Transcript PLANNING THE HKAGE

The Development of Gifted
Education in HK
March 2010
Mr Abraham Tang
Associate Director, Student
Programmes and Services
鄧景康
總監(學生服務)
Rundown of this Presentation
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The Background and Development of
HKAGE
About the HKAGE
Gifted Education in Hong Kong
Milestones of GE in Hong Kong
1990 The Education Commission Report No.4 initiated the development and
implementation of GE in Hong Kong
1994 Launch of 3-year ‘Pilot School-based Programme for Academically Gifted Children
on programme planning, curriculum development, student selection and teacher
training
1995 Fung Hon Chu Gifted Education Centre was established as a resource centre for
promoting and supporting gifted students, parents and teachers
1996 Education Report recommendation that gifted education should be included in the
core curriculum of initial teacher education, in refresher courses and in long term
development programmes for teachers
2000 Current gifted education policy - three-tier framework- in Hong Kong was
formulated
2003 Gifted Education Section of Education & Manpower Bureau (now EDB) was
formally established to implement the gifted education policy
2006 HKSAR Government first moots establishment of the Hong Kong Academy
for Gifted Education
2008 Executive Director of HKAGE takes up post
Education Commission Report No.4
香港教統會第四號報告書
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a high level of measured intelligence
specific academic aptitude in a subject area
creative thinking
superior talent in visual and performing arts
natural leadership of peers
psychomotor ability – outstanding performance or
ingenuity in athletics, mechanical skills or other
areas requiring gross or fine motor coordination
Strategy paper in 2000
the 3-tier service delivery mode
Three-tier Implementation Model and Target Students
Student Category
Mode
Level Three:
Off-site
support
Level Two:
School-based
pullout
programmes
Level One:
School-based
whole-class
approach
Exceptionally gifted students
Students with special talents/
outstanding academic results
All students
General
Enrichment
Students with outstanding
performance
in specific domains
Students with outstanding
performance
in academic subjects
Curriculum Content
Specialized
(Subject/Domain)
So what is intelligence?
The ability to perform tasks more quickly,
 The ability to reason well and solve
problems more readily,
 The ability to handle complexity, and
 The ability to adapt to new environmental
demands and to shape environments.
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Conceptions of Giftedness
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Witty: A child is gifted whose performance in a
potentially valuable line of human activity is
consistently remarkable (1958)
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Passow: Talent is the capacity for superior
achievement in any socially valuable area of
human endeavor, but limiting the areas to such
academic fields as languages, social sciences,
natural sciences, and mathematics and such
artistic fields as music, graph and plastic arts,
performing arts, mechanic arts, and the field of
human relations (1965).
Conceptions of Giftedness
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Renzulli: Composite set of factors treated
equally (creativity, motivation, and above
average intelligence ) (1978)
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Gardner: Extraordinary ability/performance in
seven different intelligence areas, including
verbal, logical mathematical, spatial visual,
musical, kinesthetic, intrapersonal, and
interpersonal (1983)
Multiple Intelligences
Gardner, 1983
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Spatial
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Intrapersonal
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Linguistic
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Musical
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Bodily-Kinesthetic
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LogicalMathematical
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Interpersonal
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Definitions of Giftedness
Renzulli’s Three-Ring Model
Above average abilities: general abilities (like processing information, integrating experiences, and abstract thinking)
and specific abilities (like the capacity to acquire knowledge, perform in an activity).
Creativity: the fluency, flexibility, and originality of thought, an openness to experience, sensitivity to stimulations,
and a willingness to take risks.
Task commitment: motivation turned into action. Without task commitment high achievement is simply not possible.
Only if characteristics from all three rings work together can high achievement or gifted behaviour be witnessed.
François Gagné DMGT Model
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Gifts & talents
Domains of giftedness
Fields of talents
Catalysts
Giftedness corresponds to competence which is
distinctly above average in one or more domains
of human aptitudes
Giftedness: Contemporary Understanding
David Perkins synthesizes much of the research and theories of intelligence
and groups them into three strands:
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Neural intelligence is rooted in a biological system and determined by
neural efficiency—the brain’s physical processes. This is the most
traditional view of intelligence.
Experiential intelligence involves “know-how” or knowledge of typical
patterns or situations. As a result, intelligence is a matter of experience with
thinking in particular contexts.
Reflective intelligence is based on knowledge of thinking strategies—
knowing how to think, how to monitor one’s thinking, and how to persist.
Perkins suggests that instead of choosing one, all three strands contribute to
intelligent behavior
Perkins 1995 “Outsmarting IQ: The Emerging Science of Learnable Intelligence”
A shift from…
to…
High IQ score
Intelligence is multifaceted
Diagnosis and treat
approach
Education-provision Approach:
Verifying that services are
appropriate, challenging and
developmental
Identifying and
labeling students as
‘gifted’
Recognizing the needs for
differentiating our responses
Screening and
referral
Searching for strengths and
talents in many ways
All Learners are not the Same!
“We are not all the same; we do not
all have the same kinds of minds;
education works most effectively for
most individuals if these
differences….are taken into account
rather than denied or ignored”
Gardner 1995 “Reflections on Multiple Intelligences”
Giftedness: A Changing Concept
IN THE PAST
 giftedness concerned primarily with high IQ
 assumed that gifted students were born with high intelligence –
genetic trait
 students identifiable by high grades and test scores; capable of
excelling in all areas of school and of life
 Unchangeable over time
TODAY
 There are different ways if being gifted (Gardner, Renzulli, Sternberg)
 Learning predispositions
 Conventional IQ tests only measure logical-mathematical &
linguistic intelligence
 Many IQ tests have a “ceiling effect”
Myths about Gifted Students
Gifted children are smart, so they can get by on their own
When students are not presented with learning experiences that are
appropriate for their abilities, they lose motivation and sometimes
even their interest in learning and school. Brain research suggests
that the brain will not maintain its level of development if students
are not challenged
Gifted students excel in all school subjects
While there are students who are high achievers in all areas, many
others have subject-specific strengths. Gifted students may struggle
in some subjects or activities, while they soar in others. Some gifted
students even have learning disabilities – twice exceptionality
Myths about Gifted Students
Gifted students are a homogeneous group
Just like any other group, gifted students have different interests,
areas of strength, ability levels, and temperaments. There is not a
definitive list of gifted characteristics, nor will all students’ needs be
met with the same strategies. Providing differentiated instruction is a
necessity, even in advanced classes
All children are gifted
This is a well-intentioned belief, and it is true that all children can
learn and all children have areas of strength. Nevertheless, it is a
fact that some students learn more quickly and are capable of a
higher level of work than their age. Gifted students need different
content and instruction in order to meet their needs
Learning Characteristics of
Gifted Students
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Superior learning process
Motivation to learn and learning style
Learning outcomes
Relations with peers
Self-perception and affective aspects
Uneven rates of development
Thank you for listening
www.hkage.org.hk