Selective Schools

Written by Rosemary Hammerton Sunday, 11 July 2010 00:00

What better time to begin a blog about gifted education than during the current media debate about selective schools! Despite hearing the same old arguments churned out every time this debate surfaces, I am still drawn to read them - an occupational hazard I guess.

The benefits of ability grouping for the intellectually gifted, when accompanied by a differentiated curriculum, are well documented. For the past 8 years I have taught small ‘withdrawal' classes and part-time self-contained gifted classes. For me, as for most who work in this field, it's about equity - a child's right to learn, to be engaged and to be challenged at school. Notions of elitism, as ubiquitous as they are, have always seemed out of place in this argument. Despite this, I still have some ambivalence about selective high schools. One of my own children attended one and had a very happy 6 years there so, yes, I do have first-hand experience (as a parent) and no personal axe to grind. I suppose the crucial question for me is this: "Is the selective school model, as it currently stands, the best we can offer our most gifted minds?"

To answer this question, I believe we first need to explore some more fundamental questions, for example:

• What kind of learner thrives in the current education system, where the HSC is the final arbiter of academic success?
• Would the International Baccalaureate (which is not offered in selective high schools) be more or less suited to the learning and assessment needs of intellectually gifted students?
• Are our most highly gifted students successful in gaining entry to selective high schools? Why or why not?
• How are teachers selected for positions in selective high schools and how informed are they about the learning and affective needs of gifted students?
• What about our more right-brained, creative thinkers? How do they fare in selective high schools?
• What types of schools, or learning environments, are most successful at encouraging and rewarding innovation and originality in thinking and expression?

Please engage with me in exploring these questions or some of your own.