Meeting the Needs of gifted students returning to school after Coronavirus remote learning
Gifted students have the right to continue to have their learning expanded, to retain the excitement for learning that they have pursued during isolation from their classroom peers; all school systems have the responsibility to ensure that this happens.
Gifted students benefit most from working with scaffolded learning material in their zone of proximal development, with their intellectual peers. Gifted students benefit most from having their level of knowledge and the level at which they are capable of learning identified, and a strengths-based individual education plan put in place for them in response to their learning needs.
As we prepare for the return of students to full time schooling, within schools, we need to consider how this will be implemented effectively for all students. There have been assurances through social media that it does not matter too much if students have not successfully engaged with home-based learning, that teachers are professionals who will help to bridge those gaps, and this is a commendable reflection of the professionalism of teachers and their dedication to working towards the goal that no child is left behind.
However, there will be some students, some gifted students in particular, who will have thrived in the home learning environment. Students who will have been learning faster, at a higher level or a greater degree of complexity than allowed by their normal classroom program. These students will return to the classroom with a greater gap between them and their classroom peers – but at the opposite end of the scale to those who will be the main focus of attention.
Pre-assessment is critical in determining where each learner is before commencing a unit of work. Pre-assessing is considered best teaching practice, to eliminate re-teaching knowledge that students already know and enabling more in-depth exploration of new content (for gifted students this may be at a higher-than-age-peers grade level) and/or use of higher order thinking skills to use the new knowledge.
For some gifted students a well-structured, differentiated approach to the curriculum may meet their needs, provided it allows them to move quickly through, or eliminate entirely, repetition and lower order content.
There are many acceleration strategies, one of which is moving a student forward to a grade, which fits his or her grade equivalent ability. For students meeting guidelines for acceleration, to work in a classroom with older students is an educational approach supported by decades of research. Any acceleration strategy should be carefully planned and monitored.
If a student is consistently displaying capability above their grade level in one or more learning areas, consideration should be given to learning area acceleration to a higher grade. This may be achieved by supplying the student with higher grade learning material within their classroom, or by placing the student in a higher-grade classroom. The learning style and needs of the student should be the prime driver in the choice made.
If a student is displaying capability above their grade level across the academic curriculum, consideration should be given to full grade grade-skip, to permanently joining a higher grade, and states and territories have procedures and processes for this educational process.
The AAEGT strongly encourages all education systems, leaders and teaching staff to consider the needs of those gifted learners who have made even more gains during their period of enforced absence from the classroom.
It is important to note that while some gifted students may have thrived, others may have experienced a variety of challenges; some may need social and emotional support to transition back to face to face learning.
When returning to the classroom, parents should consider communicating the following to the teacher:
Teachers, upon children’s return to the classroom:
Meeting the needs of gifted students returning to school after Coronavirus remote learning. AAEGT - May 2020
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