Hector-Seminar

Despite the high educational policy relevance of gifted education, little is known about how talent develops and which conditions lead to excellent performance in the long term. Talent is not determined by cognitive ability alone. Rather, it emerges from the dynamic interaction of motivation, creativity, personality characteristics, and social influences. At the same time, it is unclear which forms of support are effective in the long term. Many Existing programs vary greatly in their conceptual foundations and quality, and they are seldom systematically documented or rigorously evaluated. This leaves open the question of which approaches genuinely promote the development of (highly) gifted students.

With the TALENT study, the Hector Institute for Empirical Educational Research is investigating these questions within the Hector Seminar, a long-term STEM enrichment program for highly gifted students. The study relies on a comprehensive, multi-cohort longitudinal design that scientifically monitors systematically tracks and evaluates the participants’ developmental trajectories and the support they receive. By regularly assessing cognitive, creative, and socio-emotional skills, key success factors can be identified and the quality of the support program continuously improved. In this way, the study provides valuable insights for the further development of gifted education in STEM subjects.