An Examination of the Türkiye Century Education Model Secondary School Mathematics Curriculum With Respect to Gifted Students

Abstract

This study aims to comprehensively examine the potential of the Türkiye Century Education Model Secondary School Mathematics Curriculum to support the development of gifted students. It considers whether, and to what extent, the curriculum offers differentiated and flexible practices suited to gifted students’ academic development needs in mathematics and their educational needs. For the analysis, the curriculum was divided into seven sections: its fundamental approach and specific objectives, principles of implementation, the structure of the curriculum, and the themes for Grades 5, 6, 7, and 8. The sections were then analysed thematically as part of document analysis. The findings show that the curriculum largely helps meet gifted students’ academic development needs in mathematics by fostering higher-order thinking and metacognitive skills, although it remains limited in some respects. Its content was found to have features capable of meeting students’ educational needs. The findings nevertheless suggest that the process component should be enriched to help students feel valued and increase their motivation. They further suggest that the product component should respond more closely to students’ interests and that assessment should provide continuity throughout the process. Further studies are recommended to examine, at the implementation level, how well the curriculum meets gifted students’ developmental and educational needs in school settings.