Gifted and talented education: using technology to engage students

Here we have collated some highlights and links from our recent live chat, in association with IGGY, that explored the role of technology in gifted education. To read the discussion in full, click here. Jackie Swift (@jactherat), head of English at a London secondary school, was the G&T co-ordinator at her previous school and has blogged for the Guardian Teacher Network on gifted and talented pupils: Just what is gifted and talented? Do gifted and talented pupils need gifted and talented teachers? I agree that G&T students do need exceptional teachers, ones who don't feel threatened by them, who are open to being challenged beyond the usual and open to many things. Indeed a multi-subject specialist of some sort would fit the bill. Ian Warwick, senior director, London Gifted and Talented Dr Adam Boddison, academic principal for IGGY is responsible for ensuring that there is a broad range of academic content for IGGY members, which is both relevant and engaging Links, videos and blog posts:

History Lecturer : On the stretching of brighter history pupils The education twitter-sphere has been all a-buzz today with stuff about helping (or failing) bright pupils. I am not at all qualified to contribute directly to the debate; I can only recount my own experiences, and anecdotal evidence is not very valuable in such a case. Because of my work as an examiner I meet history teachers from scores of other schools every summer, and I do not think my approaches were in any way unusual. Yes, I taught at an independent school, so it was selective in terms of ability to pay fees. It was not very selective in terms of ability; plenty of our pupils did well to get C passes at GCSE with a couple of Bs thrown in. However, I think I do have some credentials when it comes to helping bright history pupils make good use of their time in school. We laid great emphasis on free reading, both quantity and quality. This emphasis on free reading started with the juniors (and we had three years before exam-pressure kicked in). Back to the advert.

Tim Rylands' Blog - to baldly go....... Using ICT to inspire Challenging ‘aspiring’ and ‘perspiring’ more able, gifted and talented readers in the context of challenges for all readers | Rising Stars Blog Guest blogger, Ann Bridgland, is an Education Trainer, Consultant and Coach As Professor Deborah Eyre once recommended in her 2007 publication, “What Really Works for G&T”, is still very resonant today: “… gifted and talented education is about making exceptional performance a reality for those children and young people who have the ability to excel. I also agree completely with her opening gambit that: “When a school starts to look at what really works in G&T education it is tempting to look for a quick fix or a set of requirements which, if implemented, will magically lead to effective provision for G&T. This applies as much for reading as it does to every other aspect of the curriculum. Planning Provision [1] Choose texts with several layers of meaning and encourage pupils to appreciate that different interpretations are definitely up for grabs! A range of response activities for ‘embryonic literary experts’ The embryonic critic.

Curriculum 50 Resources For The Parents And Teachers Of Gifted And Talented Students Every parent hopes for their child to be smart and to excel in school, but sometimes parents just don’t know what to do with a child who is especially exceptional. Keeping him or her challenged, interested, and engaged can be tough, as can dealing with an educational system that doesn’t always focus on helping out bright students. Parents of gifted and talented children should know that they’re not alone and that there are hundreds of resources on the Web that can help every step of the way. Here are some we think stand out from the crowd, offering advice, information, support, and educational resources to help you support and encourage your child’s special abilities. Organizations These organizations help gifted students and their parents get the education, emotional support, and guidance they need to grow up happy and well-adjusted. Twitter Find quick 140-character-or-less quips and updates about working with, parenting, and helping gifted children from these excellent Twitter feeds. Blogs

Online tools Lesson observations: why we love our 'Big Brother' classroom | Teacher Network I recently tweeted the question: What's the best CPD you've ever had as a teacher? And what's the worst? The 25-plus answers I received fell into two distinct camps. Worst: Being talked-at, forgettable whole-staff sessions led by non-teachers about the New Big Thing, tired group activities involving post-its and sugar paper and even workshops involving balls of energy being thrown. Eww. Best: Networking on Twitter, reading and reflecting on blogs written by fellow teachers and, by far the most popular, getting into other people's classrooms – in or out of your own establishment. And the movement in academic research and wide-ranging evidence confirms what we probably already know: in order to improve teaching and learning, continued professional development should start in the classroom: talking about our teaching, learning from our peers, sharing good practice and developing coaching models. However, having your lesson filmed is something that anyone can achieve with a flip cam.

Blogging How do I add or upload files to my Dropbox? First, make sure you install the Dropbox desktop application. It creates a new folder on your computer called Dropbox (or two separate folders if you're a Dropbox for Business user and have connected your personal and work accounts). Your Dropbox folder works just like any other folder on your hard drive, except everything in your Dropbox folder automatically syncs to the web and to any other computer with Dropbox installed. Drop your files in your Dropbox folder It's easy to add files to Dropbox. On Windows XP After installation on Windows, a Dropbox folder will be located inside your My Documents folder by default. Drag your files directly into your Dropbox On Mac OS X After installation on Mac OS X, a Dropbox folder will be created inside your home folder. First, make sure you install the Dropbox desktop application. On Linux After installation on a Linux computer, your new Dropbox folder will be created inside your home folder. On Windows On the Dropbox website For our advanced users Yes No

Coding TLTakeover 2013 Great session on making planning simple and effective, focusing on the main points and planning for the students, not the inspectors or visitors. This was based on the 5 Minute session plan from @teachertoolkit but tweaked by @teachertweeks to fit their work. We looked at the elements of planning required in a lesson, the simple but effective bits of information that would make a session great and a move away from some, most and all as it sets up failure in the class. We looked at the hook. Making something to engage students from minute 1. Next, planning groupings. how to get students working to get the best out of them. one great idea was having differentiated tables called home tables and the option to move to an away table to get extra support or challenge. Mixed ability groupings for sharing ideas and same ability for developing thoughts. Progress, dispelling the myth of progress in 20 mins. Finally the takeaway.