The Role Of The School Counsellor Education Essay

This paper critically reviews old surveies that have explored the function of school counselors for gifted and gifted pupils. School counselors in Saudi Arabia receive small specific preparation in the demands of talented pupils, and it is really rare for counselor preparation programmes to necessitate counselors to take classs on talented pupils as portion of the grade demands. Therefore, this article considers theories of guidance, and the function of school counselors, and gifted pupil programmes in the USA, the UK and KSA. This reappraisal considers the counselor ‘s function in different contexts and discusses it in the Saudi context. In making so, the psychological, educational and professional accomplishments of counselors need to be understand in order to run into the demands of gifted and gifted pupils so that they can populate up to their aspirations and aspirations.

Background of the survey

The function of the school counselor is complicated and one of the most demanding callings when compared with other educational professions. It involves interaction with pupils from different cultural, economic and societal backgrounds.

The primary duty of the school counselor is to develop the accomplishments that will enable them to run into the challenges of this technological epoch. In the epoch of globalisation, this aim is more of import than of all time, where we have to seek for and develop the accomplishments of gifted pupils. In 1981, the Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia established the General Directorate of Guidance and Counselling for Gifted Students. Since that clip, counsel and guidance has become formalized and recognized as a profession, and counselors have been appointed to cover with psychological, societal, educational and vocational jobs and to present protective guidance ( Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia, 1999 ) . For this ground the current paper will foreground the historical background of school guidance and counselors of the talented and talented in the USA, UK and KSA.

In the 1955 Yearbook of Education, mention is made to reding as a procedure of assisting persons through their ain attempts to detect and develop their potencies both for personal felicity and societal utility ( Hall & A ; Lauwerys, 1955, cited in Milner, 1974 ) . A more recent definition is that reding is to assist an person to do his ain determinations and picks in the visible radiation of his feelings and demands ( Milner, 1974 ) .

Jones ( 1970 ) suggested that guidance Is an enabling procedure, designed to assist an single semen to footings with his life as it is and finally to turn to greater adulthood through larning to take duty and to do determinations for himself. The American School Counsellor Association ( ASCA, 1999 ) defines reding as an synergistic procedure as follows: it is a confidential relationship in which the counselor meets with pupils separately and in little groups to assist them decide or get by constructively with their jobs and developmental concerns. In Corey ‘s ( 2002 ) words, the cardinal map of guidance is to assist clients acknowledge their ain strengths, detect what is forestalling them from utilizing their strengths, and clear up what sort of individual they want to be. Counselling is a procedure by which clients are invited to look candidly at their behavior and life style and do certain determinations about how they want to modify the quality of their life.

McLaughlin ( 1993 ) references that effectual school guidance has three elements: an educative map whereby attending is focused on the societal development of the pupil within the school context ; a brooding map which explores the possible impact of the school patterns and social conditions on the personal and mental wellness of the pupil, and a public assistance map which is concerned with planning for and responding to issues that affect the pupil ‘s public assistance.

Saudi Arabia has conducted research to happen out the best attack to gifted instruction, but of class for females who are badly restricted in the topics they are allowed to analyze, these moves are slightly ‘academic ‘ . An interesting study of computing machine usage in Arabic states was made by a Jordanian, Subhi ( 1997 ) . He recommended that gifted student ‘s records should be computerised for easier monitoring of their advancement, and he has designed a programme to assist this. The job, he found though, is that although there are computing machines in Jordanian schools, there are really few of them and the instructors do non by and large cognize how to utilize them.

It looks as though most, if non all, Arab states are willing to recognize and assist the gifted, and several have made raids into out-of-school activities, but the overall result is still hard to specify.

Some writers ( such as Sternberg et al. , 1986, Ziegler and Heller, 2000 ) believe that a consensus is yet to be reached on what is meant by the term ( gifted ) , and yet multiple attempts have been made to set up standards for this, which include constituents such as motive, creativeness, undertaking committedness, and job resolution. However, personal endowment is described by Renzulli ( 1999a, p.4 ) as “ exceeding ability to choose and accomplish hard ends that fit one ‘s involvements, abilities and societal contexts ” . In his position, personal endowment is a capableness developed in the field of self-management that is concentrated by the person in the way of selected results that contain well-being, felicity, personal relationships, avocations every bit good as calling accomplishments. He proposes that personal endowment can be referred to as a scope where those in the Centre of this continuum can be explained as personally competent, while those at the high terminal of the scope can be categorized as personally talented.

