Finding the next Einstein - Three Reasons Why Americans Ignore Gifted Children

Chester E. Finn Jr. of The Fordham Institute recently wrote an opinion piece in The New York Times titled "Young, Gifted, and Neglected." It is definitely worth a read. In it, he writes:
"Public education’s neglect of high-ability students doesn’t just deny individuals opportunities they deserve. It also imperils the country’s future supply of scientists, inventors and entrepreneurs."

I believe that we should help all children including gifted children. I have outlined the reasons why in my article Of Brainiacs and Billionaires for Psychology Today, which also shares a perspective similar to that of Finn.

However, I have also been thinking about reasons why many Americans may not be interested in gifted education. After talking with people outside the gifted education community, I've summarized the main arguments as to why most Americans are simply not interested.

1. Most Americans don’t have gifted children — by definition. And parents care about their kids. So why should most Americans care about gifted kids?

The intellectually gifted generally refers to roughly 5 to 10 percent of the population. That means that the vast majority do not have gifted children, so why would they care about someone else's kids? I think this point alone accounts for a huge portion of the reason as to why most Americans do not care about the gifted population. People are generally self-interested and act accordingly.
Read more [link to www.psychologytoday.com]