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3.6.6 Gifted and Regular Pupils’ Views of Characteristics of Good Primary School Teachers

Many gifted pupils are not optimally motivated and achieve significantly below their potential (Jarvin & Subotnik, 2015). More insights are needed into how teachers can adapt better to the educational needs of gifted pupils. The self-determination theory suggests that ‘need-supportive teaching’ fosters pupils’ motivation (Ryan & Deci, 2006), meeting three basic needs: relation, competence and autonomy. We were interested in gifted pupils’ views and regular pupils’ views of good teachers. The research question addressed in this study was: Which are characteristics of good teachers in primary education according to gifted pupils in comparison to other pupils?

Method In total 891 pupils (9 to 12 years) participated: 463 gifted pupils (297 boys, 163 girls, three gender-unknown) and 428 regular-ability pupils (216 boys, 212 girls). A questionnaire containing one open question was used: “What is a good teacher for gifted pupils like yourself?” (Figure 1). The characteristics reported, were analysed using the three ‘basic needs’ from the self-determination theory.

Figure 1. Questionnaire on teacher characteristics

Results Teaching characteristics fostering relatedness were mentioned most by all pupils: 43.2% by gifted pupils and 40.3% by regular pupils. Next were competence-related characteristics (resp. 39% and 40.3%), while autonomy-related characteristics were mentioned least (resp. 9.5% and 10.5%). A few differences were found between the two groups: attuning to pupils (e.g., “an understanding teacher”) was mentioned more frequently by gifted pupils (Χ2=16.196, p<0.001). Gifted pupils mentioned encouragement more often than regular-ability pupils did (2.3% versus 0.9% respectively; Χ2=13.424, p<0.001). Gifted boys referred to the need for competence more often than gifted girls (41.2% versus 36.1%; Χ2=5.139, p=0.024), whereas the reverse was found for the regular-ability group (42.6% versus 37.2%; Χ2=6.847, p=0.009). Finally, ‘offering choice’ was more often mentioned by regular-ability pupils (5.8% versus 4.1%, respectively; Χ2=6.310, p=0.012).

All pupils both reported teachers’ qualities meeting the need for relatedness most. It seems important that teachers are kind, show understanding for the gifted, invest time in getting to know the pupils and listen to them. Teachers’ personality-related characteristics and the way they are able to relate to their (gifted) pupils, seem most important. It is interesting to discuss how one can become such a teacher.

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