​Our Mission

 Wakatipu High School's Gifted Education programme is committed to supporting students to achieve to their full potential.
The programme is aimed at supporting students through the provision of opportunities for talent development. Our teaching and learning community challenges and encourages the pursuit of excellence, and the development of passion for lifelong learning.

Gifted Education at WHS
Wakatipu High School uses a multifaceted approach to providing for gifted and talented students through a differentiated approach. This includes:
  • A timetable structure that supports students to choose classes and courses that best meet student individual needs.
  • Personalised teaching and learning programmes that endeavour to offer student choice and enable the self-managing student to accelerate their learning.
  • A range of specialist option choices such as the ‘Critical Thinking’ (5AHTC) in Social Sciences and the Talent Development (TAD) course
  • Subject acceleration (from end of Year 9 through Senior School)
  • Extracurricular talent development through cultural and sporting activities

Gifted Education Policy


Aim
To identify and address the needs of gifted and talented students at Wakatipu High School.

Definition
Wakatipu High School Gifted Education students are defined as those who have the ability or potential to perform at a level significantly beyond their chronologically aged peers. They demonstrate potential or ability in one or more from a range of areas which may include, but is not limited to, one or more of the following:
  • Academic/Intellectual/Matauranga
  • Artistic
  • Creative/Innovative
  • Cultural/Tikanga
  • Kaitiakitanga (guardianship)
  • Leadership /Rangatiratanga/ Social
  • Manaakitanga (hospitality)
  • Physical /Sporting/Tinana
  • Tohungatanga (expertise)
  • Whanaungatanga (values)

Wakatipu High School is part of a diverse and multi-cultural community and we recognise that students from any background may have outstanding abilities or potential related to their specific beliefs, values or practices.

Identification
Within our group of gifted and talented there is a range of ability from mildly to profoundly gifted.

​Formal and informal methods of identification will be used and triangulated to identify Gifted Education students at WHS. Students may be nominated and considered at various times throughout their time at school. WHS will employ a range of tools to identify Gifted Education students which may include, but is not limited to, one or more of the following:
  • New entrants assessment (CEM English, Mathematics and Reasoning Skills)
  • e-asTTle, PAT, STWI or other learning area assessments
  • Overall Teacher Judgement (OTJ) data from contributing schools
  • Nominations from parent, teacher, self or peer

The WHS G&T committee will consist of a G&T Coordinator, member of SLT, Guidance Counsellor and middle manager who will consider students for G&T and will determine, in consultation with the student and parents/guardians, the most appropriate programmes to meet the student’s needs. If a student is being considered for acceleration, then the relevant Head of Learning Area (HoLA) or appropriate Learning Area member will be co-opted to the committee. The G&T committee may co-opt other specialists as appropriate.

"Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe
that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained."
​
​ - Marie Curie

Programme
​

The Gifted Education Programme is philosophically:
  • designed to challenge students, empower them, encourage risk taking, develop creative and critical thinking, foster independent learning and leadership, build individual accountability and the pursuit of excellence
  • committed to supporting the social, emotional and cultural needs of students
  • dynamic in our approach to identifying and creating specialised programs to meet the individual needs of Gifted Education students including those who are double labelled (twice exceptional) or under achieving
  • one which supports teachers to provide differentiated programming and align with current research on best practice for Gifted Education students
  • one which recognises that high levels of gifted potential, prevalent in primary school, may not have yet transformed into talents and responds with flexible Gifted Education program provision
  • one that facilitates parent/whanau partnerships and student advocacy

Indicators & Identification
​

Strategies
A multi-method identification process is used, this includes:
  • Affective data on characteristics and behaviour of gifted students
  • Initial screening - test scores CEM, PAT or e-AsTTle
  • Academic records, work samples, such as ICAS resultsCollaborative data from parents/whanau/students/teachers/school counsellors
  • Māori Profiles for G&T
  • Purdue Academic Rating Scales (Maths, Science, English, Social Studies, Languages
  • Purdue Vocational Scales (Agriculture, Business and Office, Food Tech, Trade and Industrial)
  • REACH Screening Checklist and Teacher Questionnaire
  • Renzulli-Hartman Inventory for Superior Student
  • Secondary School Teacher Checklist for Identifying Students with High Ability
  • McAlpine Reid Teacher Observation Scales
  • Data from psychometric tests administered by Educational Psychologists using the current versions of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale (WISC) or Stanford Binet (SB) I.Q. testsAbility tests such as the Raven's Progressive Matrices.
Indicators
  • understanding and/or performance beyond that of peers
  • persistent intellectual curiosity
  • superior quality of written and/or spoken vocabulary
  • creative and divergent thinker, shows originality in thinkingsophisticated reasoning powers and ability to manipulate ideas
  • strong sense of justice and humour
  • task commitment to a chosen topic of interest and desire to work independently on self-selected projects
  • exceptional memory
  • learns at a faster pace than peers
  • intense, perceptive, sensitive

Gagne's Differentiated Model of Gifted & Talented
​

Acceleration at WHS
​

​Any student can be nominated at any time for acceleration.  The acceleration process at Wakatipu High School is very thorough and consists of a parent survey, review of the marks that students have achieved in their target subject, student feedback and commentary as well as teacher feedback. This information then comes to a review committee who make the final decision based on the information and thorough discussion. The Acceleration Review Committee consists of the Head of Learning Area, the Gifted & Talented Co-ordinator, the Head of Learning Support, the Guidance Counsellor and the Senior Deputy Principal. If the review comes out favourable and a place is offered then it is just an option and there is absolutely no obligation for the nominated student to take it up.
Within our group of gifted and talented there is a range of ability from mildly to profoundly gifted. Many of the needs of these students will be met through differentiated teaching and learning and our existing programmes. Gifted Education students who are highly gifted may be considered for acceleration. Other options include extension beyond the classroom and/or our Talent Development Course. To be considered for acceleration (subject or full-year) highly gifted students will be assessed across the following criteria:
  1. Academic Ability, Aptitude, and Achievement;
  2. School and Academic Factors;
  3. Developmental Factors;
  4. Interpersonal Skills;
  5. Attitude and Support.

Students who are accelerated are expected to achieve to the Excellence Level in the accelerated subject(s)
• If a student is currently, and expected to continue, achieving at the Excellence level, then they may continue with their acceleration in that subject.
• If a student is currently achieving at the Merit level, then a conversation will be had between the student, parents/caregivers, and relevant Learning Area. Based on this discussion and the expectation of excellence, a decision will be made by the Learning Area, which may result in a range of options such as continuing to be accelerated or repeating the subject.
• Students who are achieving below Merit level should not continue to be accelerated and a discussion to that effect will be had.

News and Competitions
​

Competitions throughout the year will be listed on the ‘Curious Minds’ Classroom page and be promoted via the newsletter.

​For more information regarding any of the above, please contact Mr. Oded Nathan (onathan@wakatipu.school.nz)