On the other manus, Masten et Al. ( 2002 ) argue that resilient persons learn how to get the better of obstructions in order to accomplish their awaited ends, and that this can be described as personal endowment. Besides, Bland et Al. ( 1994 ) refer to specific features of resiliency as an index of exceeding abilities and endowment sing kids from hapless backgrounds. In this respect, Marker et Al. ( 1996 ) propose that legion of the rules of separating course of study for gifted and talented scholars support the development of personal endowment. They refer to larning environments that foster independency, flexibleness and high mobility as being potentially more promising for furthering personal endowments than the more traditional teacher-centred schoolrooms that concentrate on talks with academic content. However, some research workers regret the fact that research on giftedness has been slightly biased, holding chiefly concentrated on IQ-related abilities that address academic accomplishments, and by-passing or merely disregarding other basic accomplishments such as vocational accomplishments ( Bals, 1999 ) , practical intelligence in mundane life ( Sternberg, 2000 ) , and, most significantly, societal accomplishments ( Persson, 1997 ) . Motivation is another issue that has been the focal point of research with respect to gifted kids. Harmonizing to Sternberg ( 2000 ) , some theories depict motive as an helping internal factor in the enlargement of giftedness. One of these theories is Gage ‘s dynamic theory of giftedness which depicts motive, will and self-management as interpersonal accelerators that help change over gifts into endowments. However, these theories have failed to supply counsel in helping young persons of high ability to develop motive. For this ground, some research workers ( for illustration, Colangelo et Al. 2000 ; Alrasheed, 2001 ) believe that talented pupils should be identified and given undertakings at a higher degree than the normal school course of study. Renzulli ( 1999b ) is of the sentiment that gifted pupils should be manufacturers of cognition instead than mere consumers of bing information. He believes that specific programmes and services for the gifted and gifted are the lone solution to let them to populate up to their possible. This thought is farther supported by Reis et Al ( 1995 ) who argues that it is non just to do a talented kid sit in a schoolroom where larning something new will non go on until the 2nd half of the twelvemonth.

Harmonizing to Alhossaini ( 2000 ) , the effectivity of the educational procedure could be seen in tabular array ( 1 ) :

The above figure of methods of interactions could be interpreted in this tabular array.

If these functions are all positive, we get the originative result. And it is mines, mines, mines, it is less originative.

Pattison ( 2006 ) suggests that, reding is an activity that takes topographic point behind closed doors in privateness, the nature of client confidentiality requires this. However, this can do counselling patterns and processes cryptic and misunderstood. In puting this research in the public sphere, it is hoped that reding patterns and procedures have been made a little more crystalline and that the instance for including immature people with larning disablements in guidance has been strengthened. Bor et Al. ( 2002 ) province that school guidance is an interaction in a curative scene, concentrating chiefly on a conversation about relationships, beliefs and behavior ( including feelings ) , through which the kid ‘s perceived job is elucidated and framed or reframed in a adjustment and utile manner, and in which new solutions are generated and the job takes on a new significance.

Research Problem

There have been few programmes for talented pupils offered in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Even though there has been programmes bing, it is new and is for farther rating to be able to develop it more for the pupils. It has been believed that if there has been more developed programmes for talented kids so they will be more enhanced and so, profiting the state.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have put up programmes for talented pupils but is new and rare. There has been surveies sing the support of the governments in the schools on how to back up talented pupils.

1.5 The research inquiries

Based on the purposes articulated in the old subdivision, the following specific research inquiries have been formulated:

How does the Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia support gifted pupils?

Does the governments in the schools aid in the development of the programmes?

How do we find the effectivity of the programmeswith the school counselor, chief, and instructor ‘s aid?

1.6 Sub-questions

Two sub-questions will besides be explored:

Make the instructor, pupil counselor and principal who work with talented pupils have particular makings?

What is the degree and nature of the response of talented pupils to these programmes?

