Young, Gifted and Talented

What is Young, Gifted and Talented?

In the English education system the term 'gifted' is used to mean those pupils with the potential to excel in academic subjects such as English, history or Maths. 'Talented' is used to refer to pupils who excel in areas of the curriculum requiring practical or visio-spatial abilities, such as sport, music or design.

Identification methods

Schools have the discretion to decide how best to identify their gifted and talented pupils but are likely to obtain the best results by drawing on a wide range of information sources, including both qualitative and quantitative information. A range of popular methods for identification are listed below.

1 Teacher/staff nomination

2 Checklists

3 Testing- achievement, potential and curriculum ability

4 Assessment of children's work

5 Peer nomination

6 Parental information

7 Discussions with children/young people

8 Using community resources

Personalisation: from identification to practice

Personalised learning is about tailoring education to individual need, interest and aptitude so as to ensure that every learner achieves and reaches the highest standards possible, notwithstanding their background or circumstances. For gifted and talented learners this includes: Effective assessment for learning, so that planning takes account of prior learning, stretching curricular targets are set with pupils, and differentiated learning objectives and outcomes are shared; learning activities in the classroom which offer additional stretch through a combination of acceleration, enrichment and extension; opportunities for independent learning, and use of a range of learning styles; learning in settings beyond the classroom, for example in real-life contexts which support problem-solving and application of knowledge and skills; Support in specific areas, for example through language support or mentoring, alongside increased challenge in areas of strength and above all, a rich provision for all, which provides further opportunities for identification.

The Primary Framework for literacy and mathematics and the renewed Secondary Frameworks provide support for planning and provision to ensure challenge in the classroom.

Bishop Stopford's Young, Talented and Gifted policy is available on the policies page of this website.