Mayhem University Prep

Quote:

"The Gifted Child: Super Achiever or Underachiever -- Parents and Teachers Make the Difference.

The early environments which foster giftedness in children can also make them vulnerable to feeling extreme pressures.  The praise and power which cultivate a positive learning environment may become "too much of a good thing."  Gifted children may internalize highly competitive pressures to be brilliant, perfect, extraordinarily creative, beautiful, and/or popular.  The pressures that gifted children internalize can lead to motivation or may also cause them to learn defensive patterns which lead to underachievement.  Families and schools can help gifted children to cope with these pressures by providing realistic challenges and guidance.  Schools which provide for the needs of gifted children will encourage them to make a commitment to their education and a contribution to society.  They can learn to feel good about their personal accomplishments and about themselves."                                  

-Dr. Sylvia Rimm, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine