This thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education (Special Education). Pre- and post-tests were analyzed using independent samples T-test to examine the effect of the enrichment program on the participants' level of awareness of problem-solving skills and on their creative problem-solving skills. In addition, the awareness level of the experimental group in the problem solving steps is significantly higher after the program.
Introduction
- Overview
- Statement of the Problem
- Giftedness and Education
- Giftedness and Creative Problem Solving
- Impact of Enrichment Programs
- Statement of the Problem
- The Purpose of the Study
- Research Questions
- Significance of the Study
- Limitations of the Study
- Definitions of Terms
Gifted and talented students need to be creatively taught and challenged with a problem-solving program. Teaching gifted and talented students problem-solving skills in explicit ways is also very effective. Therefore, the results of this study will contribute to the literature on investigations into gifted and talented students' creative problem-solving skills.
Review of the Literature
Theoretical Framework
So, preparing a good environment with all the resources for a gifted child can influence him to become a gifted child. The second is called "individual" and relates to the relationship between the gifted child and other members such as parents, teachers, peers and mentors. It means all rules and regulations related to the gifted child program; it is also related to curriculum, pedagogy and whether students are placed in an acceleration or enrichment program.
Literature Review
- Definition and Characteristics of Gifted Students
- Enrichment Program
- Impact of Enrichment Programs on Enhancing Gifted
Therefore, this study aims to develop UAE grade 10 gifted students' creative problem-solving skills by directly teaching them creative problem-solving skills. It is also recommended that students hold forms of problem solving and creativity sessions for gifted and talented students (Christine, 2019). According to Ceylan (2020), the researcher conducted a summer enrichment program with a waste management theme for gifted students.
Problem-solving skills and creativity enhance students' abilities to use both divergent and convergent thinking. This result suggests that educators may need to use problem-solving strategy and enrichment units to improve gifted and talented students' thinking skills (AlDhaimat et al., 2020). According to Smedsrud (2018), one of the most important and useful strategies for teaching gifted and talented students is problem solving.
In order to solve the problem, gifted students may need to know about problem solving steps and how to solve problems effectively. This study was very effective for gifted students because the researcher used online student feedback to know students' overview of problem solving strategy that can increase their understanding of problem solving strategies (Pratiwi et al., 2018). Vahid and others said the problem-solving program had an impact on gifted and talented students.
After the intervention and presentation of students' creative projects, the results of this study revealed that gifted students have more awareness of creative problem-solving strategies.
Summary
In addition, there is research (Birgili, 2015) that focuses on increasing the creativity and problem-solving of gifted and talented students. It also turned out that these skills – such as thinking ability and creativity – are very important for gifted and talented students and are necessary for sustainability and secondary education (Birgili, 2015). This study is an opportunity to fill the gap that exists today regarding the impact of enrichment among gifted grade 10 students.
The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of an enrichment program on improving the creative problem-solving skills of UAE high school gifted students.
Methodology
- Introduction
- Participants
- Instruments
- Intervention Program
- The Aim of the Program
- The Content of the Program
- The Development of the Program
- The Implementation of the Program
- Instrument Validity
- Reliability Analysis Results
- The Pilot Study
- Research Design
- Data Collection/Procedure
- Ethical Considerations
- Data Analysis
To answer the research questions, the researcher developed a Problem-Solving Questionnaire (PSQ) to assess students' awareness of the problem-solving steps. The researcher then developed the SCAMPER test by combining the Torrance activities with the problem-solving steps (see Appendix C). That is why the researcher used it and to increase gifted students' awareness of the problem-solving steps and their creative problem-solving skills.
The researcher trained the students in the SCAMPER strategy in the last two weeks of the program. In the fourth step, the researcher and her facilitators check the students' understanding of the problem-solving steps by performing a number of assessment methods (see Appendix F). Finally, the researcher re-assessed the checklist items to ensure accuracy and language use.
In this research, the researcher used a T-test to assess the level of students' awareness of problem solving between the two groups (see Table 3). Data collection in the study includes a pre- and post-problem-solving questionnaire and the SCAMPER test. The intervention program lasted for five weeks, as stated by the researcher in the section above.
At the end of the program, the researcher gave the same questionnaire to a group of gifted students to compare.
Results of the Study
An appropriate answer to this question can be obtained by comparing the pre-test and post-test means for the experimental group using the paired sample t-test to check the statistical significance of the differences at the 0.05 level of significance. Looking more closely at the average of the experimental groups in the pre- and post-test, it is found that the experimental group scored significantly higher in the post-test (m=52.30) than in the pre-test (m= 42.07). To examine the effect of using the enrichment unit on the creative abilities of gifted secondary school students in the UAE, the Eta square statistic was calculated using the following equation: Eta squared (2 ƞ) = effect size = t2 (t2 + df).