Historical reappraisal of school guidance in USA

Schmidt ( 1999 ) suggests that the development of school counsel and guidance in the United States has its roots in the vocational counsel motion, which started in 1898 when a Detroit school principal, Jesse Davis, introduced a counsel course of study that was delivered in each English category in his school to assist pupils develop character, avoid job behavior, and relate vocational involvements to the solution of their vocational and societal jobs. Gysbers ( 2001 ) argues that in the 1920s and 1930s, the construct of counsel evolved from vocational to educational counsel. Educational counsel was viewed as a set of activities that would turn to non merely occupational concerns but besides the personal and educational facets of persons.

However, although school guidance remained focused on secondary schools, counselors were get downing to look in some simple schools in Boston in the 1930s. Yet, it was non until the sixtiess that the demand was by and large recognized and financess were provided for the preparation of counselors in simple schools ( Schmidt, 1999 ) . However, Baker ( 2001 ) suggests that despite the progressive motion of the sixtiess, school reding did non do good in the seventiess. During the 1970s and into the 1980s, a figure of school reding places were eliminated and fewer occupations were available for freshly trained school counselors due to school budget cuts and fiscal jobs across the US. At the same clip, concern was being expressed about the programmes of counsel and guidance and the services offered by counselors in school ( Baker, 1996 ; Schmidt, 1999 ) . On the other manus, Herr ( 2001 ) says that efforts to specify the function and maps of the school ‘s comprehensive developmental theoretical accounts were better suited to run intoing the development demands of pupils. In 1997, the American School Counsellor Association ( ASCA ) ( 1999 ) adopted the National Standards for School Counselling Programmes. Harmonizing to these criterions, school counselors are required to turn to the needs ofstudents comprehensively through the execution of a developmental school-counselling programme.

Historical reappraisal of school guidance in the UK

School guidance in the United Kingdom dates back to 1913 when London County Council appointed a psychologist to analyze backward kids and rede their parents and instructors on methods of intervention ( Milner, 1974 ) . However, it was non until the sixtiess that school reding began to emerge as a subject in its ain right ( Bor et al. , 2002 ) . At the clip, the American school reding theoretical account which was based on the client-centred attack proposed by Rogers ( 1961 ) was influential. Rogers produced a study in which he recommended that counselors should be appointed to look into the demands of low accomplishing kids. As a consequence, reding classs were set up for experient instructors, and several hundred counselors were employed by local instruction governments throughout the state ( Bor et al. , 2002 ) . However, harmonizing to the Department of Education and Science ( 1989, cited in Bets et Al. 1995 ) idyll attention is concerned with advancing students ‘ personal and societal development and furthering positive attitudes. Confronted with permeant and traumatic societal jobs such as the prostration of the drawn-out household and increases in rates of force, the demand for school guidance attracted the attending of local instruction governments. However, in the visible radiation of limited budgets, the 1980s witnessed a displacement of accent on guidance, and it was felt that reding should be integrated into learning pattern, so that instructors themselves should take duty for pastoral attention ( Bor et al. , 2002 ; Mclaughin, 1999 ) .

Jones ( 1970 ) says that, in the absence of authorities backup, enthusiasm for reding classs began to melt, and the bulk of schools were left without counselors. To worsen the state of affairs even further, cuts in instruction support at thehands of the Conservative authorities in the 1980s resulted in a decrease in the figure of bing counselors ( McLaughlin, 1999 ) . Harmonizing to one estimation, merely 50 counselors were left in schools in England and Wales following the debut of the local direction of schools in 1987 ( Robinson, 1996 ) . Bor et Al. ( 2002 ) argue that since the 1980s and despite heavy work loads, turning societal jobs and huge psychological force per unit area, instructors in the United Kingdom still continue to play a major function in reding their pupils. To add to their jobs, they have late fallen under force per unit area to carry through all of the standards of an over-demanding National Curriculum. As a consequence, instructors now find it hard to carry through a pastoral function, and schools are get downing to experience the demand to use counselors to run into the educational, psychological and emotional demands of pupils. To supply instructors with the necessary guidance accomplishments, a ample figure of surveies in the field of pastoral attention began to look ( e.g. Raymond, 1985 ; Watkins, 1994 ; Hamblin, 1984 ; Marland, 1989 ) . In general, these surveies focused on good student-teacher relationships ( Mclaughlin, 1999 ) , emphasized the importance of helping kids to better their lives, and used survey accomplishments to steer them in doing their ain determinations ( Raymond, 1985 ) . However, although the literature on guidance and pastoral attention in the United Kingdom is huge, it is still non incorporate and provides merely a few guidelines on pattern ( Al-Rebdi, 2000 ) . On the other manus, some still argue that instructors have to pull off complicated and demanding state of affairss, imparting the personal, emotional and societal force per unit areas of 30 or so childs ( Black et al. , 1998 ) .

