What are the Most Effective Characteristics of Teachers of the Gifted ?

This paper reviews the literature concerning the personal characteristics, professional characteristics, and teaching methods or styles of effective teachers of gifted students. The review is divided into three sections. First, a brief historical overview of gifted education since ancient times is offered. The next section looks at the opinions expressed by experts in the field of gifted education on essential characteristics of teachers of the gifted. The experts generally agreed that standards for teacher training should be established, that the teacher of the gifted should have state certification and/or an endorsement in gifted education, and that the teacher should have high intelligence, an understanding of giftedness, originality, and self-confidence. A table compares four editorial studies which examined experts' listings of desirable teacher characteristics. The bulk of the report reviews empirical studies of teacher characteristics. A table compares 10 such studies. Among desirable teacher characteristics identified by these studies are intelligence, enthusiasm, achievement, drive, self-confidence, promotion of student independence, and a preference for teaching gifted children. (Contains 51 references.) (DB) ******************************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ******************************************************************************** vi What are the Most Effective Characteristics of Teachers of the Gifted ? William J. Heath 4.1 The literature on gifted education is abundant and varied. 'Moreover, large bodies of literature are available in the areas of gifted education regarding teacher characteristics and teacher perceptions. Many experts in gifted education have created lists of recommended and necessary qualities and characteristics of effective teachers. These lists are the result of editorial opinion and empirical keying investigations. This article reviews the literature concerning all the personal characteristics, professional characteristics, and teaching methods or styles, which are significant and relevant to the purpose of this study. Therefore, this review is divided into three major sections: (a) historical overview, (b) editorial expert opinion research, and (c) empirical research. The article concludes with a summary of the related literature. PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY