Infrastructure of Giftedness, or Living to See 2020

The article presents cutting-edge interdisciplinary studies of human abilities. We reveal the problem of discrepancy between the present educational standards and governmental policies in the field of science and education, and the latest findings of human abilities research. The discrepancy is most marked in case of giftedness. We define giftedness as inherent or acquired aptitudes to various disciplines or activities. Despite the broad range of available methodological materials for identifying talents and national traditions of empowering geniuses carried out in different countries, giftedness is still almost unpredictable and incomprehensible phenomenon. Frequent scientific and technological revolutions, snowballing diverging of knowledge and practices, as well as rapid change of education criteria in the society – all those have given an impetus to “turn to the human” and go beyond traditional branches of science. The author notes the hot buttons of the global educational crisis and the problem of brain exodus urgent for leading European countries and Russia. Thus, the “infrastructure of giftedness” is hypothesized, the system that could help to identify talents in Russia and provide support to them, so that educational paths could be developed with consideration of individual aptitudes.

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