The argument is still ramping between those who argue that reding should be provided by specializers and those who suggest that instructors should bear the load. Inthis context it is deserving naming the responsibilities and duties of the school counselor as outlined by the British Association for Counselling ( 1997 ) . These are:

i‚· To offer students, parents and staff single or group guidance.

i‚· To supply information on the guidance service, the function of the counselor and boundaries of confidentiality.

i‚· To collaborate with caput instructors, governors, parents and, where appropriate, the local instruction authorization, in puting up a suited assignment system.

i‚· To maintain suited instance records of reding conducted in a unafraid topographic point.

i‚· To describe back to direction on a regular footing on the Numberss that use the service and to give a general overview of the types of job encountered.

i‚· To intercede with the pastoral direction squad, twelvemonth coachs, category instructors, governors, parents and caring bureaus.

i‚· To web with forces from other bureaus with a position to easing referrals and accessing specialist advisers.

i‚· To invent and, where appropriate, present a programme of preparation to back up and develop the guidance service.

i‚· To go to supervising with a appropriately qualified supervisor.

Historical reappraisal of school guidance in the KSA

Initially, in 1981, the Ministry of Education established the General Directorate of Guidance and Counselling. Since that clip, counsel and guidance has become formalized and recognized as a profession, and counselors have been appointed to cover with psychological, societal, educational, and vocational jobs and present protective guidance ( Ministry of Education KSA, 1999 ) . It should be mentioned here that the theoretical account for and pattern of counsel and guidance in SaudiArabian schools was derived from western beginnings, chiefly the United States. More than two decennaries have passed since the counsel and reding programme was established in Saudi schools. Its development has progressed at a slow rate and, presently, it faces assorted jobs. The major trouble relates to the definition of the function and map of the school counselor ( Al-Gamdi, 1999 ) which is ill-defined to principals, instructors, parents, pupils and school counselors themselves. Due to this job, counselors have found themselves excessively involved in paperwork and administrative undertakings and responsibilities non related to school reding. Additionally, counselors frequently complain about deficiency of support and cooperation from others involved in the guidance service, particularly parents ( Al-rebdi, 2000 ) . In this state of affairs, if school counselors in Saudi Arabia are to supply better services for pupils, their function must be clearly defined. It is besides necessary for those involved in reding to hold a clear position of what counselors should and should non make. Add to this, counselors must take carefully how they spend their clip and energy. As the function and maps of the school counselors become clearer, they should be able to react better to the demands of their pupils. Furthermore, in 1981, following decree figure 216/k issued by the Ministry of Education, the Social Educational Administration was replaced by the Student Guidance and Counselling Service, and counsel and guidance in Saudi schools became formalistic. That same twelvemonth, the name was changed once more to the General Administration for Guidance and Counselling ( Ministry of Education, 1999 ) .

The duties of this disposal are as follows:

1- To be after, fix and develop the programme and services of counsel and guidance.

2- To supply professional staff who are capable of presenting such services to all pupils at assorted phases of instruction.

3- To supply pupils with the appropriate attention applicable to their ages and their psychological, educational and societal demands.

4- To help pupils to develop their capablenesss, potencies and endowments, to let them to confront their jobs and to assist them experience comfy with themselves and with the community in which they live.

5- To achieve a high criterion of mental wellness in a manner that reflects the marks and ends sought by educational counsel in general ( Ministry of Education, 1999 ) .

