From the Editor’s Desk

Abstract

Welcome to Volume 44, Issue 2 of the Roeper Review. This issue is exploratory, both conceptually and geographically. The contributing authors include eminent scholars who extend and refine our conceptions of giftedness. Other leading scholars establish the bases for enhancement of provisions for creative thinking, acceleration, and the strengthening of gifted programs. The issue also has an international flavor, drawing insights from various parts of the world. Robert Sternberg has done much to inject ethical awareness into the field while helping it align more effectively with 21st-century trends, issues, and contextual pressures. His article, The Most Important Gift of All? The Gift of Courage, adds much to that injection and alignment by showing how individuals can choose to develop and manifest an ability that is all too rare and of increasing importance in the turbulent complexities of the 21st-century. Howard Gardner is well known for designing ways to think differently about well-worn concepts in the field. Here he takes us on an expansive exploration of conceptual territory in his article, A “Smart” Lexicon. While reminding us that conceptions of intelligence are very diverse, he extracts the important skill of synthesizing from an array of other abilities to magnify its importance in today’s world. He recommends the magnification of synthesizing ability as a way to pull together the other intellectual capacities and make them more effective. In their article, Enhanced Open-Mindedness and Problem Finding Among Gifted Female Students Involved in Future Robotics Design, Alaa Eldin Ayoub, Ahmed Abdulla Alabbasi, Amal Alsubaie, Mark Runco, and Selcuk Acar investigated some interesting dimensions of creative thinking. They studied the ways in which robotics-based enrichment processes can help gifted female students strengthen their problem finding and open-minded thinking. Provisions for gifted education vary considerably around the globe. Maya Antoun, Margaret Plunkett, and Leonie Kronborg give us a helpful basis for international comparisons of provisions through their article, Gifted Education in Lebanon: Time to Rethink Teaching the Gifted. Their investigation revealed the nature and nuances of teacher beliefs and practices pertaining to giftedness and talent development. In their article, An Investigation of an Early College Entrance Program’s Ability to Impact Intellectual and Social Development, Jiaju Wu, Susan Assouline, Virginia McClurg, and Steve McCallum provide some helpful insights about the effects of a form of acceleration on various aspects of students’ growth including cognitive processes, social interactions, the emergence of happiness, and other processes and characteristics. Every issue of the Roeper Review also includes interviews with a prominent scholar of giftedness or creativity and a highly accomplished expert in a particular domain. We include these interviews to help us strengthen theory and research in gifted education while clarifying the nature of talents, opportunities, and barriers that influence the work of gifted adults in various professions. The outstanding scholar featured in this issue is E. Jean Gubbins, an innovative thinker who has advanced the field with her impressive work on identification, program development, and the refinement of curriculum, among other initiatives. The talented expert in this issue is June Stevens, a Naturopathic Doctor who is helping the medical profession become more holistic. Finally, I conclude the introduction of each issue with a brief portrayal of insights from a discipline outside our field to enable us to think more insightfully about giftedness and talent development. The insight shared here is a big-picture vision of innovation and its impact on the world.