ABSTRACT
Much to her parents’ delight, Rebecca was identified as gifted in reading and math at the end of second grade. Throughout elementary school, she made excellent grades and never had an issue keeping up with her schoolwork; she was the “typical” gifted student, not only meeting, but also exceeding her teachers’ expectations. Yet, in sixth grade her parents noticed a change. Rebecca began earning C’s in Language Arts, her favorite class. Passow posed this question as he pondered the nature of giftedness and talent. And although the answer to this question should not be followed by a simple “yes,” many educators, especially those without gifted and talented training, would not hesitate to answer this way. Gifted underachievers most likely have the potential for superior achievement, but that is not where the story ends. They may require extra help from teachers to develop other aspects of giftedness like task commitment and the components of successful intelligence.
