Ep. 12 - Gifted (Part I)

Here we go! A long time coming, Rachel and Gordon suit up to dive into, climb on and around and into the complexities of "Gifted," poking at it gently with a big 'ol stick. (... you know, one of those good campfire-tending-type sticks; the kind you'd find on a hike and keep with you for awhile bc it's kind of like a wizard staff.) What is a gifted? What does this word, this designation, mean? Is giftedness a neurotype? And what's a neurotype anyways? Why don't people seem to understand the difference between neurodivergence and neurodiversity? How is giftedness related to intelligence? What do our individual (and collective) understanding/s of intelligence look like? What foundations are those understandings built upon? Turns out, this one is (at least) a two-parter, folks! This is just the beginning. In this episode, our first half, Gordon and Rachel create a frame; expect a co-exploration of different core characteristics, associations, contexts, implications, and a bunch of "non-dual both/ands" related to both the term and its lived reality. And what is this reality, exactly? We know that the most agreed-upon definition is one centering "asynchronous development" (Columbus Group), but here, on Existential Tetherball, we'll go ahead and further define "gifted" as a term we use to designate/describe outlier human intelligence. How do we understand, recognize, and support this particular shape/form of outlier intelligence? Dimensional and varied yet also, something with its own shape and form? In this episode, Rachel and Gordon discuss more than the following: -the hullabaloo in the gifted community/industry at present, and why we need to go beyond "is giftedness a form of neurodivergence," together -the core characteristics and complexities of giftedness, as well as how and when do we recognize, categorize/"type," and socialize/support? -how societal perceptions and educational systems shape our understanding of both intelligence and giftedness -themes of ecological intelligence, full body intelligence, intelligence as a dynamic process rather than a static trait while acknowledging unseen differences in human intelligence as a very real thing (neurodiversity) -what influences gifted inner experience and expression through a lifespan (how is giftedness nurtured and supported)? Takeaways for days: Giftedness is complex and nuanced – nature, nurture, environment in reciprocity and interplay through the lifespan Intelligence as a dynamic, ecological process within each human, full-body and not just brain Why understanding intelligence, neurodiversity, and neurodivergence clearly is crucial in understanding giftedness Giftedness at the self-referential/meta level and then in unique expression; part II will dive into the frameworks and schema we use to integrate identification into functional, lived reality Chapters 00:00 Exploring Giftedness 02:31 The Nature of Intelligence 07:01 Defining Giftedness 10:08 Asynchronous Development 18:06 Neurodiversity and Giftedness 19:47 The Bell Curve and Its Implications 26:29 Ecological Intelligence and Collaboration 27:44 Full Body Intelligence Paradigm 30:11 Coherence Seeking and Giftedness 32:24 Complexity of Intelligence 36:14 Existential Giantism and Meaning-Making 42:43 Frameworks of Intelligence 45:16 Process Orientation in Intelligence