Our Greatest Natural Resource: Gifted Education in Australia

Abstract

In Australia, the identification of gifted individuals and the provision of an education which is appropriate to their abilities is a relatively recent phenomenon. The first national focus on the special needs of gifted students took place just over 20 years ago when educators and researchers gathered at the first Australian Conference in Melbourne in 1983 and the national body, the Australian Association for the Education of the Gifted and Talented (AAEGT), was formed two years later at the second national conference in Brisbane.

A reflection on Australia's progress in Gifted Education reveals that the years through the mid 1980's and 1990's witnessed the establishment of policies and programs for gifted students which were probably second to no other country in diversity and quality. There was a marked increase in specialized provision for gifted students, many teachers in schools participated in professional development in gifted education, and undergraduate and postgraduate training, including full degrees in gifted education, began to expand within the universities. Some of these Australian initiatives are highlighted in this edition of the Gifted Education International. However, as the 1990s came to an end, many programs began to close down. Indeed some Australian States which had showcased the most advanced and creative policies and programs, were the ones which reduced or abolished them. Alarm at the change of mood in Australia was voiced by one of the most respected leaders in gifted education, and a former President of the AAEGT, Professor Eddie Braggett, when he observed that, as the new millennium dawned:

it is clear that there is current national concern at the closing down of some of the excellent State and Territory initiated programs … it is obvious that gifted and talented education is facing increasing difficulties in a number of States and Territories .. In their desire to reduce costs and streamline services, State Departments and Ministries of Education often collapse sections and scale back specialised services … I have genuine fears for gifted and talented students in some States as staff of Gifted and Talented Divisions are returned to schools or reincorporated into general divisions

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