Evaluation of the practices for gifted students in maths and science and technology classes of the 4th and the 5th grades

The aim of this study is to review the practices for gifted students in Maths and Science and Technology classes of the 4th and the 5th grades. For this reason, descriptive survey was used in quantitative part and case study is used in qualitative part. The sample of the study consisted of a principal, a vice-principal, 10 classroom teachers, 2 Science and Technology teachers, and 97 students of Beyazıt Ford Otosan Primary School in İstanbul. Also, 6 instructors working at Istanbul University, Hasan Ali Yücel Faculty of Education and The Department of Gifted Education took part in this study. For using in the quantitative part, 4 types of instruments were developed by the researcher separately for each subject on each class level in order to specify the students? views concerning the practices for gifted students in Maths and Science and Technology classes of the 4th and the 5th grades. Also, In the Qualitative part, 5 types of interview forms were generated by the researcher in order to specify the teachers?, managers? and experts? views concerning the practices for gifted students in Maths and Science and Technology classes of the 4th and the 5th grades, too. ?The students? views concerning the practices for gifted students in Maths and Science and Technology classes of the 4th and the 5th grades? themed scales were applied to the 4th and 5th grade students studying at Beyazıt Ford Otosan Primary School. In addition, ?the teachers?, managers? and experts? views concerning the practices for gifted students in Maths and Science and Technology classes of the 4th and the 5th grades? themed interview forms were applied to the managers, classroom teachers, Science and Technology teachers, Maths teachers working at Beyazıt Ford Otosan Primary School in İstanbul and instructors working at İstanbul University, Hasan Ali Yücel Faculty of Education and the department of gifted education.After having been checked and edited, quantitative data obtained as a result of the application was computerized. Data analysis was made by the help of ?SPSS 17.0 for Windows Evaluation Version? packaged software. In the analyses of the data obtained for the purpose of the study, frequency was used for tabulation of students? personal details. Besides, t-test, Kruskall Wallis and MWU test were used on explaining the items.The data obtained by the help of interview forms was used for tabulation of teachers? personal details. ?Content analysis? and ?Descriptive analysis? techniques were used for analyzing the questions. In this study, descriptive analysis was used to reflect the views of the researcher, the teachers, the directors and the instructors and exact quotations were included frequently. Also Content analysis was made in order to achieve the relationships and concepts which were able to explain the data obtained. In this sense, coding was done under a theme.As a result of the study, it was searched out that according to the teachers, teachers? 4th grade and 5th grade science and technology and Maths programs didn?t acquire high-level thinking skills, scientific point of view, interest in science and mathematics, problem-solving ability; content of programs was inadequate and failed to meet the interests and needs of students, it was not current enough for gifted students, partially associated with other subjects, it wasn?t functional, it wasn?t behaved in a flexible way, the class periods per week was not enough, classrooms were overcrowding for individualized teaching, there was lack of opportunity for students? self-evaluation, assessment and evaluation methods were insufficient.It was understood that students found the gifted students? - whose mothers were primary school graduates- assessment process activities at grade 4 were more sufficient than the students, whose mother were university graduates. They also found the students?- who had a high-income family- point of view on the subject related to the content more positive.As a conclusion, Female students? point of view on the items related to the assessment process included in the Science and Technology curriculum of 5th grades was more positive than the male students. Students found the gifted students? - whose mothers were primary school graduates- assessment process activities at grade 5 were more sufficient than the students, whose mother were high school graduates, university graduates or postgraduates. It was found out that during teaching-learning process, the students, whose fathers were post-graduates, saw the Science and Technology curriculum of 5th grades from a more critical perspective than the students, whose fathers were primary school graduates. It was resulted that female students found educational attainment, content; teaching-learning process and evaluation process of 5th grades Maths Curriculum more sufficient as comparing with the male students. The students, whose fathers had a low-level of education, had a more positive point of view on evaluation process of 5th grades? Maths Curriculum than the students, whose fathers had a high-level of education.According to the directors? views, it is found out that students in gifted programs provided little or no positive contribution to development of gifted students, the content of programs was inadequate and inflexible, classroom were overcrowding, insufficient school facilities were little adequate or inadequate for gifted students, the textbooks were deficient, the class periods per week was not enough, guidance services were weak, programs of gifted students didn?t differ from the programs for normally intelligent students, having been failed to satisfy the gifted students, it caused much different problems from other schools.According to the experts? (faculty members) views, in Turkey, a major shortcoming is the lack of programs for gifted students, applications for gifted are insufficient and are left behind when compared with developed countries in the world, the students graduated from İstanbul University Hasan Ali Yücel Faculty of Education, Department of Gifted Education aren?t given the opportunity to work in their fields, graduates can work at private educational institutions, however, these teachers should be employed in the public schools under the Ministry of National Education.Various suggestions were made on the basis of the findings.Key Words: Intelligence, Superior Intelligence, Curriculum, Science and Technology, Mathematics