ABSTRACT
Consideration of inclusion of gifted students begins with a review of the purposes of education and the place of education of gifted students in the pursuit of those purposes. First, we offer a review of the range of goals from societal to individual and from situated to non-situated. We conclude that the most reasonable way to precede is to evaluate inclusive education for gifted students by considering how it compares to alternate approaches in its effect on a broad range of goals, across those spectrums. Recognizing that consideration of gifted students in the inclusion dialogue is largely neglected and that the construct of least restrictive environment is quite different when considering gifted students, we focus on two fundamental questions: Can inclusion be an effective way to address the needs of gifted students? If so, what conditions are necessary for this to occur?
