’ interactions with the gifted,” which was raised by 7 teachers. The teachers described their interactions with the gifted students as a personal promoter to support their learning:
They explained that interacting with the gifted student that has a deep understanding and shows curiosity increases their motivation (teacher’s motivation) to support the gifted student’s learning. They also indicate that when they create interactions with the gifted student they feel that they promote the student. The two directional interactions indicate a reciprocal influence of the interaction.
Different technology applications and platforms were suggested by the teachers as promoting factors and were all categorized in “technology.” For example, the use of QR codons to give a different assignment to a gifted student in the class was suggested as a convincing tool for differentiation.
The photonarrative “teachers’ development and knowledge factor” was raised by 5 teachers and reflected their perception that they can influence their ability to promote the gifted student by learning and participating in professional development courses, as they actually do. This photonarrative provides positive feedback to the course, which will be discussed in the next section of the results. Even the factor “technology,” which seems to represent an external locus of control, was considered by some of the teachers as an internal factor. They described how they themselves use the computer and the Internet to promote the gifted.
The promoting factor “teachers’ awareness of gifted needs” also reflected the teachers’ beliefs that their own awareness will promote their educational provision of the gifted student in their class. Using “alternative teaching methods” (e.g., [
However, the teachers also suggested external factors that can support them. The most typical external factor was the consuming of “enrichment programs.” Enrichment programs include the Chemistry Olympics or university courses in chemistry that are open for excellent high-school students. These programs can provide the gifted student with the intellectual challenges that they need. The teachers just need to be aware of such programs and to encourage the student to participate.
Some of the factors were considered by the teachers to be helping as well as hindering factors (e.g., textbooks, technology). Textbooks will inhibit teaching a gifted student when they contain scientific inaccuracies. However, they can promote their learning because they include enrichment activities. Regarding technology, teachers described their use of simulations, videos, and applets in order to demonstrate abstract chemistry concepts and processes [
Classroom setup was also suggested as a promoting factor as well as an inhibitor factor. Three teachers reported that the neglected classroom can disrupt the lesson (e.g., broken chairs, wall graffiti) and their attention. Physical environment of the classroom can also help to improve the learning environment and to prevent behavior problems before they occur. It can affect the behavior of both students and teachers [
Twelve different inhibiting factors emerged in the coding system (Figure
School “
Although the teachers were asked to figuratively “take a picture” (namely, of an external object or person), they considered most of the factors to be internal factors that are actually dependent on themselves and therefore they have the power to influence them. Some of the emerging factors were clearly internal, where some teachers even took a picture of themselves (e.g., difficulty in sympathizing). One teacher took a picture of herself dressed up like the stigmatic gifted student (Figure
A hindering photonarrative “difficulty in sympathizing.”
VanTassel-Baska and Stambaugh [
The first inhibitor, namely, differentiating instruction and appropriate modification of the curriculum for gifted students in a mixed-ability class, was mentioned twice in the photonarratives: first it is mentioned directly in the photonarrative “mixed-ability students” (Figure
The second inhibitor mentioned by VanTassel-Baska and Stambaugh [
We examined what the inhibiting factors are that were raised by the teachers and are not described by VanTassel-Baska and Stambaugh [
To understand how the different parts of the professional development course were perceived by the teachers as enhancing their understanding of inhibitors and promoters, their connections of the photonarrative to the course contents as well as their written feedback assignment were examined.
In the feedback the teachers indicated that they now better appreciate the importance of the course. One teacher wrote that
The teachers described different aspects in which the course had influenced their perceptions regarding teaching a gifted student in their chemistry class. The first aspect was related to their commitment to teach a gifted student. Several teachers wrote that they now realize that they are responsible for supporting the cognitive development of the gifted students in their class, as reflected from the following:
The teachers’ sense of commitment to provide the gifted student with appropriate teaching and teachers’ knowledge of the developmental nature of giftedness constitute an essential stage in supporting a gifted student in a regular classroom. In a study in Finland [
The next issue for providing appropriate education is teachers’ awareness of teaching pedagogies and strategies that can be used in a mixed-ability classroom and providing an intellectual challenge to the gifted students [
The technological tools that were presented in the course were described by the teachers as being very effective tools for promoting a gifted student in a regular class. However, as previously noted, and as some of the teachers showed in their photonarrative assignment, the teachers also mentioned their concerns regarding the technical problems in school, which can negate the usefulness of the technological tools.
