Formal operational reasoning in the intellectually gifted

This study addresses the problem of assessing the logical reasoning potential of intellectually gifted students as indicated by their ability to use the eight formal operational concepts defined by Inhelder and Piaget. The performance of 39 tenth-grade and 26 twelfth-grade students previously identified as intellectually gifted was compared with that of 427 students representative of a cross-section of the school population at the same grade levels on a group-administered pencil-and-paper test of formal reasoning. The unequal and disproportionate group numbers necessitated the use of a generalized least-squares regression model of analysis of variance. The gifted groups performed significantly better than the norm group at each grade level, the difference being greater for the higher grade students. Differences related to grade level, sex, and group were found when the total scores, representing both concrete and formal operational reasoning, were used as the dependent variable. However, the effects of grade level and sex failed to show significance when competence in the use of the formal operational concepts was more strictly defined by higher-order responses. The subtests presented various degrees of difficulty, falling into three clearly defined levels which were similar for both gifted and norm group students. Vocational information obtained from a sub-sample of the gifted twelfth-grade students revealed no real difference between the scores of arts-oriented and science-oriented students. Low to moderate correlations between scores on the test of formal reasoning and I.Q. were found for the gifted group, the highest (0.53) being with verbal I.Q. at grade twelve. The findings suggest that use of the test of formal reasoning provides information that is supplementary to that obtained from conventional intelligence tests, and which may prove useful In helping to identify and provide appropriate programs for intellectually gifted students.Education, Faculty ofEducational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department ofGraduat