The Future of Education

The subject of this study is the area of children’s thinking, especially the area of preconceptions, creating ideas about certain phenomena that surround children during their development. These phenomena are perceived as determinants of thinking. Preconceptions are constructed concepts of various objects, things and phenomena that have arisen from individual's experience with objects or phenomena, as well as other impacts (family, school, media, etc.). Preconceptions also include the emotional relationship, attitude and opinion of certain phenomena that the individual creates through experience. Based on the importance of understanding preconceptions for the development of cognition (thinking and ideas) about phenomena, our goal was to identify and compare the preconceptions of gifted and ungifted pupils of younger school age. Knowing the personality traits of gifted children (whose development is characterized by irreversible developmental advances, and the spectrum of their manifestations often ranges from hyperactivity through significant activity to introversion) is the basis for their understanding. These personality traits and characteristics of gifted individuals are a prerequisite for special and professional approach of teachers, with the aim of quality and balanced personality development of individuals of this population. The level of pupil's thinking should be the priority for each teacher. In the presented work we understand talent as a certain phenomenon posing a challenge for a completely different approach and grasp of children’s thinking in education. Therefore, we were interested in whether there are differences in the level of preconceptions among gifted and ungifted pupils in primary education.

Keywords: Preconceptions, Gifted Pupil, Young School-Age Pupil, Meaningful Education.