What is HPGE?
Dundas Public School follows the NSW Department of Education’s High Potential and Gifted Education (HPGE) Policy. In NSW public schools, a student can be identified as being High Potential, Gifted or Highly Gifted in one or more of the following domains:
Intellectual, Social-Emotional, Physical or Creative.
High potential students are those whose potential exceeds that of students of the same age in one or more domains (creative, physical, socioemotional and intellectual). 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 involving content and skills beyond the typical level of students of the same age.
Gifted students’ potential significantly exceeds that of students of the same age in one or more domains. Leading gifted education experts commonly estimate that 10% of students may be considered gifted. They typically develop talent and achieve mastery notably faster than their similar-aged peers.
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.
What are the four domains?
The Department of Education represents each of these domains with these cogwheel images:
High Potential and Gifted Education (HPGE) is supported through four key domains to nurture and extend students' abilities and talents:
1. Intellectual
Developing academic potential
-Providing opportunities for deep, critical, and creative thinking.
-Offering challenging, complex, and open-ended tasks that go beyond the standard curriculum.
-Encouraging inquiry-based learning and advanced problem-solving skills.
2. Creative
Fostering innovation and originality
-Supporting students in generating unique ideas and solutions across various subjects.
-Encouraging exploration of the arts, design, and other creative pursuits.
-Providing opportunities for self-expression and experimentation in learning activities.
3. Social-Emotional
Building resilience and interpersonal skills
-Developing students’ leadership abilities and teamwork skills.
-Providing mentoring and opportunities for peer collaboration with like-minded learners.
-Fostering emotional intelligence, self-reflection, and coping strategies to handle challenges.
4. Physical
Enhancing talent in physical pursuits
-Identifying and nurturing students’ abilities in sports, movement, and coordination.
-Offering specialised programs, coaching, or pathways for physical development.
-Encouraging goal setting and persistence in physical challenges and activities.
Dundas Public School has a comprehensive HPGE student identification process. Teachers who believe that a student in their class may be HPG in one or more domains use observational notes, student work samples and internal and external assessment data (if applicable) to present to the school’s leadership team.
If a student is identified as being HPGE, the classroom teacher works with the student and their parents/carers to develop a HPGE Individual Learning Plan. This plan outlines the adjustments and interventions the classroom teacher will implement at school to further develop the student’s potential or giftedness.
All students at Dundas Public School engage in whole-school events and activities and students identified as HPG are given specific encouragement and support to showcase their talents and abilities to the school community. This ‘talent development’ process and its relationship to student high performance is outlined in the HPGE Policy.