The Effect of the “Curriculum Development in Gifted Education” Course on Pre-Service Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Gifted Education

This study examines the attitudes of pre-service special education teachers toward the education of gifted individuals and evaluates the effect of the “Curriculum Development in Gifted Education” course on these attitudes. Designed as an experimental study, it used a one-group pretest–posttest design. Forty-two pre-service teachers enrolled in the Special Education Department of Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli University during the 2024–2025 academic year participated. The “Attitude Scale Regarding the Education of the Gifted” (ÜYETÖ) was administered as a pretest at the start of the course and re-administered as a posttest at the end of the 14-week course. The data were evaluated using difference analysis for dependent groups and repeated-measures MANOVA. The findings showed that the pre-service teachers already held generally positive attitudes toward the education of the gifted before the course, but that these attitudes strengthened significantly afterward. Statistically significant increases were observed particularly in the “Needs and Support for the Gifted,” “Establishing Special Talent Classes,” and “Grade Skipping” sub-dimensions. These findings indicate that the course raised the teachers’ level of knowledge and developed their awareness and sensitivity. The increase in knowledge directly affected their attitudes as well. Gender and prior training related to the gifted were also found to be influential in attitude differences. In conclusion, the course was found to strengthen pre-service teachers’ positive approach to gifted education. Accordingly, it is recommended that courses on the education of gifted individuals be increased in teacher-training programs and that program content be enriched in this direction.