24 December 2017
Giftedness is often misunderstood. While certain qualities are usually associated with giftedness, such as an ability to grasp concepts quickly, or an unusual memory capacity, there are other personality quirks that may come with the gifted package, such as excitability or emotional sensitivity.
In Singapore, giftedness is a construct that shapes education policy. While the Ministry of Education’s website recognises that there are many forms of giftedness, the focus has remained almost exclusively on intellectual giftedness.
This mindset is not lost on students and parents. For example, the Gifted Education Programme holds a definite allure for parents, who are often motivated to enrol students in tuition courses targeted to get them into the GEP.
Today, MOE has recognized the need to expand its pedagogy to include creativity, and the development of higher order thinking and problem-solving skills.
As a society, we need to decide what sort of generation we want to raise. Intellectual challenges are good for students, but what is truly needed is exposure to real world challenges that students will later encounter when they graduate.