Saleh ( 1987 ) pointed out that, due to the immediate demand for professionals to supervise and steer the guidance service in schools, the Ministry of Education sought forces from among the bing societal instruction supervisors to move as the supervisors ; reding and counsel programmes in add-on to transporting out their normal responsibilities. The Ministry of Education besides sought forces from within the bing instruction force, provided they had the relevant experience, to work temporarily as counselors in schools. To run into the demand for school counselors in all schools, the General Administration for Guidance and Counselling allowed those with a Bachelors degree in psychological science, societal work or sociology to execute the function of the school counselor until adequate trained professional counselors could be provided. In order to run into the demand for trained full-time counselors to work in schools, universities in Saudi Arabia were requested to offer counsel and reding programmes at Masterss ‘ degree. Statistical information for the twelvemonth 2000 shows that there were 229 reding supervisors and 3381 school counselors overall ( Ministry of Education, 2000 ) . By 2003, the figure of counselors had increased quickly toabout 4000 ( Al-Rebdi, 2004 ) . The Ministry of Education ( 1999 ) defined the term guidance as the synergistic procedure though which the counselor assists the pupil to understand himself and recognize his capablenesss and potencies and gives him a more enlightened attack to his jobs and how to confront them. Counselors besides help pupils to heighten their responsible behavior and to demo conformance with their community.

Reding gifted pupils

Landau ( 1990 ) noted that talented pupils might go stray and anomic. Furthermore, Rogers ( 1983 ) pointed out that in an classless system kids non merely lack the chance for verification and societal credence, but they besides frequently lack the freedom to larn. The demand for verification and emotional support is good known in the literature which focuses on giftedness and endowment ( Csikszentmilalyi et al. , 1993 ; Kelley, 1999 ; Stednitz, 1995 ) . Donna ( 1999 ) suggests that instructors and counselors need to promote minority pupils to see a instruction calling in general and talented pupil instruction in peculiar. Ford ( 1995 ) nevertheless, believes that from an historical point of position, the guidance of talented pupils has non been an of import portion of educational and counselling discourse. He points out that misconceptions and stereotypes of talented pupils as being immune to societal, emotional, and academic jobs have contributed to the deficiency of reding for these pupils, and in instances where guidance is available it is merely limited to academic, appraisal and arrangement issues.

Harmonizing to Ford, the fact that more kids are come ining school with serious personal and academic jobs should imply an enlargement in the duties and functions of counselors to run into the demands of all kids who seek counsel andassistance. But however harmonizing to Alrasheed, ( 2001 ) the limited handiness of reding services has failed to run into the tremendous demand for reding services and research regarding gifted persons. In this regard he endeavoured to supply counselors, schoolroom instructors and educationists every bit good as parents with advice sing the apprehension of the academic and societal demands of gifted and gifted pupils. Persson ( 2005 ) considers mentorship as a possible solution to help the immediate psychological and rational demands of talented persons, peculiarly received mentorship. Harmonizing to Person, mentorship could be direct or indirect by collaborating with the pupil to happen a wise man of his pick, given the fact that non all talented pupils would be probably to take their counselors to be their wise mans. Person expresses the strong belief that mentorship is the lone feasible reding solution in an classless context, which lacks acknowledgment and peculiar proviso for talented persons. Ford ( 1995 ) outlines the end of reding as that of advancing healthy self-concepts and guaranting psychological growing. Bearing that in head, counselors must hold an consciousness and apprehension of the many issues that hinder gifted pupils and impact their psychological, societal and emotional wellbeing. He recognises the function of counselors in guaranting that such pupils remain in talented programmes one time identified and placed.

Finally the construct of reding demands to be defined within a context where it is non a undertaking assigned simply to a peculiar group. Alternatively, as Brown et Al. ( 1992 ) suggest the undertaking has expanded from an initial concern with educational and vocational counsel to the redress and bar of personal, interpersonal, vocational and educational concerns. Consequently, harmonizing to Persson ( 2005 ) , the purpose of the intercession is for the person to derive an apprehension of ego and context, in which instance single differences become a sensitive and even debatable issue, peculiarly in instances where gifted persons are involved.

Research Design

The design of the survey is intended to find: foremost, the relationship of the functions of pupil counselor, instructors, and principals to the public presentation of the talented pupils ; 2nd, the effectivity of the programmes in developing the capacity of the talented pupils.

Instrumentality and Data Collection

The research workers visited the [ Insert name of University Library or City Library ] for diaries, articles and surveies needed for the research paper. The research workers gathered time-series informations from different physical preparation establishments to guarantee of its cogency and consistence.

The primary informations will be gathered utilizing quantitative method, as this is best utile with questionnaires. The usage of quantitative method will be appropriate for the research because the consequences in the questionnaires consist of numerical information, largely based from the evaluations included in the inquiries. Quantitative methods are used to supply mention to numeral computations and are frequently used with questionnaires that have a specific end and a mark to accomplish. This is helpful in the research, and its abetment in the procedure needs to be farther culminated so that the job is solved with efficiency and preciseness.