Are there statistically significant differences between the control group (which did not receive the enrichment program) and the experimental group (which received the enrichment program) on the awareness of problem solving steps before and after the implementation of the enrichment program. To answer this question, the researcher used an independent samples T-test to assess the significance of differences between mean levels of awareness. The results of the testing show that the experimental group is, on average, significantly more aware of the problem-solving steps after using the SCAMPER strategy compared to the control group, which indicates the effectiveness of the SCAMPER strategy.
To answer this question, the paired sample T-test was used to compare the difference between the level of awareness of the experimental group before and after applying the enrichment program using the SCAMPER strategy. This is an indication of the positive effect of the enrichment program using the SCAMPER technique. To assess the effectiveness of the enrichment program using the SCAMPER technique in increasing the participating students' awareness of the problem-solving steps, the Eta-squared statistic was calculated.
This result demonstrates the importance of using this program and the SCAMPER strategy in training students and in raising their awareness of the steps they need to follow to solve a problem.
Discussion and Recommendations
Introduction
Summary of Major Findings
The SCAMPER strategy was found to be highly effective and useful among gifted students. This finding also supports the findings of Cetinkaya, who reported that students in the experimental group that used creative thinking skills had higher scores in dimensions such as creativity, problem solving, and self-efficacy, more than students in the control group (Cetinkaya et al., 2015). . Therefore, secondary school teachers in the UAE may need to consider offering their gifted students enrichment programs using the SCAMPER strategy to improve their creative problem-solving skills.
The results of the third question regarding significant differences between the awareness of the control group (not receiving the enrichment program) and the experimental group (receiving the enrichment program) of the problem-solving steps before and after the implementation of the enrichment program show that there highly significant statistical differences exist between the experimental group's and the control group's awareness levels of problem-solving steps after the application of the educational enrichment program using the SCAMPER strategy. In addition, the result of the fourth question, which was about the awareness of the problem-solving steps of gifted high school students from the UAE, shows that the awareness level of the experimental group in the problem-solving steps is significantly higher after the post-test (after applying the the SCAMPER strategy). This is an indication of the positive effect of the enrichment program using the SCAMPER technique in increasing students' awareness of the problem-solving steps.
According to Smedsrud (2018), an enrichment program is one of the most important and useful strategies for teaching gifted and talented students problem-solving skills. In addition to that, problem solving skills are effective for gifted students: it goes through many steps starting from defining the problems, using many resources, finding different solutions, choosing one of the best solutions. Therefore, high school teachers may want to consider offering creative problem-solving enrichment programs to their students.
According to related literature, teaching tactics that maintain problem-solving skills, creative and critical thinking skills, and improve performance are essential elements of gifted student education.
The Implications of the Study
According to Sun-Youn and Jiwon (2020), the explicit instructional approach was helpful in improving student performance. This gives all teachers good indicators to teach gifted students in a direct way and to give them the instructions in a direct way. Moreover, teaching a SCAMPER strategy to gifted students was very effective for gifted students, so that the teachers could apply it in their classroom with some activities such as group work and discussions.
Limitations
Recommendations for Future Research
The effectiveness of using both problem solving strategy and the traditional method in developing creative writing skills for high school students. The effectiveness of future problem solving program (FPSP) in developing creative thinking skills among gifted students: experimental study. The effect of using brainstorming strategy in developing creative problem solving skills among female students in Princess Alia University College.
Psychometric properties of the Renzulli scale of behavioral characteristics (3rd edition) in detecting gifted students in the age group (12–18) in Jordan. Teachers' views on the problem-solving contribution of programming instruction to gifted students. Development of a test of the ability to creatively solve mathematical tasks for the identification of the gifted in mathematics.
Genuine Engagement in Active Problem Solving (REAPS): An evidence-based model that meets the content, process, product, and learning environment principles recommended for gifted students. Identifying gifted students in the United States today: A look at state definitions, policies, and practices. Exploring students' creative thinking in using representations in solving mathematical problems based on cognitive style.
Creative problem solving in small groups: The effects of creativity training on idea generation, solution creativity, and leadership effectiveness. Construct validity and reliability of a performance assessment rubric to measure student understanding and problem solving in university physics: Implications for public accountability in higher education [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Creative and problem-solving thinking of gifted and talented young children observed through classroom dialogue.
