Gifted and Talented Education at The Chase
What you need to know as a parent
Education is acknowledged to be a fundamental right for everyone. On this basis, each country develops the most appropriate education policy possible in relation to the needs of all students, with a view to promoting educational opportunity and enabling all young people to develop their potential to the full. The Government, therefore, acknowledges the importance of developing the curriculum to ensure that our gifted and talented students are appropriately challenged within school.
As a parent it is important to note that although your child may have been identified as being gifted in their Primary School it is not automatically the case that they will be identified as such when they move to The Chase.
The “gifted” population at The Chase comprise of those students who have achieved a MEAN standardised assessment score of 124+ according to the Cognitive Ability Tests (CATs) that we conduct upon entry to The Chase. These students are expected to achieve highly across a braod range of subjects. Departments keep what we call “shadow lists” of students who are particularly able in a certain subject.
At The Chase we believe the best way to challenge our gifted and talented population is through Quality First Teaching – teaching that inspires and challenges students to achieve their very best. We believe that this should be done in the classroom and so we direct all of our teachers to ensure that they issue higher level challenges to gifted and talented students throughout the lesson. We do not believe that gifted and talented students should simply get more work! Naturally, we recognise the value of providing opportunities for enrichment outside the classroom but our policy is that gifted and talented provision should never be a bolt on extra, it is what happens in the classroom every day.
To that end we offer three “waves” of intervention.
Wave One
◦ Classroom teachers are expected to track data on students so that they can identify underachievement (some gifted students are quite happy to do the very least amount of work! We are not happy for that to be the case.)
◦ All lessons/activities will be differentiated.
◦ Teacher will place a focus on learning objectives/questions and outcomes. This enables gifted students to “see” where the lesson is going.
◦ Teachers will accelerate the pace of lessons appropriately.
◦ Teachers will use higher level questioning techniques in lessons.
◦ Teachers will use clear success criteria.
◦ Teachers will use praise and rewards appropriately.
◦ Teachers will provide quality diagnostic feedback to enable students to make progress.
◦ As a school we believe that it is important to review our setting policies and practices to ensure that all students are placed in the appropriate classes. Over the last few years we have seen a focus on enhanced literacy skills and higher order thinking skills – all key skills which we believe are important to ensure success throughout each Key Stage and so we continue to review good practice.
◦ We expect all staff to provide Quality First Teaching to all students whatever their ability.
Wave Two
These are more specific interventions:
◦ Higher ability students may be removed from lessons for additional, accelerated support.
◦ Students may be provided with guided learning opportunities. For example, in Philosophy and Ethics Key Stage Three students are provided with optional research tasks. We also run a very successful Philosophers Tea Party!
◦ Students will be given the opportunity to work collaboratively and work through their own pathways.
◦ We hold Learning Conversations.
◦ Students may be given the opportunity to attend a Master Class.
◦ Students are encouraged to participate in the hundreds of after school clubs and activities that are on offer.
Wave Three
◦ Coaching students.
◦ Individual review meetings with students are being developed.
◦ Lesson observations with student feedback on progress are conducted.
◦ Personal targets are set.
◦ Students are provided with independent learning opportunities.
As a school we use combinations of these strategies to help or gifted and talented population to make progress.