This is a very interesting summary of research on learning of gifted students:

http://www.nswagtc.org.au/info/articles/RogersResearchSynthesis.html


or via tinyurl at:

http://tinyurl.com/2hcxjr

It answered my question on the rate of learning. I've pasted just a small amount below:

Research on Instructional Delivery: Pacing, Process Modifications

* The learning rate of children above 130 IQ is approximately 8 times faster than for children below 70 IQ
* Gifted students are significantly more likely to retain science and mathematics content accurately when taught 2-3 times faster than "normal" class pace.
* Gifted students are significantly more likely to forget or mislearn science and mathematics content when they must drill and review it more than 2-3 times
* Gifted students are decontextualists in their processing, rather than constructivists; therefore it is difficult to reconstruct "how" they came to an answer.