Academic Achievement in Intellectually Gifted pupils

Gifted pupils have needs that must be addressed by educators, parents and psychologists to ensure that they reach their potential, as both the gifted and talented (G&T) pupil and society benefit when they are achieving.

This thesis attempts to understand the academic experiences of gifted pupils, with the aim of better understanding their needs.

The review paper systematically analyses the educational, cognitive, social and affective outcomes of enrichment programmes on G&T pupils.

Results indicate positive changes for affective variables, such as confidence and motivation, and small changes for cognitive, educational and social variables; as well as the need for increased consistency amongst methods of identification of gifted pupils.

The empirical paper is based on quantitative data investigating the academic experiences of intellectually gifted pupils.

The impact of within-child, school based and systemic factors on the academic achievement of gifted pupils in the UK, was explored.

A sample of 139 Year 7 and 8 pupils, with a mean Cognitive Ability Score of 120 and above, was recruited for this study.

The evidence suggests that 25.2% of pupils are underachieving in English and 35.3% are underachieving in maths.

The results of the study indicate that 55% of intellectually gifted pupils are bored due to being under-challenged in their classrooms.

Furthermore, a correlational analysis found a significant relationship between boredom due to being under-challenged and achievement Achievement in Gifted Pupils 3 in maths.

Multiple regression analyses found academic achievement to be significantly impacted by mean Cognitive Ability Test scores in English and maths, and gender in English.

None of the other variables were found to significantly impact academic achievement.