In garnering informations, the research worker would wish to unclutter certain ethical issues that might impede the processing of informations. First, confidentiality will be kept at all costs. As the chief ground why questionnaires will be used in the research is for the respondents to experience secure and to be assured that their replies will non be related to who they are. There may be cases wherein the respondent will unwrap information that will be damaging to the company, or to its rivals, depending on the instance. Hence, there is a better opportunity at more antiphonal respondents if they can be assured of their confidentiality.

Second, the Data Protection Act will be followed at all costs. The conformity with the act will be transparently said to the respondents so that they are farther assured that anything they say in response to the inquiries asked them will merely be used for the benefit of the research and non in any other patterns. It should besides be clear to the research worker that any information sing the respondents can non be released to anyone who is non instantly connected with the research unless permission from the topic respondent has been secured beforehand.

Third, the research must ever bear in head the aims of the survey and ne’er roll away from them. A research worker who has no definite intent in making the research is traveling nowhere and is exercising attempt in a research that is non delimited decently and duly. The intent of the research is explicitly stated at the beginning of the research and is implied in every measure of the realisation of the research so as to non define the research worker from his ends.

Last, the research worker must choose to pattern objectiveness. As the research worker, he is expected to maintain an open-minded attack to the subject, maintaining from his head and personal prejudice in the capable affair or on the people involved. The ground for making research is to prove bing information, validate, turn out or confute bing thoughts, or to prove the bounds of a certain chance. Given this simple definition, it is clearly seen that in no signifier is the personal sentiments of the research worker expected to impede in the topic. Any act that might be biased or subjective will suggest of the research ‘s failure to accomplish its ends.

Planned Method of Analysis

The research workers plan to analyse the different trial conducted through changeless rating of the talented pupils and how they perform. There will be a hebdomadal rating in footings of how the programmes and the function of the governments, and the consequence of it to their public presentation. The public presentation in the field will be evaluated by the talented pupil ‘s advancement and development.

Time Schedule

Literature Review

History of programmes for talented pupils in KSA

Observation

Questionnaires

Evaluation of public presentation

Analysis of public presentation of the pupils

Findingss and Recommendation

Decisions

Decision

The function of school counselors for gifted and talented pupils has been discussed widely in the literature. However, school counselors desperately need to be provided with the appropriate accomplishments in the countries of instruction and psychological science so that they are capable of supplying counsel to gifted pupils and thereby react to their demands in a manner that will hike the educational procedure in the school. Counselling talented pupils and their relations is one of the chiefly challenging and hearty maps for a counselor. Gifted pupils have fantastic variableness, non merely in their cognitive capableness, but in their affectional advancement. While there are evidently frequent subjects in the social-emotional issues undertaking talented pupils, there are besides brooding single differences amongst them. The gifted pupil faces legion jobs that make life hard for him at school.

However, anxiousness and tenseness may impact his societal life every bit good as coercing him to populate in isolation. Furthermore, determinations in relation to talented scholars should be portion and package of a wider programme. This implies the designation of the undertaking as being one which helps kids conform with their civilization, or empowers kids to progress in their society, or challenges societal, political and economic inequalities. Schoolcounsellors receive small specific developing on the affectional demands of talented pupils and it is rare for counselor preparation programmes to necessitate counselors to take a class on talented pupils as a degree demand. The function of the school counselor is to develop the accomplishments of the students in general, giving particular attending to those who are talented and advanced by detecting their countries of involvement, and by reacting to their demands in a manner that will accomplish the awaited benefit for themselves and for the community at big. The procedure of placing the talented and advanced persons becomes particularly of import in the epoch of globalization, necessitating an intensive hunt for such gifted individuals who are likely to go the future leaders of society. However, the fact of the affair is that all those who are concerned with the talented whether they are parents, instructors, counselors or anyone else, need to be cognizant of the nature of the force per unit areas gifted pupils face in order to supply the appropriate aid. More than 15 old ages have passed since the beginning of talented and gifted programmes in Saudi Schools, but the growing of counsel and reding programmes for gifted and talented pupils has been slow.