Talented students are a heterogenious group of students who are above average in a particular area of interest. Some of them will make a significant contribution to the advancement of their field of interest in adulthood, so it is important to adapt learning methodst to talented students to develop holistically and fulfill their abilities. For several years now, inclusive pedagogy has been proposed to work with students, not just talented ones, which promotes self-paced learning. In the context of inclusive teaching, inquiry-based learning is proposed for gifted students, which has a positive impact on peer relationships, increasing motivation and increasing cognitive achievements.
The purpose of the study was to determine the affectiveness of inquiry-based learning as a method of inclusion for ten-year-olds on a science day. Differences in knowledge of students, especially gifted, on the pre-test and post-test, and differences in knowledge between gifted students and their non-gifted peers has been measured. Also how knowledge is influenced by students’ individual interest in science and their academic selfesteem. The dynamics of working in a small groups, the central subject of which was talented students, has been observed. It was determined whether gifted students feel their active role in the group, which science activities help them in this active role and how gifted students cope with the problems that have arisen.
The research was analyzed using descriptive and causal-nonexperimental methods of pedagogical research. The study included 59 pupils in the 5th grade of one of the elementary schools in Gorenjska. For this purpose, a science module on the topic of soil analysis was compiled, which was carried out as a science day. Before the science day, students took a test and completed a questionnaire on individual interest and academic selfesteem. During the science day, special attention was paid to talented students, who were observed with the help of specially prepared observation sheets. At the end of the science day, an interview was conducted with the talented students, and all students took the test again.
The results show that inquiry-based learning is an affective method of learning, especially for gifted students who achieved significantly higher results on the post-test. However, it was very difficult for students to draw conclusions from the results. We found that academic achievement was also influenced by learning selfesteem, while individual interest did not contribute to better results. The reasearch shows that talented students mostly participate actively in a small group, even if they are in a group with non-talented peers. When non-talented peers engage less actively with them, the talented take on the role of a leader or perform the activities themselves. The talented therefore feel that they are very active in all aspects, and even more so in activities that arouse their greater situational interest. Except for some conflicts, the talented do not report problems and do not feel neglected in any way in the group with the non-talented, although they do report that they would like more active engagement of their peers with them.
Research has utility value to primary tachers in school science. It is based on a teaching method which can be used for students with different needs and cognitive abilities. For further research a bigger sample of gifted students is proposed as well as performing a late test. The observation could be expanded to a longer time frame and it would be interesting to observe the differences between heterogenious and homogenious groups of students.
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