Identifying Giftedness

What is giftedness? What do we mean when we speak of our student population as those who have high performance capabilities? There are many different conceptions, definitions, and theories of giftedness. Adherence to a particular definition can be politically charged and can create intense feelings within the community of adults who deal with gifted children. While we do have certain standards for admission at The Sage School, we have not adopted a rigid definition of giftedness. Our standards for performance and behavior are high, and our experience suggests that our students manifest many areas of talent including superior academic performance, leadership, creativity, and artistic expression. We challenge our students to make the most of their gifts, in and out of the classroom.

Definitions of Giftedness

Formal definitions of giftedness are provided by a variety of governmental agencies, advocacy groups, and theorists.

The United States Department of Education:

Children and youth with outstanding talent perform or show the potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishment when compared to others of their age, experience, or environment.

These children and youth exhibit high performance capability in intellectual, creative, and/or artistic areas, possess an unusual leadership capacity, or excel in specific academic fields. They require services or activities not ordinarily provided by the schools.

Outstanding talents are present in children and youth from all cultural groups, across all economic strata, and in all areas of human endeavor.