What the Olympics Remind Us About Gifted Education—and What We’re Building at Indelible Learning
The 2026 Winter Olympics opening ceremony was on. I was in awe. Indeed, I was amazed with artists, music, choreography, deep thoughts and planning put into an exquisite creativity. I was in awe with making something beautiful that combines history, national achievements, contributions, genius and yes arts and sports. It was difficult not to admire not only the show, but athletes who embraced their talents, overcame obstacles and made the cut to participate in 2026 Winter Olympics.
I used to watch these world-stage competitions as a little girl, growing up. My dearest mother and father loved watching it. As a result, subconsciously, they instilled that love for sports, competition and events in me, too. They instilled appreciation for talent, value of hard work and time well spent creating and achieving something meaningful. Something that leaves the mark. Something that is “Indelible”. As the word “Indelible” surfaces into my thoughts, I smile: “Like Indelible Learning”. In true sense of it. The word that keeps following me where I go.
Witnessing the beauty of the opening ceremony also reminded me that that excellence is never an accident.
What we see on this biggest world stage is the competitive spirit, endurance and strength executed often with precision and grace that many of us lack. And more importantly these skills are results of years of training and discipline to overcome failure, adjust, persist even with sometimes unimaginable obstacles. These skills, like any others on a national and international stage, are the fruits and results of years of unseen work.
This year’s ceremony in front of my eyes, celebrates achievement, but more importantly, it honors process.
This distinction matters deeply in education as well, especially in gifted education.
Indelible Learning & Gifted Learners
At Indelible Learning, including our upcoming Indelible Learning Institute, this is the mindset we try to cultivate in gifted learners: not just performance, but purposeful effort.
Not just talent, but deep engagement, resilience, judgment, and intellectual and personal growth.
Have you ever experienced that your gifted child, once they have finished necessary assignment, would be given more of the same?
Gifted students do not need more of the same. They do not need faster worksheets or higher stacks of content. Timing speed actually might hurt them.
What they need is intellectual food. They need learning content and work that is rich, complex, consequential, and worthy of their attention.
Like gifted athletes, intellectually gifted students need environments that reward curiosity, strategic thinking, and persistence.
Like gifted athletes, gifted minds need to wrestle with systems and problems, not just memorize facts.
Most importantly, gifted minds need opportunities to make real decisions. Those are decisions that have tradeoffs, uncertainty, and real-life consequences.
That type of learning gives learning real life meaning. And equips students with real life skills.
Indelible Learning: Experiential Learning
That is why we build our learning programs around games, simulations, and experiential challenges. These are not “extras.” They are how students learn best to:
- Think in systems
- Weigh evidence and risk and develop critical thinking and decision-making skills
- Adapt to new information
- Persist through difficulty
- Collaborate, compete, and reflect
- Make decisions when the answer is not obvious
This is what engaged learning looks like.
It is active.
It is demanding.
And it is meaningful. It builds not only knowledge, but more importantly, it builds judgment.
Indelible Gifted Education: Work That Actually Matters
Watching this year’s Olympics opening ceremony reminded me again, that behind every moment of excellence is a long arc of preparation.
For most athletes, that has been many many years in making. And that resilience and discipline matter as much as raw ability.
Education should work the same way. We should be designing learning experiences that:
- Honor talent without worshipping it
- Value effort as much as outcomes
- Build kindness alongside competence
- Reward persistence, not just speed
- Prepare students for real-life complexity, not just for tests or getting into college.
In the coming weeks, we will be sharing more about the Indelible Learning Institute (ILI). ILI is an extension of this same philosophy, built specifically for gifted learners who are ready for deeper challenge, real-world thinking, and work that actually matters.
Because our goal is not just to help students achieve.
Our goal is to help them become the kind of thinkers who can handle complexity, responsibility, and real-life consequences, long after the ceremony is over.
What is your experience with education?
What do you, as a student, parent, or educator, wish you have that you did not receive in your learning and education journey?
Dr. Jasminka Vukanovic-Criley MD, FACP, FHM is a multiple award-winning physician, hospitalist, healthcare & education innovator & Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCLA. She is a career mentor & advisor to undergraduate, graduate & postgraduate students & faculty across medicine, science & education. As Founder & CEO of Indelible Learning, Dr. Criley leads a systems-based approach to learning grounded in the belief that we grow geniuses by making complex systems visible, before real-world decisions carry irreversible consequences. Her research focuses on designing evidence-driven digital games & simulations that help people see, question, & improve systems across health, civics, science & human behavior. Dr Criley is a sought-after speaker, a founding Board member of Physician’s Weekly & an advocate for learning experiences that build judgment, agency & healthier institutions. She can be reached on X at @criley_md and at www.linkedin.com/in/jasminka-criley-md