Gifted and Talented Students Policy

1. What is this policy about?
   1. This policy will be implemented by ACT Education Directorate staff to support the needs of gifted and talented students in ACT public schools.
2. Policy Statement
   1. The Education Directorate recognises gifted and talented students as having unique educational needs.
   2. The Education Directorate is committed to ensuring that the needs of gifted and talented students are catered for in all ACT public schools to support them to reach their educational potential.
   3. This policy recognises gifted and talented students’ diverse domains of natural abilities, the broad range of levels of giftedness and fields of competencies in ACT public schools.
   4. The Education Directorate is committed to supporting schools with identification procedures, case coordination and specific learning needs programs and services for gifted and talented students.
   5. Schools are to ensure there are established, effective and equitable processes and measures in place for identifying all gifted and talented students.
   6. Schools are to ensure there are specific learning needs programs and services for all gifted and talented students.
   7. Specific learning needs programs and services should include, but are not limited to:
      • differentiated curriculum that supports extended and personalised learning
      • explicit teaching of advanced concepts, ideas and theories
      • a case coordination approach
      • environmental adjustments
      • like-ability grouping
      • counselling
      • mentoring programs and/or partnerships with external agencies
      • accessing current research to inform school practice
      • acceleration (examples include early entry, subject or whole grade, dual enrolment).
   8. Early entry to four year old preschool or kindergarten may be considered for eligible children. To be considered for early entry eligibility, a child must:
      • be three years old before commencing preschool, with a birth date falling before 30 April in the year of commencement; or
      • four years old by 30 April to commence kindergarten.
      The parent must:
      • submit the Early Entry to Preschool or Kindergarten parent nomination form; and
      • provide a report of a cognitive assessment, undertaken by a Psychologist registered in Australia, showing the child has an interpretable Full-Scale Intelligence Quotient (FSIQ) of 130 and above.
   9. Principals are required to nominate a Gifted and Talented Liaison Officer (GaTLO) as a first point of contact for all enquiries about the school’s approach to, and advice on, meeting the needs of gifted and talented students.
   10. Twice exceptional students should be provided with support, including reasonable adjustments for disability, to allow them to participate in their education on the same basis as gifted students without disability.
   11. Implementation support for ACT schools is contained in the associated Gifted and Talented Students Procedures.
3. Who does this policy apply to?
   1. This policy applies to all Directorate staff and students from preschool to year 12.
4. Context
   1. The Education Act 2004 establishes the principle that every child has a right to receive a high-quality education, including that school education should aim to develop every child’s potential and maximise educational achievements.
   2. The Australian Curriculum and Reporting Authority (2013) states that ‘gifted and talented students are entitled to rigorous, relevant and engaging learning opportunities drawn from the Australian Curriculum and aligned with their individual learning needs, strengths, interests and goals.’
   3. Françoys Gagné’s Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent 2.0 (2008, 2016) informs the key educational approaches and definitions contained in this policy by recognising ‘that giftedness is a broad concept that encompasses a range of abilities: it also recognises that giftedness is only potential and must go through a transformative process in order to become a talent’ (ACARA, 2013).
   4. The specific learning needs of gifted and talented students are supported by the ACT Government’s Future of Education Strategy (2019) and its principle of equity of student achievement through personalised learning and a differentiated approach.
5. Responsibilities
   1. The Education Support Office is responsible for:
      • providing support and guidance to schools in the development and effective implementation of gifted education programs and initiatives, and systemic professional learning opportunities and resources.
   2. Principal are responsible for:
      • ensuring school practices are consistent with this policy and associated procedures.
      • ensuring the needs of all gifted and talented students enrolled in their schools are met.
   3. The Senior Director, Learning and Teaching Policy and Service Design is:
      • the policy owner responsible for this policy.
6. Monitoring and Review
   1. The Policy Owner monitors the policy. This includes an annual scan of the policy’s operation. A full research review of the policy will be conducted within a three year period.
7. Contact
   1. For support contact the Learning and Teaching Branch via the email EDUlearningandteaching@act.gov.au.
8. Complaints
   1. Any concerns about the application of this policy or the policy itself, should be raised with:
      • the school principal in the first instance;
      • contact the Directorate’s Families and Students, Complaints and Feedback Unit on (02) 6205 5429.
      • online at http://www.education.act.gov.au/contact_us.
      • see also the Complaints Policy on the Directorate’s website.
9. References
   1. Definitions
      • Acceleration is a developmentally appropriate placement process to advance students’ academic enrolment ahead of their chronological peers in one or more subjects or by one or more whole learning years. Examples of acceleration options include subject-based acceleration, whole grade acceleration, dual enrolment in multiple school settings and/or early entry.
      • Case coordination, in the context of this policy, is a coordinated and collaborative approach to the identification and development of appropriate strategies and provisions for gifted and talented students.
      • Curriculum differentiation provides a planned and adapted curriculum to consider the needs and abilities of students with unique educational needs. This may include both enrichment and extension activities and curriculum compacting for gifted and talented students.
      • Early Entry is an acceleration program option designed to meet the specific cognitive and social emotional needs of early childhood gifted learners who require a learning environment which is more challenging and complex than their same age peers. Acceleration is for students who have been formally assessed as being among the top 2-3% of their age peers.
      • Françoys Gagné’s Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent 2.0  (2008, 2016) provides research-informed definitions of giftedness and talent that have a logical connection to identification and curriculum programs. Gagné makes a distinction between natural abilities (giftedness) and the superior mastery of systematically developed abilities in at least one field of human endeavour (talents).
      • Full Scale Intelligence Quotient (FSIQ) is a term coined for an individual’s complete cognitive capacity.
      • Gifted and Talented Liaison Officer (GaTLO) a principal designated officer who provides a point of contact between the school, the Directorate and parents regarding the school’s approach to meeting the needs of gifted and talented students.
      • Giftedness designates the possession and use of outstanding natural abilities, called aptitudes, in at least one ability domain to a degree that places an individual among the top 10% of age peers (Gagné, 2016).
      • Identification refers to the measures used to:
        • locate the student’s domain(s) and levels of giftedness (intellectual, creative, social, perceptual, physical [muscular or motor control])
        • describe the student’s fields of talent (for example academic, technical, investigative, artistic, social, enterprising, conventional, games, sports).
      • Levels of Giftedness refers to the levels of intellectual giftedness within the IQ range of giftedness. A child's level of giftedness will mean something different to every child, in every family, school, and life situation.
      • Specific learning needs programs refer to provisions, strategies and services that cater for the intellectual, physical and emotional needs of individual students.
      • Talent designates the outstanding mastery of systematically developed abilities, called competencies (knowledge and skills), in at least one field of human activity to a degree that places an individual at least among the top 10% of age peers who are, or have been, active in that field (Gagne, 2016).
      • Twice Exceptional refers to identified gifted students who are also diagnosed with; one or more specific learning difficulties; physical, emotional or behavioural disabilities; or other factors which may impair performance and mask high potential and or achievement.
   2. Legislation
      • Education Act 2004 (ACT)
   3. Implementation Documents
      • Gifted and Talented Students Procedures
   4. Related Policies and Information
      • Curriculum Requirements in ACT Public Schools –Preschool to Year 10 Policy
      • Curriculum Requirements in ACT Public Schools –Preschool to Year 10 Procedures
      • Students with a Disability Meeting their Educational Needs Policy
      • Enrolment of the Dependents of Temporary Residents Policy
      • Reporting on Student Achievement (Pre-School to Year 12) Policy.

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