Comparison of opinions of professional teacher competencies: principals vs teachers of the gifted.

Abstract

This study obtained information from 36 teachers of the gifted and 76 principals on professional teacher competencies regarded as important for a teacher of the gifted. Participants were asked to complete a Likert Type Scale consisting of 24 professional teacher competencies. Each competency was rated on a scale of 1 (non-essential) to 5 (essential). Competencies for both groups were prioritized according to mean values and compared for items of agreement. Items of disagreement were determined using a two-tailed t-test. It was found that principals and teachers of-the gifted were in close agreement on the rankings of the first six professional teacher competencies. Items ranked highest by both principals and teachers of the gifted were (a) knowledge of nature and needs of gifted students, (b) skill in promoting higher level cognitive thinking abilities and questioning techniques, (c) ability to develop creative problem solving, (d) ability to develop methods and materials for use with gifted students, (e) knowledge of affective/psychological needs of gifted students, (f) skill in facilitating independent research and study skills.