New postgrad program for teaching gifted children
Gifted children will have increased opportunities for quality education thanks to a new program of study at the Macquarie University Special Education Centre.
The Postgraduate Certificate in Special Education (Gifted Education) is being offered for the first time this year in response to an increasing demand from schools for specialists in gifted education.
"The trigger to offer the course came from a number of our Masters in Special Education students," explains course convenor, Dr Kerry Hodge. "Their course focused on children with intellectual disabilities and learning difficulties, but when our students were looking for employment they often found that schools also wanted them to have expertise with gifted children."
 |
Dr Kerry Hodge |
The qualities of a gifted child
The population of gifted children is a very diverse one according to Hodge. In IQ terms they range from moderately gifted to highly and even profoundly gifted. They usually learn rapidly and have exceptional memory, but they differ in the extent to which they possess qualities such as complex language, logical or creative thinking, perseverance, a broad general knowledge or deep knowledge of a topic. Socially they cover the entire introvert-extrovert spectrum.
What you will learn
The Certificate comprises three units that are four credit points each: SPED 801 - Key Research Issues and Methods in Special Education, which will teach how to evaluate the literature that gifted education is based upon, SPED 809 - Gifted Education: Identification and Intervention, and SPED 901 - Special Education Project Stage 1, where a literature review of a specific area in gifted education is undertaken.
Students will learn about the issues in identifying giftedness, which is not necessarily straightforward. "Some children will more or less announce their presence," says Hodge. "But there are a number of children who are much less visible because of underachievement or strengths in nonverbal areas. Children from minority cultures can also be harder to identify. Sometimes behaviour problems are masking giftedness."
Students in the course will also gain skills in effective research-based strategies for meeting the educational needs of children who learn rapidly. "Gifted children don't need to practice and revise so often," explains Hodge. "Students will learn how to cater for the intellectual and social-emotional needs of these fast learners whether they are in classes of gifted children or in mixed ability classes."
A five day practicum is also included in the Certificate, with students gaining experience in OC classes, selective schools, or schools that provide full-time programs for gifted and talented students.
The Postgraduate Certificate in Special Education (Gifted Education) can be completed in 18-24 months and requires a Bachelor degree or equivalent for entry. The program is offered online, although students can choose to attend lectures on campus. The SPED 809 unit is also available as a Masters elective or as a single non-award unit through the Centre for Open Education.
"School can be a tough place for gifted children if they are not understood or given appropriate work," says Hodge. "Teachers trained in gifted education can really make a difference."
For further information contact Kerry Hodge at kerry.hodge@mq.edu.au
Visit the MUSEC website at: www.aces.mq.edu.au/musec