JOURNAL LA EDUSCI

VOL. 01, ISSUE 06 (037-041), 2020

DOI: 10.37899/journallaedusci.v1i6.288

Developing the Talents and Creativity of Students

Veleriy Thilavongsa1, Peter Phoumai1, Souvandee1

Education Faculty, National Unvesity of Laos

Corresponding Author: Veleriy Thilavongsa

Article Info Abstract
Article history: This paper aims to discuss the relationship between talent, creativity and
Received 4 December 2020 achievement. Talent can affect a person's achievement so that he is able
Received in revised form 27 to make achievements, in addition to realizing talent, it is necessary to
December 2020 have extensive knowledge, experience and motivation that support that
Accepted 31 December 2020 talent. A person with supportive talent and creativity is able to score
good achievements because someone with talent and creativity that is
Keywords: developed from an early age will be realized in the form of superior
Talent achievements. They are able to develop their talents through their
Creativity unlimited creativity so that they can make superior achievements.
Students’ Development

Introduction
A student who tries to develop his/her potential through the learning process is available at
certain paths, levels, and types of education. Children have special characteristics, such as
talents that are passed down from their parents or ancestors. Each individual has different
characteristics, including the field and level of talent he has.
Students are the main and most important source in the formal education process. Students can
learn without a teacher. Conversely, the teacher cannot teach without students. Therefore, the
presence of students is a necessity in the process of formal education or institutionalized
education and demands interaction between educators and students. In addition, students are
one component in teaching, in addition to teacher factors, objectives, and teaching methods.
Learners are developed people.
As candidates for good and certainly professional educators, prospective teachers are expected
to have the capacity and ability to deal with students both in designing and developing the
talents and creativity of students. Therefore, in this paper we will discuss talent and creativity
(Tomlinson et al., 2002; Ferrari et al., 2009; Dixon et al., 2014). Based on the above
background, this article aims to explain the relationship between talent, creativity and
achievement.
Talent
Talent is a natural ability to acquire knowledge and skills, both general and specific. General
talent if the ability in the form of potential is general in nature, for example general intellectual
talent, while special talent is if the ability in the form of potential is special, for example
academic talent, kinesthetic talent, artistic talent, or social talent (Walberg, 1988; Barab &
Plucker, 2002; Maycock & Ikuomola, 2015; Luo et al., 2020).
What determines an individual's giftedness is not only because his general ability is above
average, but also creativity and self-improvement towards the task (task commitment).
Aptitude means innate abilities which are potential abilities that still need to be further
developed and trained. Due to its potential or latent nature, talent is a potential that still requires
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Copyright © 2020, Journal La Edusci, Under the license CC BY-SA 4.0
serious and systematic development and practice in order to be realized (Martindale et al.,
2005; Gagné, 2015; Van Zyl et al., 2017).
Talent can affect a person's achievement so that he is able to make achievements, in addition
to realizing talent, it is necessary to have extensive knowledge, experience and motivation that
support that talent. If someone has the potential for musical talent but does not get the
opportunity to develop it, then that talent will not develop and manifest properly (producing
achievements).
In this regard, the U.S Office of education emphasizes that gifted children need educational
services and programs in particular according to their potential, interests and abilities in order
to realize their contribution to society and for their own development. So, talent is how well a
person has the ability in a specific area of knowledge or skill by practicing. Talent can be
maximally developed through training with high motivation. In addition, talent is determined
by how good the general ability, creativity, and commitment of students are in completing tasks
(Reis & Renzulli, 2004; Young & Balli, 2014). Talents that develop to the maximum will
provide meaningful contributions, both for society and for the self-development of the students
concerned.
Creativity
Creativity refers to the abilities that mark the traits of a creative person. One of them is the
ability to think divergent. Divergent thinking ability is an individual's ability to find various
alternative answers to a problem. Guilford (1967) emphasized that creative people have more
divergent ways of thinking than convergent ways (the way of thinking of individuals who think
there is only one alternative answer to a problem.
Barron (1988) defines creativity as the ability to create something new, although not
necessarily new. Creativity is a combination of old ideas or products into new forms. Thus, the
old becomes the basis for producing the new. creativity is the ability that reflects fluency,
flexibility, and originality in thinking as well as the ability to collaborate on an idea. Scholars
discussed more deeply that creativity is the result of individual interactions in their
environment. The environment can support the development of creativity and can inhibit its
development.
Based on the various definitions of creativity, these definitions are grouped into four categories,
namely person (personal), press (driving), process (process), and product (product). Based on
a number of creative definitions that fall into the personal category, it is concluded that the
personality of a creative individual is the meeting point between intelligence (including verbal
skills, fluent thinking, knowledge, planning, problem formulation, and decision-making skills);
cognitive style (including creating your own rules, doing things in your own way, liking less
structured problems, and enjoying designing); and personality / motivation (including
flexibility, drive for achievement, resilience in the face of obstacles, and courage to take
moderate risks).
The creative process is basically steps in the scientific method, namely awareness of difficulties
/ problems, making assumptions and hypotheses, testing conjectures / hypotheses, evaluating
and reviewing hypotheses, and concluding findings (Mednick, 1962; Buchanan & Vanberg,
1994; Lubart, 2001). The driving category does not only come from oneself (internal) but also
from the environment (external). Simpson explained that internal drive is the power to solve
problems with stages that do not match the provisions. Regarding the encouragement of the
environment, creativity does not develop in an environment that does not value imagination,