We found connections between the teachers’ photonarratives and the different parts of the course, as described in Table
Connections between teachers’ photonarratives and the PD course’s components according to teachers’ written reflection.
Course component | Related photonarratives |
---|---|
( |
Difficulty in sympathizing |
|
|
( |
Teachers’ awareness of gifted students’ needs |
|
|
( |
Inquiry laboratory |
|
|
( |
Alternative teaching methods |
|
|
( |
Inquiry laboratory |
|
|
( |
Technology |
All parts of the course are reflected in the teachers’ photonarratives, as described in Table
In the current study, chemistry teachers’ photonarratives provided the possibility of examining their perceptions regarding inhibiting and promoting factors related to how they teach the gifted students in their classroom. The results provided the researchers with insight into a variety of factors that influence teachers’ practices and beliefs regarding gifted students in mixed-ability classrooms. Reinforcing the promoting factors and reducing the hindering factors for teaching gifted students in a regular class may have a positive impact on providing suitable learning opportunities for gifted students as well as for other students in a regular class and enable gifted students to achieve their greatest potential.
In the study we identified inhibiting factors of two kinds: internal inhibiting factors and external factors. The PD course addressed the internal factors and provided the teachers with guides how to overcome these inhibitors and how to empower the promoting factors. In addition, the teachers’ discussion in the course in which the teachers shared the way they deal with these inhibitors provided the teachers with a model of their colleagues who managed to overcome the inhibitor. The external inhibitors that were raised by the teachers indicate that teachers PD on its own is not enough for achieving change in gifted education provision. Attention should be given to raise the awareness of school principals, district administration, and their recognition of their responsibility to provide appropriate education services for all students including the gifted student in the regular classroom.
The current study is focused on understanding teachers’ inhibitors and promoting factors for teaching the gifted student in a regular chemistry classroom. However gifted students are only one part of the classroom diversity. The mixed-ability class includes students characterized by different level of cognitive abilities, different motivating and interest, and so forth. The PD course that proved the teachers the understanding and the tool to address the gifted in her class, actually enable the teachers to use the tools that were provided in the course for the benefits of other students’ population in the classroom. Using differentiation instruction helps gifted students as well as other students in the class.
Chemistry as a subject matter is a perfect area that can challenge gifted students in the chemistry classroom, as was described in the Introduction. However when we examine the promoting and inhibiting factors that were suggested by the chemistry teachers only three of them were specifically connected to chemistry (laboratory inquiry, safety, and materials and supply). All the other factors are generic and relevant to teaching the gifted student in any regular classroom. We suggest that the results of the current study can be implemented also in other subject matters.
In the PD course we support the teachers to overcome the inhibiting factors and provide them with tools to strengthen the teaching skills that build their promoting factors. One of the promoting factors that was described by half of the teachers was “teachers interactions with the gifted.” This aspect has a potential to influence teachers attitudes and willingness to support the development of the gifted student in their mixed-ability class; however not enough research was conducted to study this aspect.
The resulting inhibitors and promoting factors that were found in the current paper are the factors that were raised by the science teachers who participated in the PD course that took place in Israel. These factors do not represent all the possible factors. We are aware that other teachers in different context could suggest different inhibitors and other promoting factors for teaching a gifted student in a regular classroom. We suggest further research in additional context in order to obtain a better understanding of the factors that promote and the factors that inhibit science teachers to provide the educational needs of a gifted student in a regular classroom.
The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this paper.