Risks of aiming to kill two birds with one stone: the affect of mathematically gifted and talented students in the dual realities of special schooling

Mathematically gifted and talented students have unique cognitive and emotional needs. Thus, their schooling should consider their social and emotional development. This study investigated student affect in a science high school in Korea to determine how the specialized school’s curriculum and instruction influence student affect. Data were collected through interviews and a survey. Our findings show that gifted and talented students generally demonstrate a positive affect toward mathematics, but high anxiety and low self-concept play a key role in shaping students’ negative attitudes toward mathematics. In this paper, we argue that two different goals–gifted education and college preparation–could cause such negative student affect. The dual educational goal manifests itself in fast-paced instruction and memorized problem solving, which can ultimately cause students to lose confidence and interest in mathematics.