Gifted Students Neglected

An absence of specialised training leaves teachers ill-equipped to identify and cater for gifted students, that untapped potential is an opportunity lost.

In fact, the gifted are among the most neglected groups in schools, it’s often assumed that these students can self-regulate and direct their own learning but that has been proven not to be the case.

“Our brightest students are those who are most likely to make a real difference to society; they’re the ones best placed to find cures for cancers, solutions to global poverty, and to address today’s climate crisis. And yet, they’re the most neglected group within our education system,” says  Associate Professor Jae Yup Jared Jung from UNSW’s Gifted Education Research Centre (GERRIC).

The NSW High Potential and Gifted Education Policy recognises that gifted students need to be supported by effective school environments, including quality teaching, learning and leadership, to reach their potential. Yet today’s teacher training in NSW does not enable this, says Assoc Prof Jung.

Teachers in NSW must complete compulsory units in working with students who have special needs, such as those living with disabilities, learning difficulties and/or autism, but most preservice teacher training programs in Australia do not incorporate a unit in gifted education.

“This gap in teacher training dates back to the early 1990s … so for the last 30 plus years we have largely ignored the educational needs of a section of the student population who may have made significant and substantial contributions to Australian society,” Assoc Prof Jung says.

Research has shown that up to 50 per cent of gifted students are underachieving; that 20 per cent drop out of high school, and that 40 per cent fail to complete tertiary education.

“Certain students will be bored with the standard curriculum that’s targeted at the average student ... We group students together by age and we expect all students of the same age to be working at the same level. But that’s simply not the case,” he says.

“This egalitarian approach to education we have in Australia is like saying everyone who is the same age, regardless of their height, or weight, or body-type should wear the same size t-shirt.”

In fact, the most gifted students in any grade, he says, may be five or six years ahead of other students. “We need to understand that our student population is heterogeneous and pitch our education appropriately.”

In Australia, gifted children are defined, following the Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent proposed by the French-Canadian academic Françoys Gagné, as those in the top ten percent of ability or potential within their age group.

Gifted children have the capacity to transform their abilities into achievements - across intellectual, creative, social-emotional and/or physical areas - faster than their age peers. They may be identified from as young as two years old. “Most often we rely on teachers and parents to identify gifted and talented children,” he says.

Research has shown that the earlier we intervene, the better students will perform in the long term, he says. However, common - often negative - perceptions of gifted students can deter the identification of gifted students.

Unfortunately, those from certain backgrounds, including students from low socio-economic backgrounds, culturally diverse backgrounds, First Nations backgrounds and rural backgrounds appear to be the most disadvantaged among gifted students, as their potential often goes unnoticed, he says.

For example, these students are currently under-represented in NSW’s academically selective schools and Opportunity Classes, which represent one option to address the educational and related needs of gifted and high-ability students.

“Nevertheless, the NSW Department of Education is aware of the issue and have taken measures to address it. For example, they have recently introduced a refined entrance test for academically selective schools and Opportunity Classes,” Assoc Prof Jung says says.

Additionally, under the Equity Placement Model, which Jung helped develop, the Department is reserving up to 20 per cent of places in academically selective schools and Opportunity Classes for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Creating a learning environment that is conducive to the educational needs of gifted students requires additional support.

Unfortunately, without targeted assistance and interventions, gifted students may stagnate, disengage, and even disrupt the classroom environment and the learning outcomes of other students.

“Gifted students can require support to manage their self-perceptions, confidence and motivation or self-efficacy, their attitudes towards teachers and school, as well as their anxiety, emotional engagement and goal orientations,” he says.