The Office of Gifted and Talented, New Jersey, and the Department of Education and Industrial Arts of Glassboro, South Carolina, cosponsored the first "Olympics of the Mind," a competition designed to develop and recognize the creative talents of high school students. The activity is described, and information for schools and teachers is provided.…

Discusses creative processes in science regarding: (1) the personal quality of creativity; (2) how to teach creative science; (3) communication of scientific creativity; and (4) reward system of scientific creativity. (HM)

Findings from a study of 380 gifted and talented high school students supported R. Zajonc's conclusion that there is an advantage for a child to be raised in a small family and to be first born if intellectual skills development is used as the sole criteria. (CL)

Studies regarding the development of talent and unusually successful learning indicate that a "qualitative transformation" frequently occurs in which these individuals grow in their understanding of learning, recognizing the importance of commitment to learning through mutual encouragement and support. (CB)

The author looks at the excellence in education trend and analyzes it, using four basic questions: What do the reports have to say? To what extent have the diverse needs of all students and secondary schools been considered? How are the reports likely to affect vocational special needs education? And finally, how might the profession respond? (CT)

The involvement of 1,000 parents of gifted and talented children in the educational system was studied in New York and Cleveland. A questionnaire determined their involvement in 27 selected service, financial, and parent education practices. Contrary to some expectations, these parents were not very involved in school activities. (SLD)

Study of relationships among divergent thinking, metamemory, achievement, and Intelligence Quotient (IQ) in gifted fifth- and sixth-graders (N=98) found that metamemory was related to both divergent thinking and achievement, suggesting that metamemory is independent from, yet essential for, convergent and divergent thinking which may underlie…

A reworked 1978 article presents a model for designing, implementing, and evaluating programs for gifted students that asks (1) why such programs are needed, (2) what identification/selection criteria should be used; (3) how enrichment or acceleration should be balanced; and (4) and what evidence there is of program success. (VW)

Identification procedures and educational services for the county of Surrey (England) are described. Identification procedures consider students in the top one percent of ability who are then monitored by a senior staff member in each school who coordinates a suitable individualized learning program for each child. (Author/DB)

This article describes four years of experience the Pittsburgh High School of the Creative and Performing Arts has had with a dance program. Problems and virtues of the program are highlighted, and suggestions for improvement are offered. (MT)

The Test for Creative Thinking-Drawing Production, an open-ended drawing test, is an approach to assessing and identifying students' creativity in terms of 11 criteria: completion; additions; new elements; connections with a line; connections with a theme; boundary-breaking, fragment-dependent; boundary-breaking, fragment-independent; perspective;…

Longitudinal data are presented from the Lighthouse Program for gifted students which features cluster grouping and a quota identification systems to ensure proportionate inclusion of minority students. (Author/CL)

Self concepts of 102 gifted fourth grade children assessed prior to gifted class placement were systematically higher than those of 92 subjects assessed after beginning the program. A significant interaction between time of assessment and IQ was found. (CL)

Reveals that only a small number of Illinois high schools submitted successful entries in the talent search and that most of these came from the Chicago area. (FL)

The multiple talent approach to learning features a double curriculum in which talents and knowledge are both stressed. Program efforts and research are cited to suggest the importance of incorporating such an approach into gifted and talented programing. (CL)