ABSTRACT

What we understand as giftedness and what we define as success are inherently connected to our cultural values. Because giftedness is context-specific and socially constructed, gifted education can become one of the means whereby schools unwittingly perpetuate social inequities, including racism and economic disadvantage (Borland 2005; Gillborn 2005b). We know that across settings and nations, minority students are under-represented in gifted programming (Butler-Por 1993; Callahan 2005; Ford and Thomas 1997; Graham in press; van der Westhuizen 2007). While this is allowed to continue, the credibility of the field is undermined in ways that jeopardise not only social equity, but also funding and public support.