GIFTED AND TALENTED

Words carry great power. And the things we say to children and teenagers have the capacity to play over and over in their minds throughout their childhood and adolescence, and into adulthood.

Let’s think about this in reference to the education system and the words GIFTED and TALENTED. Education regularly uses these words to exclude and categorise children on the premise that there are a portion of children who are gifted and talented. And if you’re not among the select few, then you are unfortunately devoid of gifts and talents.

There is a fundamental problem here.

Early into their schooling we are quickly labelling and categorising children to the point where they come to believe that only some of their peers are clever and capable of achievement.

How dare we!

I am a teacher and have had the privilege of bringing out the very best in my students. I have worked with the so called ‘gifted and talented’ and I have worked with students who have come to believe that they exist at the very bottom of the academic hierarchy.

I can tell you, I have never met a child who is not gifted or talented.

There are unique gifts and talents in every child. Not only do I seek to celebrate these, but I also seek to open young people’s eyes to the strengths within them. Yes I can tell them the greatness I see in them, but it is far more powerful to accompany them on the journey of discovering these strengths for themselves.

So next time you use the terms ‘gifted’ and ‘talented’ think about what you’re saying. May we reappropriate these terms and apply them to every child, in every classroom and every household.

I am a high school English teacher and the co-founder of Today We Learned.