Συμβουλευτική γονέων χαρισματικών παιδιών: αναγκαιότητα, προσεγγίσεις, στόχοι, σύγχρονες τάσεις.

Abstract

Charismatic children are considered to be those who have the potential to achieve a particular high performance to one or more areas. It is a heterogeneous group of people with particular cognitive, social and emotional needs that poses unique challenges to parents in managing and nurturing them effectively. The counseling process (counseling psychology) which goal is to help people prevent future difficulties, develop their full potential and handle effectively problematic situations seems to work in support of these families. This paper will focus on the necessity and the main goals of counseling the family of gifted students since family is the most fundamental and determining factor to their talent development, school success, overall development and well-being. According to international literature family counseling approaches can be divided into two large categories: i) parent guidance and ii) family therapy. In the first approach parents receive support on developmental issues common to young gifted children (education, child’s special characteristics and needs, social and emotional development), their parental role, the identification of giftedness, the importance of an enriched family environment while in the second one the family is approached as a system with an emphasis on family dynamics, sibling relationships and specific issues of gifted students (e.g. underachievement, twice exceptionality). The current research indicates that teachers function as the “first line” of counseling for parents of gifted students so it is important for them also to have the necessary sensitivity, knowledge and skills. The latest approaches of counseling the parents of gifted children (e.g. parent educational groups) are also mentioned. In conclusion, it is evident that this kind of support to parents of gifted children is essential as it helps them to function effectively in their demanding parenting role.