The difficulties of gifted primary school students while solving non-routine problems

THE JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH, cilt.119, ss.1-14, 2026 (SSCI, Scopus)

This study aims to determine the difficulties that gifted 4th grade primary school students have in

solving non-routine problems. A case study design was used in the study. Twenty-four gifted

primary school students studying at a Science and Art Center in the central district of a province

in the northeastern part of Turkey were selected through convenience sampling. The gifted students

were asked seven open-ended non-routine problems, each of which could be solved with a different

strategy. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to determine the difficulties experienced by

the four gifted students who scored the least from the open-ended problem solving test in solving

non-routine problems. The data obtained were analyzed with descriptive analysis. As a result of the

analysis, it was found that most of the gifted 4th grade students were successful in solving

non-routine problems and they were successful in reasoning, making systematic lists, making tables,

writing mathematical sentences and estimation-control strategies while solving problems, but they

could not show sufficient success in the strategy of drawing shapes. Result was determined that the

reason for the difficulties experienced by gifted primary school 4th grade students in solving

non-routine problems stemmed from the step of understanding the problem.