EXPLORING THE ROLE OF MIDDLE LEADERS IN SUPPORTING MATHEMATICALLY GIFTED STUDENTS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47750/Keywords:
Educational Provisions, Inclusive Education, Middle Leader, Mathematically Gifted Student, Transformative LearningAbstract
This research explores the role of middle leaders in supporting mathematically gifted students. While much of the literature on gifted education emphasizes academic outcomes, this study shifts the focus to the perceptions of middle leaders in fostering an inclusive and supportive environment that nurtures mathematically gifted students. Drawing on data from 34 middle leaders in a district of Free State Province, South Africa, the study uses semi-structured interviews. The data were analyzed through thematic analysis, and the findings are framed within the Distributed Leadership Theory (DLT), which sees leadership as shared across roles, leveraging collective
expertise in decision-making and problem-solving.
