Beyond the Classroom Walls: Teachers' and Students' Perspectives on How Online Learning Can Meet the Needs of Gifted Students

Online learning programs have the potential to provide gifted students expanded access to advanced courses, but little research has been conducted on how well or in what ways the online environment is a good match for gifted students. The study presented here is an in-depth qualitative and quantitative investigation of the perceptions and experiences of academically talented students and their teachers about courses offered through an online program designed specifically for gifted students. Participants in this study included 28 instructors currently teaching at least one online course and 65 students in grades 3-12 currently enrolled in at least one online course offered by a supplemental school offering both online and face-to-face programming for gifted students. According to the gifted students and teachers interviewed and surveyed in this study, the online format is conducive to a more individualized and differentiated learning experience than is often possible in a regular classroom. Students are able to work at a pace consistent with their rate of learning, have more time to reflect, to feel more in control of the learning process, and to engage in more self-directed and independent learning. These benefits and others indicate the online programming can be an effective means of meeting the needs of many gifted students.