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CHAPTER 1
Our more able pupils – the national scene
• Making good provision for the most able – what’s in it for schools? • National initiatives since 1997 • Every Child Matters and the Children Act 2004 • Higher Standards, Better Schools for All – Education White Paper, October 2005 • Self-evaluation and inspection • Resources for teachers and parents of more able pupils |
Today’s gifted pupils are tomorrow’s social, intellectual, economic and cultural leaders and their development cannot be left to chance.
(Deborah Eyre, director of the National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth, 2004)
The debate about whether to make special provision for the most able pupils in secondary schools ran its course during the last decade of the twentieth century. Explicit provision to meet their learning needs is now considered neither elitist nor a luxury. From an inclusion angle these pupils must have the same chances as others to develop their potential to the full. We know from international research that focusing on the needs of the most able changes teachers’ perceptions of the needs of all their pupils, and there follows a consequential rise in standards. But for teachers who are not convinced by the inclusion or school improvement arguments, there is a much more pragmatic reason for meeting the needs of able pupils. Of course, it is preferable that colleagues share a common willingness to address the needs of the most able, but if they don’t, it can at least be pointed out that, quite simply, it is something that all teachers are now required to do, not an optional extra.
A few years ago, efforts to raise standards in schools concentrated on getting as many pupils as possible over the Level 5 hurdle at the end of Key Stage 3 and over the 5 A*–C grades hurdle at GCSE. Resources were pumped into borderline pupils and the most able were not, on the whole, considered a cause for concern. The situation has changed dramatically in the last nine years with schools being expected to set targets for A*s and As and to show added value by helping pupils entering the school with high SATs scores to achieve Levels 7 and beyond, if supporting data suggests that that is what is achievable. Early recognition of high potential and the setting of curricular targets are at last addressing the lack of progress demonstrated by many able pupils in Year 7 and more attention is being paid to creating a climate in which learning can flourish. But there is a push for even more support for the most able through the promotion of personalised learning.
It is hoped that this book, with the others in this series, will help to accelerate these changes.
Making good provision for the most able – what’s in it for schools?
Schools and/or subject departments often approach provision for the most able pupils with some reluctance because they imagine a lot of extra work for very little reward. In fact, the rewards of providing for these pupils are substantial.
• It can be very stimulating to the subject specialist to explore ways of developing approaches with enthusiastic and able students.
Taking a serious look at what I should expect from the most able and then at how I should teach them has given my teaching a new lease of life. I feel so sorry for youngsters who were taught by me ten years ago. They must have been bored beyond belief. But then, to be quite honest, so was I.
(Science teacher)
• Offering opportunities to tackle work in a more challenging manner often interests pupils whose abilities have gone unnoticed because they have not been motivated by a bland educational diet.
• When pupils are engaged by the work they are doing motivation, attainment and discipline improve.
• Schools identified as very good by Ofsted generally have good provision for their most able students.
• The same is true of individual departments in secondary schools. All those considered to be very good have spent time developing a sound working approach that meets the needs of their most able pupils.
National initiatives since 1997
In 1997, the new government demonstrated its commitment to gifted and talented education by setting up a Gifted and Talented Advisory Group (GTAG). Since then there has been a wide range of government and government-funded initiatives that have, either directly or indirectly, impacted on our most able pupils and their teachers. Details of some can be found below. Others that relate to mathematics will be found later in this book.
Excellence in Cities
In an attempt to deal with the chronic underachievement of able pupils in inner city areas, Excell...