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ISSN 2721-0979 (Print), ISSN 2721-1258 (Online)
Copyright © 2020, Journal La Edusci, Under the license CC BY-SA 4.0
an environment that places too much emphasis on conformity and tradition, and is less open to
change.
The creative product category emphasizes originality, novelty and meaningfulness. The
resulting product is a combination of something that already exists, for example, a wheelchair
is a combination of a chair and a wheel. Creative products have characteristics, namely the
product must be real, new, and be the unique result of individuals in their interactions with their
environment. Creative individuals are those who involve themselves in the creative process, in
support/encouragement from the environment to produce a creative product. Thus, it is
important to develop a child's creative talents from an early age, starting with encouragement
from the environment, especially the family environment.
Relationship between Talent, Creativity and Achievement
The real manifestation of talent is achievement because talent determines one's achievements.
Even so, talented people are not necessarily high achievers. This is because talent is potential
which requires maximum practice and development. Special talents that are developed from an
early age will be realized in the form of superior achievements (Greenacre, 1957; Feist, 2006;
Subotnik et al., 2011). Based on the latest research, it was found that around 20% of elementary
and junior high school students are underachievers, meaning that the learning achievements
they get are below the potential or intellectual talents they actually have.
Based on the theory of the "intelligence threshold for creativity", to a certain level of
intelligence estimated around IQ 120, there is a close relationship between intelligence and
creativity. High intelligence products require a high level of intelligence as well. The theory
finds that above this threshold (IQ> 120) there is no longer a high correlation between
intelligence and creativity. Not all people with high intelligence are creators. For example,
many children achieve academic success, but only a few demonstrate creative thinking. The
high correlation between intelligence and creativity depends largely on factors outside of
creativity and intelligence (Barron & Harrington, 1981; Haensly & Reynolds, 1989; Nusbaum
& Silvia, 2011; de Manzano & Ullén, 2018).
This knowledge is processed into new and original forms. Creativity cannot function in a
vacuum, creativity uses previously received knowledge and depends on one's intellectual
abilities. Factors in the environment or in a person often interfere with the development of
creativity. For example, the overly authoritarian way of educating children at home or at school
during childhood will freeze their creativity, but do not affect intelligence.
Based on the above facts, someone with supportive talent and creativity is able to score good
achievements because someone with talent and creativity that is developed early on can be
realized in the form of superior achievements. They are able to develop their talents through
their unlimited creativity so that they can make superior achievements.
Understudy ability can be affected by 2 factors, specifically: internal factors (interest,
motivation, courage or risk, determination in confronting challenges, and determination in
overcoming troubles that emerge). In the interim, external factors (maximum opportunity for
self-development, offices, and infrastructure, support and encouragement of parents and
families, and the environment in which they live). From the depiction over, it can be concluded
that students' abilities are still potential and are still affected by inside and outside variables so
that in its realization it still requires efficient and greatest direction.
In cultivating the intrigued of students in learning, particularly learning science, it can be
exhausted different ways. For illustration, by giving learning strategies and learning media to
understudies so that the learning results of understudies in learning science increment and
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ISSN 2721-0979 (Print), ISSN 2721-1258 (Online)
Copyright © 2020, Journal La Edusci, Under the license CC BY-SA 4.0
understudies who have interface and gifts in themselves will more effectively accomplish
victory in learning exercises.
Conclusion
Talent is the natural ability to acquire knowledge and skills, both general and specific. General
talent if the ability in the form of potential is general in nature, for example general intellectual
talent, while special talent is if the ability in the form of potential is special, for example
academic talent, kinesthetic talent, artistic talent, or social talent. A person with supportive
talent and creativity is able to score good achievements because someone with talent and
creativity that is developed from an early age will be realized in the form of superior
achievements. They are able to develop their talents through their unlimited creativity so that
they can make superior achievements. Educators or teachers so that in the future they are better
able to develop the talents and creativity of students so that they are able to score superior
achievements in both academic and non-academic fields.
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