3.3.4 Student agency in a New Zealand specialist gifted programme
Motivation, and the apparent lack thereof, of gifted students is an ongoing area of interest for many in gifted education, and forms the core of many definitions and conceptualisations of giftedness internationally. In New Zealand, at present, the idea of student agency is a 'hot topic,' with much attention being paid to how teachers might allow or support their students to be increasingly agentic. This session will present an overview of literature around agency, discuss how agency has been built into a specialist curriculum for gifted students, and share specifically agentic strategies that have been implemented via this curriculum.
Author(s):
Madelaine Willcocks
madelaine.willcocks@nzcge.co.nz
New Zealand Centre for Gifted Education
New Zealand
Madelaine works for the New Zealand Centre for Gifted Education as the Regional Lead Teacher for Auckland MindPlus units and for Gifted Online. MindPlus is a one day a week specialist programme for gifted students, and Gifted Online is the online equivalent. She is passionate about gifted education and loves to fuel intellectual excitement in her students. She is currently working towards a Master of Specialist Teaching in Gifted Education through Massey University (New Zealand). Her special interests within gifted education include socio-emotional and motivational development of gifted students and how this can be best facilitated in specialist educational environments.