Children’s drawings can help with early detection of giftedness News-thread

The potential talents of children with gifted characteristics are not always seen in general education. Children’s drawings, however, can play a role in early detection of their needs and talents, argues psychologist Sven Mathijssen in his dissertation titled “Back to the Drawing Board: Potential Indicators of Giftedness in Figure Drawing.” human rights”, which he defends on March 22. 2023

Mathijssen’s dissertation provides evidence of the possibility that human figure drawing may aid in the early identification of children whose talents might not fully flourish in general education. Among other things, Mathijssen analyzed the drawings of 206 children aged 4 to 6.

Two years after the drawings were made, the parents were asked if the children had any educational modifications. Based on the responses, two groups were created: children who had received enriched education and children who had received regular education. Statistical analyzes showed that whether or not children drew “special features” (features that were drawn only or more often by children who received enriched education) predicted well about 70% of whether children received enriched education or regular education.

However, this was true only for the 4 and 5 year olds. This was not the case for 6-year-olds, partly because of the small number of 6-year-olds in the study.

Children draw ‘alone’

There are practical advantages to using children’s drawings as a screening tool. To discover the talents of children, psychological tests are often carried out, but they are often time-consuming, expensive and not possible for everyone.

According to him, a good sieve tool works like a sieve: “Every child can be asked to draw, without costing a lot of time or money. Children often draw on their own from an early age as well. “They don’t scare easily from a drawing assignment. If certain things stand out in a child’s drawing, that may be a reason to keep a closer eye on that child’s school progress.”

Keep an eye out for unique talents

However, he cautions that this indication still says nothing about the potential talents and educational needs of the individual child. To determine exactly what these children need in school, follow-up research is necessary, for example through psychological testing.

Says Mathijssen, “We therefore advise practitioners in the field not to use sign IQs for signage purposes and instead analyze item-level menu drawings for potential indicators of giftedness.” Mathijssen hopes that his research colleagues will join him in building on this thesis and developing the envisioned detection instrument.