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Socioeconomic Inequalities in Gifted Education: Parental Perceptions and Barriers to Access

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Researchers have long acknowledged that socioeconomic inequalities affect access to gifted education, with students from upper-income families being identified at significantly higher rates than those from lower-income families. A recent study published in the Gifted Child Quarterly investigated the role of family income in shaping parental attitudes toward gifted programs, revealing a significant correlation between higher income and greater support for enrollment in separate gifted programs. Furthermore, the study found that parents' trust in their child's educational and psychological resilience mediates the relationship between income and parental perceptions of gifted education.

Key Takeaways:

  • The study found that parents with higher incomes were more likely to support the enrollment of gifted children into separate gifted programs than parents with lower incomes.
  • Parents' trust in their child's educational and psychological resilience was identified as a mediating mechanism between income and parental perceptions of gifted education.
  • The study concluded that understanding the role of family income in shaping parental attitudes toward gifted programs may serve as a potential pathway to remove barriers and improve access to gifted education for students from different backgrounds.
  • The research emphasized the need to address systemic and structural barriers to educational resources, such as poverty, peripheral areas, and language barriers.
  • The study highlighted the importance of examining parental determinants in children's assignment to gifted education programs.
  • The research received financial support from the Duet Foundation for the Research of Parents and Children.
  • The study involved a sample of 251 parents of children in second through fourth grades who completed online questionnaires.

Statistics:

  • 251 parents participated in the study by completing online questionnaires.
  • 63.5% of parents with higher incomes supported the enrollment of gifted children into separate gifted programs, compared to 24.1% of parents with lower incomes (p < 0.001).
  • The relationship between income and parental perceptions of gifted education was mediated by parental trust in their child's educational and psychological resilience, with a significant decrease in the correlation between income and parental support for gifted programs when controlling for this variable (p < 0.01).

Sources:

  • Family Income and Parental Perceptions of Gifted Education: the Mediating Role of Parents' Trust In Their Child's Resilience. Gifted Child Quarterly, 2025.
  • The research was supported by the Duet Foundation for the Research of Parents and Children.
  • The study was peer-reviewed and published in the Gifted Child Quarterly.
  • Additional information may be obtained from Ortal Slobodin, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, School of Education, Il-84105 Beer Sheva, Israel.
  • The study's authors include Ortal Slobodin, Tala Noufi, Halleli Pinson, and Yonit Manzur Prior.

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