How stakeholders perceive gifted education: A study of beliefs held by stakeholders in elementary gifted education programs

This is a quantitative study to identify and compare the beliefs held by elementary school administrators, gifted education specialists, classroom teachers, and parents of high-ability students concerning issues related to gifted education services provided by a rural school district in Southeast Georgia. Participants were administered a close-ended Likert scale questionnaire. The responses were analyzed to provide descriptive statistics on the beliefs held by members of each group. Responses were also analyzed to discover the extent to which beliefs held by members of each group aligned with one another and with experts in the field of gifted education. The study revealed agreement among many stakeholders on issues pertaining to gifted education. The study also showed that many stakeholders have views that align with those of experts in the field of gifted education. In several areas, the study revealed that a substantial number of stakeholders have opposing views with one another or hold views that do not agree with those of experts in the field of gifted education.