Curriculum Strategies

Curriculum for children with special abilities should build upon and extend their unique learning characteristics. Curriculum should be differerentiated in the following ways:

1. CONTENT MODIFICATIONS:

• major focus on using abstract concepts and making generalisations, e.g., a class study might look at the reasons why a particular civilization vanished. An extended study could relate the key elements of the disappearance to a modern industrial society and a current tribal existence and make some comment about their future continuance;

 

• variety in depth and breadth of topic areas, e.g. in anthropology, political science, sociology demography, legal sciences, filmmaking, playwriting clothing design, architecture

 

• organisation of content around key ideas so that economy of experience is achieved, e.g., the study of dinosaurs to be treated within the context of animal developments over time. This allows generalisations about the universal aspects to be made more readily than if each animal group was studied independently;

 

• 
  study of people, e.g., biographies of a range of people who have made recognised contributions to society. Study could focus on personal, career and or social characteristics;

 

• study of methods of inquiry so that children have a variety of "tools" at their disposal to help them to investigate and problem-solve, e.g. to make a proposal to a bus company about a possible route change, a series of events needs to have taken place first, which might include observing, measuring, classifying, questioning , experimenting, recording, concluding and then communicating.

2. PROCESS MODIFICATIONS

• advanced thinking skills which involve problem-seeking, problem-solving and such, critical thinking processes as analysis, synthesis and evaluation; skills development in planning, forecasting and decision making;

 

• open-ended questions and learning activities, e.g., What would happen if people walked on their hands?, encourage higher order thinking and stimulate creative, divergent thought, rather than "closed" questions which simply require a yes or no answer, e.g., "Would you like to walk on your hands?";

 

• creative thinking processes need to be encouraged and developed:
  • fluency
  • flexibility
  • elaboration
  • originality
  • complexity
  • risk-taking
  • imagination
  • curiosity
    
• discovery learning situations which make use of inductive reasoning principles, e.g., Hilda Taba teaching strategies, Society in View;

 

• explanation or evidence of reasoning used in reaching conclusions is important to discovery learning, open-endedness and high levels of thinking;

 

• appropriate pacing of material e.g., early mastery of basic skills;

 

• variety of presentation, e.g., experiments, discussions, contracts, learning centres. These approaches meet the child's learning style and allow for sustained bursts of concentration;

 

• freedom of choice in terms of topics to be studied, where they are to be studied and the methods to be used;

 

• independent learning skills are essential if the child is to make responsible choices and become a self-directed learner, e.g., advanced research and study skills, knowledge of school and community resources, multiple methods of recording and presenting information, self-management of time and resources.

 

• group interaction activities and simulations which develop social and leadership abilities, e.g., cooperative learning strategies. These activities also provide opportunities for verbal skills development as well as an increased understanding of self and of others

3. PRODUCT MODIFICATIONS

• real problems or issues in which the child is interested or has an area of concern

 

• real audiences which provide an outlet for the product;

 

• original, sophisticated products which emphasise analysis, synthesis and evaluation of information and the development of new ideas;

 

• product evaluation by real audiences and the teaching of methods of self-evaluation.

4. LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

Many of these learning environment modifications are a matter of degree rather than of kind.

The physical learning environment modifications important to children of special ability include:

• variety of learning environments both within the school and community
• flexibility of use
• more varied references and resources
• more sophisticated equipment

The psychological environment must encourage:

• freedom of expression;
• constructive criticism;
• deferred judgement; and
• child interaction;

in order to deal effectively with adult-level problems, sophisticated reasoning, controversial subjects and abstract ideas.

From: Children with Special Abilities - Curriculum Strategies for primary schools
VHS Video, 30 mins - Ministry of Education and Training Victoria
QAGTC 1992.

Page reproduced with permission of Queensland Association for Gifted and Talented Children Inc.)