In the past years a growing number of children in The Netherlands is attending special educational arrangements for gifted children. However, not much is known about the effectiveness of these special arrangements and the specific knowledge and skills needed to teach those children. This study is about the skills and competences that are needed to teach gifted children.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the success factors of gifted education and what this means for teacher training institutes. The main research questions are:
-    Which knowledge and skills are needed to teach gifted children?
-    Which educational arrangements are effective in meeting the educational needs of gifted children?
Based on interviews with parents and teachers of gifted children, a questionnaire was developed about competences to teach gifted children and effective educational arrangements. In total 344 parents and teachers of gifted children completed this questionnaire.
Conclusions are that teachers have to learn their students the characteristics and needs of gifted pupils in order to recognize these children in their classroom. In addition, it is important that teachers know how to customize work material and methods for gifted children and to coach children in a solution focused way in their learning process and metacognitive skills. Furthermore, teachers have to perceive parents as an expert on the child’s needs and work together in teaching the children. In this way, teachers are able to meet the educational needs of gifted children as well as the needs of the rest of the class.