Categories: NewsEducation

Should gifted students go to a separate school?

<h2>Despite two Senate inquiries in 1988 and <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;aph&period;gov&period;au&sol;Parliamentary&lowbar;Business&sol;Committees&sol;Senate&sol;Education&lowbar;Employment&lowbar;and&lowbar;Workplace&lowbar;Relations&sol;Completed&lowbar;inquiries&sol;1999-02&sol;gifted&sol;report&sol;contents">2001<&sol;a>&comma; it has taken 15 years and a state parliamentary review for the Victorian government to decide to <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;theage&period;com&period;au&sol;victoria&sol;gifted-academy-to-enable-bright-country-kids-to-learn-at-selective-state-schools-20170116-gtsh0w&period;html">build a specialist high school<&sol;a> for students who are gifted&comma; specifically targeting those from rural and regional Victoria&period; <&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p>Research at both the national and international level has <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;journals&period;sagepub&period;com&sol;doi&sol;pdf&sol;10&period;1177&sol;0016986207306324">long advocated<&sol;a>that students who are gifted have specific learning needs that require&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul>&NewLine;<li>tailored learning strategies<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>education supported by a challenging curriculum<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>teachers trained in gifted education<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>more exposure to students of similar ability<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>opportunities for acceleration<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p>These students are future leaders&comma; problem solvers and innovators&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Failing to provide an appropriate education for students who are gifted increases the risk of mental health issues&comma; boredom&comma; frustration&comma; developing behavioural problems both at school and at home&comma; leading to disengagement and dropping out of school&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>This is because these students tend to find the curriculum too easy and often talk &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;above” their peers&period; They become frustrated at the lack of understanding of their ability and what they are capable of achieving&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2>What does it mean to be gifted&quest;<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p>Australia has agreed a national understanding of giftedness and talent through the use of the <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;tandfonline&period;com&sol;doi&sol;abs&sol;10&period;1080&sol;1359813042000314682">Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent<&sol;a>&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>This model suggests that children have untrained natural abilities &lpar;gifts&rpar; in areas including&comma; intellectual&comma; social&comma; creative and physical&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>A student who is intellectually gifted may demonstrate some&comma; or many&comma; of the following traits&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul>&NewLine;<li>Early reading and language development<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Vivid imagination <&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Excellent memory<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Sense of humour<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Exceptional thinking skills and problem-solving abilities<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Logical thinking<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Advanced and multiple interests<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>A passion for learning<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Curiosity<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Moral and ethical concerns<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Rapid learning rate <&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Divergent-thinking&sol;creativity<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Preference for independent work<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p>The <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;search&period;proquest&period;com&period;ezproxy&period;uow&period;edu&period;au&sol;docview&sol;856363821&sol;fulltextPDF&sol;B9DE3B9B4C0949E2PQ&sol;4&quest;accountid&equals;15112">earlier a child is identified<&sol;a>&comma; the better the opportunity to engage the child in appropriate educational challenges when they start school&comma; or even before&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;journals&period;sagepub&period;com&sol;doi&sol;pdf&sol;10&period;1177&sol;001698620404800102">Research states<&sol;a> that these students need the opportunity to be grouped together in specialist schools or classes – and the boarding school being proposed in Victoria provides a solution for geographically isolated students&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Bringing these students together academically and geographically allows them to be challenged and stretched to reach their full potential&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>These students need faster-paced learning&comma; independent self-directed learning opportunities&comma; complex and challenging tasks that promote higher order thinking and enhance problem solving skills&comma; and meaningful tasks with real world scenarios&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>When these students are academically isolated in a non-selective school&comma; they can &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;dumb down” and <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;journals&period;sagepub&period;com&sol;doi&sol;pdf&sol;10&period;1177&sol;0016986209346946">underachieve to improve social acceptance<&sol;a>by their peers and minimise the risk of bullying and social isolation&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Grouping these students with like-minded peers of similar abilities and interests can provide <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;onlinelibrary&period;wiley&period;com&sol;doi&sol;10&period;1002&sol;pits&period;10144&sol;full">important emotional and social support<&sol;a>&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2>Few gifted schools across Australia<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p>New South Wales benefits from a well-established and successful centralised selective schools system&period; It has selective schools in Sydney and other metropolitan areas&comma; as well as boarding schools in rural and regional areas&period; It also has &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;Opportunity Classes” for students in Years 5 and 6&period; Entrance is gained in a similar way to entry to a selective high school – it is centrally managed and students have to sit an