Abstract: | Abstract
“All of us do not have equal talent, but all of us should have an equal opportunity to develop our talent” – John F. Kennedy. A famous quote by John Kennedy was an encouraging element to decide and work on the needs of Gifted and Talented children. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the approach of English Language gifted and talented children in their schools by the teachers, school administration and society. Its focus was on younger students in their first and second grades in order to find out whether their needs are being accomplished. The research was conducted in the Republic of Macedonia and in order to come to accurate results, we used three instruments: interviews with teachers, questionnaires for parents and class observation. The first instrument, the teachers’ interview, was conducted in thirteen elementary classes, in public and private schools. The second instrument, questionnaires for parents, were questions about their child interest and development but unfortunately, it has to be noted that parents interest as part of this research, was not as expected. Only four parents accepted to answer the questions. The last instrument, the class observation was performed in three classes. This study reveals whether the differentiated teaching methods were used in teaching the English language to young gifted learners; put it in the focus of the educational institutions and teachers the importance of gifted and talented children education. Also the identification of gifted and talented children in an earlier age, on primary classes, what their characteristics are, finding out their needs and how to nurture, give them the opportunity to excel in the realm they are gifted. Hopefully, the gathered data from the study will prove that the main reasons that lead many gifted and talented students to success are the teaching strategies used, the support they get from educational institutions and parents awareness for their child giftedness or talent. Additionally, this research seeks to help teachers follow students’ advancement in the subject from a different point of view. |