Giftedness, achievement, and inclusion: A discourse analysis6
Simone Seitz, Michaela Kaiser, Petra Auer, Rosa Bellacicco
Over the past decades, debates on the promotion of giftedness and achievement in schools have gained widespread public awareness. However, the relationship between giftedness, achievement, and inclusion within the related discourses appears to be inconsistent. Therefore, the present contribution tries to illustrate the mechanisms by which scientific knowledge about the promotion of giftedness and achievement in school is structured and its relation with the concept of inclusion. In doing so, particular emphasis is placed on the international inclusion agenda. By means of a discourse analysis of the international scientific literature following the Sociology of Knowledge Approach to Discourse (SKAD), the underlying study investigated the narrative formations and the stabilising rules of interpretation of these discourses. By exemplifying two maximally contrasting texts, it revealed quite distinct lines of argumentation and interpretations regarding the relationship between giftedness and inclusion or inclusion and giftedness, respectively. The findings lead to the conclusion that orienting towards the concept of social justice in terms of capabilities might be a solution to reconcile these two concepts, since this orientation enables all children to equally develop their diverse abilities, with schools taking on the responsibility to provide the necessary opportunities.
Keywords
Giftedness, Achievement, Inclusion, Educational justice, Discourse analysis.