exam&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Other states and territories have limited specialised schools&colon; South Australia has an accelerated program called &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;Ignite”&comma; Western Australia has one selective high school&comma; and Victoria has four&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>State and territory education departments note on their websites that provisions are in place in all schools to meet the needs of students who are gifted&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>But planning and establishing specialist schools for gifted students will not become a wider trend <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;aph&period;gov&period;au&sol;Parliamentary&lowbar;Business&sol;Committees&sol;Senate&sol;Education&lowbar;Employment&lowbar;and&lowbar;Workplace&lowbar;Relations&sol;Completed&lowbar;inquiries&sol;1999-02&sol;gifted&sol;report&sol;contents">unless supported<&sol;a> at the federal and state levels&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2>Teacher training<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p>Specialist schools or classes will not succeed unless the teachers have <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;search&period;informit&period;com&period;au&period;ezproxy&period;uow&period;edu&period;au&sol;fullText&semi;dn&equals;098757303683336&semi;res&equals;IELHSS">education training<&sol;a> specifically geared towards supporting students who are gifted&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>These students have unique needs and challenges&comma; and their teachers should not be expected to recognise and handle these without specialised training&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Currently teachers in specialised schools may not have qualifications in gifted education&period; It is up to individual schools what the requirements are for such a position&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The two senate inquires recommended that <a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;search&period;informit&period;com&period;au&period;ezproxy&period;uow&period;edu&period;au&sol;fullText&semi;dn&equals;861945172982288&semi;res&equals;IELHSS">teachers receive training<&sol;a> in gifted education&period; But there are few universities that provide this&comma; and even fewer offer it at undergraduate level&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>It is unfair to both teacher and student to simply bring them together and expect achievement to happen&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2>Impact on rural schools<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;parliament&period;vic&period;gov&period;au&sol;images&sol;stories&sol;committees&sol;etc&sol;Past&lowbar;Inquiries&sol;EGTS&lowbar;Inquiry&sol;Final&lowbar;Report&sol;Gifted&lowbar;and&lowbar;Talented&lowbar;Final&lowbar;Report&period;pdf">Concerns have been raised<&sol;a> about the effect on schools of losing students who are gifted&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;curriculum&period;edu&period;au&sol;verve&sol;&lowbar;resources&sol;National&lowbar;Declaration&lowbar;on&lowbar;the&lowbar;Educational&lowbar;Goals&lowbar;for&lowbar;Young&lowbar;Australians&period;pdf">The Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians<&sol;a>states that all students are entitled to an education that allows them to develop their gifts and talents&comma; motivating them to reach their full potential&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The focus should be on the students&comma; and therefore the responsibility of the school is to ensure that all students achieve to their potential&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Removing a few students should not affect the programs taught in a school&comma; and may inspire those remaining to compete for academic recognition without being overshadowed by the few&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>But what works for some may not work for others&period; There will be some students who may feel more comfortable and perform better in a non-selective environment&period; <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>More information and support can be found at the following websites&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul>&NewLine;<li><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;aaegt&period;net&period;au&sol;">Australasian Journal of Gifted Education<&sol;a><&sol;li>&NewLine;<li><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;hoagiesgifted&period;org&sol;">Hoagies’ Gifted Education<&sol;a><&sol;li>&NewLine;<li><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;nagc&period;org&sol;">National Association for Gifted Children<&sol;a><&sol;li>&NewLine;<li><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;sengifted&period;org&sol;">SENG<&sol;a><&sol;li>&NewLine;<li><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;gifteddevelopment&period;com&sol;">Gifted Development Centre<&sol;a><&sol;li>&NewLine;<li><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;gifted&period;uconn&period;edu&sol;">Renzulli Center for Creativity&comma; Gifted Education&comma; and Talent Development<&sol;a><&sol;li>&NewLine;<li><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;echa&period;info&sol;">European Council for High Ability<&sol;a><&sol;li>&NewLine;<li><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;world-gifted&period;org&sol;">World Council for Gifted and Talent Children<&sol;a><&sol;li>&NewLine;<li><a href&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;cec&period;sped&period;org&sol;">Council for Exceptional Children<&sol;a><&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p><img class&equals;"alignleft size-full wp-image-5426" src&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;school-news&period;com&period;au&sol;wp-content&sol;uploads&sol;2016&sol;10&sol;creative-commons&period;png" alt&equals;"creative-commons" width&equals;"88" height&equals;"31" &sol;>This piece was written by Amanda Mergler<span class&equals;"fn author-name">&comma; Senior lecturer&comma; Queensland University of Technology&period;<&sol;span> The article was originally published on <em><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;theconversation&period;com&sol;should-gifted-students-go-to-a-separate-school-71620&quest;utm&lowbar;medium&equals;email&amp&semi;utm&lowbar;campaign&equals;Latest&percnt;20from&percnt;20The&percnt;20Conversation&percnt;20for&percnt;20January&percnt;2025&percnt;202017&percnt;20-&percnt;206595&amp&semi;utm&lowbar;content&equals;Latest&percnt;20from&percnt;20The&percnt;20Conversation&percnt;20for&percnt;20January&percnt;2025&percnt;202017&percnt;20-&percnt;206595&plus;CID&lowbar;43158fa09824b20838e7e16688649204&amp&semi;utm&lowbar;source&equals;campaign&lowbar;monitor&amp&semi;utm&lowbar;term&equals;Should&percnt;20gifted&percnt;20students&percnt;20go&percnt;20to&percnt;20a&percnt;20separate&percnt;20school">The Conversation&period;<&sol;a><&sol;em><&sol;p>&NewLine;

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