Page 20 - Kukanja Gabrijelčič, Mojca, and Maruška Seničar Željeznov, eds. 2018. Teaching Gifted and Talented Children in A New Educational Era. Koper: University of Primorska Press.
P. 20
odoros P. Kokkinos, Aikaterini D. Gari, and Lavrentios G. Dellassoudas
reading comprehension questions based on a given text, to summarize it, an-
swer vocabulary drills and write their own argumentative text on a given sub-
ject correlated to the given texts’ thematic core. So, it can be understood that
these Exams are a highly demanding and competitive procedure that trigger
students’ motivation. The afore mentioned educators’ concern though is ev-
idenced by the Exams’ results in Language Arts, in which students are consis-
tently being placed at the lower end of the achievement range (only around
2 of the participants excel). Therefore, these high achieving students form
each year a marginal group of students, a true very low percentage, among
Greek students at this educational level. Thus, the investigation of these stu-
dents’ linguistic features and their relationship to a specific group of features,
such as motivation, that is triggered through the particular examination pro-
cess and creativity, might further our understanding of the processes that
may lead not only to these students’ effective support but also to the whole
system’s excellence boost.
Creativity Features of High Ability Students
Current literature indicates that creativity is a basic feature of high ability stu-
dents (Miller, 2012). Numerous research approaches argue that the identifi-
cation of divergent thinking, as a reliable indicator of an individuals’ creative
potential, is based on the evaluation of a person’s interaction with a problem
(Klausen, 2010; Sternberg, 2008). Specifically, the degree of fluency, original-
ity, elaboration, and flexibility of one’s ideas during the successive phases of
finding and identifying the problem, hypothesizing and organizing a solu-
tion plan, and finally sharing the results, are assessed and evaluated (Treffin-
ger & Isaksen, 2005). Elaborating on this concept, creative thinking seems to
be the ability to see things in new and original ways, to learn from experi-
ence and relating it to new situations, to think in unconventional and unique
ways, to use non-traditional approaches to solving problems, and creating
something unique and original.
A considerable number of research studies move a step further as they try
to correlate the writing process with creativity in the school context. It has
been argued that students’ positive attitudes towards writing show a posi-
tive correlation with creativity, especially with the students’ ability of elabo-
ration (enrichment of the original thematic core with details) (Wang, 2012).
Also, it has been found that during the writing process, the skills that are
activated such as the freedom and ability to communicate ideas, as well as
thinking, remembering, reasoning and exploring, are also positively and sig-
nificantly correlated with creative thinking (McVey, 2008; Sturgell, 2008). As
18
reading comprehension questions based on a given text, to summarize it, an-
swer vocabulary drills and write their own argumentative text on a given sub-
ject correlated to the given texts’ thematic core. So, it can be understood that
these Exams are a highly demanding and competitive procedure that trigger
students’ motivation. The afore mentioned educators’ concern though is ev-
idenced by the Exams’ results in Language Arts, in which students are consis-
tently being placed at the lower end of the achievement range (only around
2 of the participants excel). Therefore, these high achieving students form
each year a marginal group of students, a true very low percentage, among
Greek students at this educational level. Thus, the investigation of these stu-
dents’ linguistic features and their relationship to a specific group of features,
such as motivation, that is triggered through the particular examination pro-
cess and creativity, might further our understanding of the processes that
may lead not only to these students’ effective support but also to the whole
system’s excellence boost.
Creativity Features of High Ability Students
Current literature indicates that creativity is a basic feature of high ability stu-
dents (Miller, 2012). Numerous research approaches argue that the identifi-
cation of divergent thinking, as a reliable indicator of an individuals’ creative
potential, is based on the evaluation of a person’s interaction with a problem
(Klausen, 2010; Sternberg, 2008). Specifically, the degree of fluency, original-
ity, elaboration, and flexibility of one’s ideas during the successive phases of
finding and identifying the problem, hypothesizing and organizing a solu-
tion plan, and finally sharing the results, are assessed and evaluated (Treffin-
ger & Isaksen, 2005). Elaborating on this concept, creative thinking seems to
be the ability to see things in new and original ways, to learn from experi-
ence and relating it to new situations, to think in unconventional and unique
ways, to use non-traditional approaches to solving problems, and creating
something unique and original.
A considerable number of research studies move a step further as they try
to correlate the writing process with creativity in the school context. It has
been argued that students’ positive attitudes towards writing show a posi-
tive correlation with creativity, especially with the students’ ability of elabo-
ration (enrichment of the original thematic core with details) (Wang, 2012).
Also, it has been found that during the writing process, the skills that are
activated such as the freedom and ability to communicate ideas, as well as
thinking, remembering, reasoning and exploring, are also positively and sig-
nificantly correlated with creative thinking (McVey, 2008; Sturgell, 2008). As
18
