Giftedness and talent in inclusive preschools: A multiple-case study regarding identification, teaching, quality of interactions, and experiences of children

There are gifted and talented children who go unnoticed in education systems and who are not provided with adequate teaching. This is a matter of concern, both for individual children and society at large. This mixed methods, multiple-case study of three inclusive preschools in Sweden investigates identification, teaching, quality of interactions, and experiences of children to advance knowledge on these four matters. The framework includes the Bioecological Model for Human Development and the Differentiating Model of Giftedness and Talent. Before the study started, ethical approval was attained. Structured and semi-structured observations, as well as semi-structured interviews, were conducted over a period of 13 days. Six gifted and talented children and three preschool teachers were enrolled. Both thematic analyses and descriptive statistics were accomplished. Identification was conducted using a bird´s-eye view (comparing with peers) and a close look (getting to know each child) using interactions. Teaching was achieved using whole group teaching, small group teaching, one-to-one teaching, and independent work. Overall, there are positive preschool teacher-child interactions and environments in the three preschools. The experiences and interests of the six children confirmed these identifications, teaching forms, and quality of interactions. Significance and knowledge contributions, and suggestions for further research are discussed. This study has relevance to student preschool teachers, preschool teacher educators, preschool teachers, preschool principals, and others interested in giftedness, talent, inclusive education and preschool.