David Cearley
Aug 31, 2018 · 2 min read

I, apparently like you always thought gifted simply meant smart, academically smart. That’s not quite true.

My child’s elementary school just opened the application period for their gifted and talented program. I called up his teacher from last year and asked he whether he would benefit from the program and whether we should apply. She had an entirely different definition.

She explained that the testing is basically an IQ test, but what they are actually attempting to measure is the child’s level of abstract thinking. In essence, what labels them as gifted isn’t straight academic ability, it’s the ability, or possibly preference for approaching problems and seeking solutions un the abstract following pathways different from the norm.

When I was in sixth grade, the school sent me home with a Manila envelope thick with forms and paperwork. It was glued shut so I never got a peek. I remember it sat in top of the fridge for at least a week, and I was intensely curious what was in it. I didn’t find out for several years. My mom finally admitted that the school had identified me as gifted, and were asking my parents to allow me to attend a different campus with a gifted program.

My father, afraid that it would isolate me and make me even more socially awkward and geeky, refused.

Now that i’m the other side of sixty, how did that turn out?

Not well. I was bored out of my mind, a terror to my teachers, especially those who couldn’t engage in deep conversations, and I developed atrocious study skills because straight As required minimal effort. Being a serious geek made me the target of several bullies in middle school, and I never outgrew that social awkwardness. I still anticipate answers and constantly interrupt during conversations. I was never a great employee. I was far more interested in developing and manipulating systems and processes than following them. I questioned just about everything all if my life. Frankly, I never lived up to my potential, a realization I can never escape.

In some areas, abstract thinking is highly valued, in other areas, it’s an impediment to work. I knew I was different. Some pointed it out to me Few ever helped me understand just what those differences were, and what I could do or where I could go to turn those differences into strengths.

I do know that for schools recognizing differences and helping children overcome some, and leveraging other differences can be critically important to our children’s future. The label only sucks when no one helps you figure out what to do with it.