Abstract:

The aim of this study was to determine the attitudes of the educational staff and their assessment of their competence in the field of discovering and working with gifted and talented students in sports. Forty classroom teachers and 40 physical education teachers were included in the study. We used a questionnaire designed for the purposes of this study. The results show that teachers are aware of the role and importance of discovering and working with gifted and talented students, but that they need additional professional training to avoid possible mistakes and problems they might encounter in their work. The teachers believe that their school takes the serves the area of discovering gifted and talented students (X ̅= 3.50 (0.91); p ˂ 0.001), somewhat less the area of educational work with them (X ̅ = 3.39 (0,77); p <0.001) and for the systemic and operational regulation of the education of gifted and talented students (X ̅= 3.35 (0.94); p = 0.001). Physical education teachers identified more children who were gifted or talented in sports than class teachers (t(78) = -5,979, p< 0,000). The scientific contribution represents an important contribution in the field of work with talented and talented students, as for the first time in Slovenia the views of the pedagogical staff and their assessment of competence with such a group of students are presented. We conclude with a critical presentation of some gaps and an overview of the existing situation as well as with some guidelines for further pedagogical and scientific research.

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