Creating Strong Educational Partnerships
with Dr. Eleonoor van Gerven
Using Creative Approaches to Establish Collaboration Between Parents and Schools
Educational partnership is essential because quality education requires more than any one partner can provide alone. To meet the educational needs of students with characteristics of giftedness, schools may deviate from standard procedures by significantly adapting the curriculum and guidance. This requires all parties to engage in increased consultation and careful communication. Therefore, in this webinar, from a solution-focused perspective and with a positive attitude, the emphasis is placed on reciprocity in the interactions among the various partners.
Dr. Eleonoor van Gerven is the director of Slim! Educatief BV, a private teacher education institute in the Netherlands. She specializes in gifted education and the systemic change- and solution-focused approach. She developed a competency matrix for curriculum construction in the field of gifted education to support the continuous professional development of teachers. She also created the post-graduate teacher education program Specialist in Gifted Education and the post-master teacher education program Specialist in Educating Twice-Exceptionals, both accredited by the Dutch Society for Higher Education.
In 2014, she received a Mensa Award from the Dutch Mensa Foundation for her contribution to gifted education. In 2018, the Dutch Society for Specialists in Gifted Education granted her lifelong honorary membership in recognition of her lifelong contributions to the field. Since 2023, she has served as Vice President of the World Council for Gifted and Talented Children.
Dr. van Gerven is also the program manager of the Dutch National Knowledge Center for Gifted Education, a government-funded initiative providing free, evidence-based information for all stakeholders in gifted education. The center is currently developing a national curriculum for teacher education focused on the domain of giftedness.