Challenges facing gifted teachers 

Many specialists, especially those interested in the field of talent and creativity, believe that teachers of the gifted are people who have the ability to answer any question, and that their professional experience is what makes life in front of them paved with perfection. The teacher of the gifted is also seen as a role model and the best of all, but these trends - towards him - may lead him to feel frustrated and hopeless most of the time, especially in front of the large numbers of gifted students. There is information indicating that every gifted teacher is met by twelve gifted students from all educational levels, and they constitute a burning flame of enthusiasm and activity. The number and quality of students represents one of the basic challenges that challenge the abilities, potential and qualification of the teacher of the gifted. 

One gifted teacher says, “Being a gifted teacher is not an easy task. Like all teachers, we are given certain tasks, some of which we fail to do, and others we are not enthusiastic about, so we are not prepared to do them to the best of our ability.” 

On the other hand, some teachers of the gifted say that what motivates them to work is their sense of humor, their commitment to their ideas, their high productivity, the mutual respect between them and the gifted students, as well as their high language skills and their advanced mathematical skills. Although these qualities that gifted teachers describe themselves with may suggest to some that the gifted teacher is more professional than other regular teachers, there are those who say, "In order to be able to teach gifted students well and provide them with all the special education they need, I have to know and learn everything." 

The most important question here is, is a gifted teacher supposed to be gifted? One educator, Susan Winebrenner, answered this question through a personal experience she went through, saying: “I was concerned about this when I first joined the local training program for gifted teachers. I was that student at the institute who worked hard and learned all the topics and curricula presented regarding the gifted. Despite all my efforts during the training period, I did not notice that I was characterized by the queen of talent, nor did the trainers around me notice it, until over time I realized the answer to my question: “Is a gifted teacher supposed to be gifted?” The answer was of course no. A teacher who is successful in dealing with the gifted is not gifted, but rather possesses some diverse academic, social, psychological, and other qualities that gifted students respond to very positively.” They are as follows: 

• To have high expectations for the performance of his gifted students.
• Have a strong knowledge and understanding of the subject matter he is teaching.
• To have the ability to plan and monitor the learning progress of gifted students.
• To work with others, colleagues and parents in a professional manner.
• To work on developing his experience in the subject he studies or supervises continuously.
• To be flexible in dealing with different teaching methods, and to employ interesting strategies that develop effective learning behaviors and attitudes among gifted students.
•  To have enthusiasm mixed with a sense of humor and lightness. 
• To have the skill of deep and directed listening, and to encourage extensive questioning.
• To be aware and cognizant of the characteristics and needs of gifted students. 
• To have the desire and ability to prepare, arrange and develop an appropriate educational environment for teaching gifted students. 
• To accept the mistakes made by gifted students, and to use a policy of acceptance and encouragement with them, and to avoid direct criticism. 
• To provide a safe classroom environment, accept the strengths and weaknesses of gifted students, and deal with them in a way that makes them not feel embarrassed, and they receive sufficient support and encouragement.

Professor James Delisle** wrote a special letter to teachers of gifted students who are beginning in the field, based on his previous experience in teaching the gifted. One of the most beautiful things in the letter was the following passage: “Don’t believe everything you read.” He meant the books that were prepared to guide and advise teachers of the gifted as a whole, explaining that they were not all subject to practical, realistic, and procedural application within gifted classes. In turn, he asked the gifted teacher to rely on his own ideas and personal experiences, which would contribute to developing his classroom performance. 

On the other hand, one of the best books presented to develop and improve the performance of the novice teacher of the gifted is what Professor Rita Cullross recommended as a consultant in the field of giftedness, as she recommended books that include practical activities and guidelines for working with gifted students in small groups or as individuals, and she praised a number of valuable books directed at novice teachers of gifted students, such as Robert Milgram’s book entitled (Teaching Gifted and Talented Learners in the Regular Classroom). 

In general, it is not limited to books alone, but there is a need to communicate with specialists in the field of talent and creativity through workshops and annual meetings between parents of the gifted and their teachers, as all of this will contribute to developing the skills of teachers of the gifted aspirants. We should also not forget that the qualities of teachers of the gifted are influenced and closely linked to those young gifted minds and the experiences they gain through their interaction with gifted students, which makes many of them believe that they are gifted.