The High Potential and Gifted Education Policy promotes engagement and challenge for every student in every school. The policy also identifies and addresses the learning needs of high-potential and gifted students.
Implementation of the policy across the state is supported by professional learning and the HPGE implementation.
HPGE policy implementation in schools became mandatory in 2021. Developing an individual HPGE policy for your school is not required. Schools can document policy implementation procedures, programs and practices for their context.
Guiding principles
The following principles guided the development of the HPGE policy:
- All students, regardless of background or personal circumstances, require access to learning programs that meet their learning needs and support to aspire to, and achieve, personal excellence.
- Our commitment to high expectations for all students includes high potential and gifted students.
- Achieving excellence for high potential and gifted students is underpinned by effective school environments including quality teaching, learning and leadership.
- Potential exists along a continuum, where differing degrees of potential require differing approaches and levels of adjustment and intervention.
Domains of potential
The domains of potential describe the four broad categories of natural abilities found in Françoys Gagné's adapted model of Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent DMGT 2.0 (2009). These definitions apply to all students, including high potential and gifted students.
The domains of potential may not be mutually exclusive and are highly influenced by one another.
- Creative domain – refers to natural abilities in imagination, invention and originality.
- Intellectual domain – refers to natural abilities in processing, understanding, reasoning, and the transfer of learning.
- Physical domain – refers to natural abilities in muscular movement and motor control.
- Social-emotional – refers to natural abilities in self-management and relating to and interacting with others.
Potential exists along a continuum, where differing degrees of potential require differing approaches and levels of adjustment and intervention.
High potential students
High potential students are those whose potential exceeds that of students of the same age in one or more domains. Their potential may be assessed as beyond the average range across any domain. They may benefit from an enriched or extended curriculum and learning opportunities beyond the typical level of students the same age.
Gifted students
Gifted students’ potential significantly exceeds that of students of the same age in one or more domains. Gagné and others commonly estimate 10% of students may be considered gifted. These students typically develop talent and achieve mastery notably faster than their age peers. They may benefit from an extended curriculum and learning opportunities significantly beyond the typical level of students the same age.
Highly gifted students
Highly gifted students’ potential vastly exceeds that of students of the same age in one or more domains. Highly gifted students have potential assessed in the top 1% or less of age peers. Highly gifted students may require specific and more significant curriculum adjustments to meet their learning and wellbeing needs.