How gender and teaching status shape gifted referral decisions of Turkish teachers

The purpose of this follow-up study was to examine how Turkish elementary school teachers’ gender and service status influence their gifted referral decisions. A sample of 192 elementary school teachers (80 pre-service and 112 in-service) from a southeastern city in Türkiye evaluated 11 hypothetical gifted students (profiles), with sample members indicating their likelihood of referring each student for gifted identification on a four-point Likert scale. The results revealed that Turkish male and female teachers made different referral decisions in only one out of eleven profiles. Moreover, Turkish teachers’ service status (pre-service or in-service) affected their gifted referral decisions in four out of eleven profiles. In-service teachers demonstrated a higher probability of nominating hypothetical students for gifted identification compared to pre-service teachers. Notably, an interaction effect was observed between teachers’ gender and service status in which male in-service teachers showed the highest likelihood of referring students for gifted screening.