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Gifted grownups: The mixed blessings of extraordinary potential.


Streznewski, M. K. (1999). Gifted grownups: The mixed blessings mixed blessing
Noun

an event or situation with both advantages and disadvantages

mixed blessing n it's a mixed blessing → tiene su lado bueno y su lado malo

 of extraordinary potential. New York New York, state, United States
New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of
: John Wiley John Wiley may refer to:
  • John Wiley & Sons, publishing company
  • John C. Wiley, American ambassador
  • John D. Wiley, Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • John M. Wiley (1846–1912), U.S.
 & Sons (292 pp., $24.95 hb, ISBN-0-471-29580-9).

This book is an intriguing in·trigue  
n.
1.
a. A secret or underhand scheme; a plot.

b. The practice of or involvement in such schemes.

2. A clandestine love affair.

v.
 expression of data collected by Streznewski over the course of a ten-year study driven by a desire to find out what type of world awaits gifted students when they grow up. The author approached this task with several research questions in mind. These involved: whether gifted adults would say the same things about themselves and the world as the gifted students Streznewski taught; whether the methods used by the author to identify gifted children in the classroom would enable her to identify gifted adults; the role society played in nurturing these persons, and what should be done about their situations.

The participants were 100 gifted adults, ranging in age from 18 to 90, and were a diverse group with respect to gender, ethnicity, socio-economic status, education, and geographic location. Forty of the participants were selected according to according to
prep.
1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians.

2. In keeping with: according to instructions.

3.
 the researcher's perception of who was gifted; the balance were nominated by colleagues, the subjects, and criminal justice workers. Streznewski compiled statements about being gifted made by gifted students she had taught, as well as concepts about giftedness from the literature in the field. These were given to the participants on small cards, allowing them to choose which, if any, they wished to address in interviews with the author. Most interviews lasted from 2 to 3 hours.

Information gathered from the participants is presented in the form of dozens of vignettes woven into chapters that explore various topics such as: family; work; young adults; and older adults. The author makes extensive use of quotations and summaries from the interview data. The small stories serve well to portray the feelings of the interviewees, and flow in a very readable fashion. This is definitely a work that one can sit down and read as a pleasure book, during a break from academic reading. This can be attributed to the target audience for the work: the general public. This book seemingly is not intended as an academic treatise A scholarly legal publication containing all the law relating to a particular area, such as Criminal Law or Land-Use Control.

Lawyers commonly use treatises in order to review the law and update their knowledge of pertinent case decisions and statutes.
 for educators, but rather, a means for gifted adults to learn that they are not alone in their feelings about the world and their place in it. This goal is met quite effectively as the stories presented are compelling and make one wish that more could be learned about these individuals. This is both the main strength and weakness of the book.

The gifted adult who reads this book will most likely be intrigued and stimulated. Stories are presented from a range of persons including high financial and personal success-stories and those who pursued a life of crime and incarceration Confinement in a jail or prison; imprisonment.

Police officers and other law enforcement officers are authorized by federal, state, and local lawmakers to arrest and confine persons suspected of crimes. The judicial system is authorized to confine persons convicted of crimes.
. There is someone here for almost any gifted adult to identify with, however, the gifted adult with a high level of curiosity (Clark, 1997), may be dissatisfied that the stories are so brief. This is a danger in writing a book that consists of compelling material. It creates a hunger for more information about the protagonists, as well as some sort of a denouement de·noue·ment also dé·noue·ment  
n.
1.
a. The final resolution or clarification of a dramatic or narrative plot.

b.
. This is a pleasant disappointment, as the reader will be glad that he or she has read this work, but desire more.

Streznewski's findings indicate that the same methods of identification used for finding gifted children can work in locating gifted adults, and that the concerns of these persons are very much the same as those of their younger counterparts. The author presents examples of persons whom society has not nurtured well, and thus these persons have not fulfilled their potential. In fact, those participants who could be seen as succeeding in our society often did so in spite of the world around them, not because of it, much like some gifted children. Ideas addressing this problem are offered, but are not developed sufficiently to be seen as solutions, rather they identify needs. The research objective to determine what should be done for gifted adults is not really fulfilled, but doing that would be well beyond any single volume.

The need for more information in this arena of study is, as is pointed out by the author, often ignored in the field of gifted education Gifted education is a broad term for special practices, procedures and theories used in the education of children who have been identified as gifted or talented. Programs providing such education are sometimes called Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) or . The overwhelming majority of the study of the gifted population focuses on early childhood to age 18. The other 75% of the gifted person's life is often ignored by researchers. Hopefully this book will stimulate researchers to study the gifted adult, as a compelling case is made that the needs of the gifted child gifted child

Child naturally endowed with a high degree of general mental ability or extraordinary ability in a specific domain. Although the designation of giftedness is largely a matter of administrative convenience, the best indications of giftedness are often those
 do not end when she gets out of school.

The usefulness of this book may lie not in the substantial information it presents, but in the provocation Conduct by which one induces another to do a particular deed; the act of inducing rage, anger, or resentment in another person that may cause that person to engage in an illegal act.  that it provides. The study of gifted adults is something that needs to be given more attention. The logic would seem obvious, as we won't know whether our efforts to support gifted children are successful until we study these persons over their life spans. However, according to Streznewski, this is rarely done. Work such as this research, which gets into the gifted person's desires and needs is needed in the field of study of the gifted. This book is a good beginning.

REFERENCE

Clark, B. (1997). Growing up gifted, 5th ed. Upper Saddle River Saddle River may refer to:
  • Saddle River, New Jersey, a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey
  • Saddle River (New Jersey), a tributary of the Passaic River in New Jersey
, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Reviewed by John Klapp, doctoral student in Human Learning, Development, and Instruction in the Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology Counseling psychology as a psychological specialty facilitates personal and interpersonal functioning across the life span with a focus on emotional, social, vocational, educational, health-related, developmental, and organizational concerns. , and Special Education at the University of British Columbia Locations
Vancouver
The Vancouver campus is located at Point Grey, a twenty-minute drive from downtown Vancouver. It is near several beaches and has views of the North Shore mountains. The 7.
, Vancouver, BC.
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No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2000, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Title Annotation:Review
Author:Klapp, John
Publication:Roeper Review
Article Type:Book Review
Date:Sep 1, 2000
Words:908
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