The Reality of Practicing Differentiated Learning in Gifted Classes from the Perspective of a Gifted Student and Her Associates

ahood Moeed Alqahtani; Abdulhamid Abdullah Alarfaj

ahood Moeed Alqahtani KSA
Abdulhamid Abdullah Alarfaj Associate professor, College of Education, King Faisal University, Saudi Arabia, alarfaj1@gmail.com , https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5361-0609 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5361-0609

Keywords: Keywords: Differentiated learning; Gifted; Gifted classes; Teachers

Abstract

The study aims to identify the reality of practicing and applying differentiated learning for gifted students through adopting the following: a survey descriptive approach in which a set of qualitative instruments such as interviewing a gifted student, a quantitative instrument, a questionnaire for teachers of the gifted, an observation instrument and the document analysis instrument to check what female teachers present with regard to professional practice of differentiated learning in gifted classes.

From the perspective of the gifted student, practicing differentiated learning in gifted classes was not as expected. Contrary to that, teachers’ responses, according to the questionnaire, showed that they did. The use of the observation instrument was to perceive the practice from another perspective. The study concluded that practicing differentiated learning by teachers was lacking, as they continued to use traditional methods of teaching. To ensure teachers’ understanding of the concept of differentiated learning, the document analysis instrument was used. It was clear that the professional training offered by the school and training office was relatively good, but the real practice didn’t cope with its quality.

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