SUPPORTING GIFTED SCHOOLCHILDREN IN UKRAINE AND ABROAD: PROBLEMS OF COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Abstract

The article is devoted to the problems of comparative studies in the field of pedagogical support for gifted schoolchildren. It is identified the tasks, functions and factors of pedagogical support for gifted schoolchildren in Ukraine and abroad in the context of comparative studies. It is emphasized that comparative pedagogy is encouraged to objectively study the international experience of the formation the educational theory and practice. It also includes the pedagogy of giftedness, which main tasks are explanation, prediction and verification. Its functions such as explanatory, predictive, critical, transference follow from these tasks. It is noted that the comparativist’ recommendations can affect the policy in the field of research and school giftedness practice in national pedagogy, so there should be no inaccuracies in these advice. Recommendations should be clear, understandable to implementers and addressed to education management, school heads, teachers, parents or even the students themselves. However, when developing recommendations, one should remember that the traditions which have developed in a particular country can’t always be transferred to the national education system due to the level of economic development, national values, etc. The taxonomy of results, which should be taken into consideration when analyzing pedagogical supporting gifted students should be as follows: educational policy; organization of support (national, regional, municipal level); financing of events; education plans and programs, guidelines (one should remember that different countries are focused on different philosophical systems - pragmatism, rationalism, humanism, etc.; different pedagogical concepts, for example, polytheism as it used to be in Soviet times); orientation of educational content to the leading factor of development: personal development of the child, social needs. It also needs to consider the experience of teacher training for work with gifted schoolchildren, family education, help from various charitable foundations, and extracurricular activities.