Rosmah Shares Her Views On The Gifted, Talented At Dubai Conference

FROM ABDUL MUIN MAJID DUBAI, July 14 (Bernama) -- Nurturing and educating the gifted and talented may well lead to the betterment of humanity, said the wife of Malaysian prime minister, Rosmah Mansor. Delivering her opening remarks at the '12th Asia Pacific Conference on Giftedness' here Saturday, she noted that the world of the 21st century was saddled with issues such as climate change, war on terror, social problems, food security, poverty and gender inequality. "Our challenge and responsibility is to provide all facilities and infrastructure to ensure that the gifted and talented among us achieve a higher purpose in life. "...We live in times when having the right kinds of talents in our institutions has become important towards resolving 21st century problems," Rosmah said at the opening session of the conference which draws over 2,000 participants from around the world. The five-day event at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre being hosted by the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Distinguished Academic Performance, was opened by Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who is Deputy Ruler of Dubai and United Arab Emirates' Finance Minister. Following the opening ceremony, Rosmah, who was invited by the organisers to attend the conference based on her work with the Permata early childhood education and care programme, had an audience with Sheikh Hamdan at Dubai's Zabeel Palace. In her remarks, Rosmah shared with the audience that gifted children brought along with them an ensemble of talents that were rare and not usually identified in their peer group. "Having said this, being gifted alone doesn't guarantee success. The same can be said about being talented. "Early identification of these individuals, complemented with the right kind of environment, support and education could result in them contributing to the betterment of our countries," she said. Rosmah said it was heartening to note that more countries were now according education for the gifted and talented its due importance. It was crucial, she said, for family members, educators, researchers, governments and the private sector to come together to discuss and improve how best to identify and nurture distinctive talents. "Left unattended, we may risk losing the opportunity to develop the potential of these individuals to the fullest," said Rosmah who is scheduled to deliver a keynote address at the conference Sunday. Themed 'Nurturing Talent, Growing Potential', the event aims to achieve four key objectives, namely raising awareness on education for the gifted in the Gulf region and beyond; and building knowledge centres and strengthen community engagement on education for the gifted. It also eyes establishing principles for worldwide education systems for the gifted, and drafting a plan of action to accelerate the implementation of education programmes for the gifted throughout the Gulf region and beyond. -- BERNAMA