The effectiveness of Nigerian vs. United States teacher checklists and inventories for nominating potentially gifted Nigerian preschoolers

In a survey conducted in 50 kindergartens or nursery schools in Nigeria, 380 teachers returned batches of eight variously completed checklists, inventories and rating scales through which a total of 615 preschoolers were adjudged to possess significant traits of giftedness as prescribed by all the instruments. To determine the effectiveness of the instruments for nominating potentially gifted kindergartners, data were collated for each instrument in terms of the number (n) and percentage of children found eligible in the pool of all nominated kindergartners (N) through all instruments. Results generally indicated that some of the instruments developed in the United States were more effective than those developed in Nigeria for nominating preschool children who significantly evidence traits of giftedness. Checklists and inventories were also found to rank better than rating scales in the nomination exercise.