On discovering gifts
A quick guide to models that support our most able learners
I’m always astounded by the generosity of the teaching profession. I’m on my own learning journey here in the gifted space and I’ve been given so many high impact resources by so many expert practitioners. Last year I project managed a report on gifted learning opportunities at my school and learned more in three weeks consulting with our school community than I have in the previous seven years. I thought that with this post, I would pay it forward and compile some resources for those starting out in gifted and high potential learning like I am.
I am a bit late to the party for a couple of reasons. My experiences with discovery learning have tainted my view. I still believe there are good reasons to be sceptical of its efficacy as a mainstream strategy. I’ve witnessed its potential to serve our most able learners. But on the other hand, I’ve seen students flounder under the weight of ‘choice’ combined with a near non-existent knowledge base. I’ve also seen students literally in tears about having to carry a team of not-so-enthusiastic or able learners.
The other reason is that I’ve become a bit of a meat-and-potatoes teacher in recent years. My students are prepared to follow instructions and work hard. I’ve always found the ‘release’ bit of gradual release of responsibility difficult. It’s something I’m conscious of. Sometimes that need for safety comes at the cost of other opportunities. I am lucky enough this year to be working with a group of highly able Year 7s. So with a similar level of enthusiasm that I give to my seniors, I have been investigating gifted teaching and learning. Here’s what I found.
On the Betts model
Anne Gripton was such a great help to me when I was designing an enrichment program for Year 7 last year. The first aspect of the Betts model is identifying which of the six profiles of best fits your students. You can read a moderately detailed explanation here. Or you could skip to this table that Anne found, which gives a 360 degree view of how we can support the unique needs of each type. I think this is important because a lot of ‘types’ need our advocacy in identification. Some of these types can be difficult to get along with, and sometimes have complex needs. So they do need understanding teachers in their corner to maximise their potential.
The other aspect of the model that I really like is the autonomous learning model itself. I really don’t like the visual because it doesn’t explain the interactions (it starts at the top and goes clockwise!) Dr Katherine Hoekman has been incredibly helpful and generous with her original tip-off and subsequent advice on DM. For me, a lot of the enrichment ideas were not new, but when it was explained as a hierarchy here and in more detail, it helped me visualise what learning cycles might look like and how units might be framed. I really liked the idea of talking openly with students about the skills and planning needed for successful investigations. But what I liked even more was situating the entire program in discussions about self-efficacy and goal setting, something we might also refer to as personal metacognition. I would like to get better at cueing and questioning highly able students in relation to their learning and investigative processes, rather than problem-solving on their behalf. Control freaks will be able to relate.
On the Williams model
I instinctively know what a challenging guided question looks like. But until I looked at the Williams model, I can see in hindsight that I haven’t been very intentional about it. The best resource I found on this was the GERRIC Modules, published for free by UNSW. They were created in 2004 so ignore anything about learning styles! The Williams model is a framework for generating appropriately challenging activities that require critical thinking. I found some of the examples given (extensive and for every KLA) to be a bit too open ended and teachers would need to be sure the knowledge foundation had been laid. They require students to deal constructively with ambiguity, paradox, evaluation, alternative scenarios, and contentious issues, all very intellectually challenging, even for adults! I’ve come up with some examples for my class to tackle toward the end of their unit on canonical and contemporary poetry. Students will choose and justify their end product, adding another level of choice and autonomy.
Poetry makes nothing happen. Is this true in your view? Investigate Auden's eulogy for WB Yeats and reconcile this perspective against your own view of poetry.
Is the world too cynical and bleak for poetry? Source non-fiction articles and poems you have sourced to support your view.
Identify the five most influential poems in literature. Why do they retain their power? Rank them and give a justification.
Is poetry really all that different to prose? Demonstrate your answer using two poems to illustrate support for your argument.
There are parallels between gifted education and gifted learners. The professional learning imperative often flies beneath the radar with more mainstream concerns taking up most of the oxygen. I think there’s something here for all mainstream class teachers to learn. I wish that I had come to this knowledge sooner and I hope this post reaches someone who is also starting out on their journey of discovery.