Gifted & Talented Coordinator's Handbook

This second edition handbook for Gifted and Talented (G&T) Coordinators, edited by Brin Best, Sophie Craven and Jane West, is the first of its kind. It will explain what is expected of schools and G&T coordinators and provides guidance on every aspect of your work and role

With the introduction of the gifted and talented Leading Teachers, there are numerous changes that will affect your role. Preparation is the key to implementing successful G&T provision. According to the Primary and Secondary Strategies (2007):

'In carrying out this role, Leading Teachers will be expected to:

• act as an advocate for the needs of G&T pupils  
• promote the various elements of the personalisation agenda as they relate to G&T pupils, seeking to ensure that they receive appropriate recognition, support and challenge throughout the school/cluster  
• exemplify effective practice for G&T pupils in their own professional practice, and provide or facilitate coaching/peer mentor support for colleagues  
• initiate strategies which support the professional development of colleagues to improve the school/cluster capacity to personalise learning for G&T pupils  
• work with school leaders to identify underachievement, evaluate provision and implement an action plan for whole school improvement.'

  This new second edition of The Gifted and Talented Coordinator's Handbook will help you achieve your goals

  "...a text such as The Gifted & Talented Coordinators’ Handbook is much needed in that it provides practical guidelines to support coordinators of whole-school development programmes which cater for the needs of more able pupils. The authors are knowledgeable about the real issues facing schools, and experienced in the interface of classroom and whole-school management. As a result, the handbook provides a compendium of guidelines and background knowledge that is easily accessible and immediately useful." Belle Wallace, Editor of Gifted Education International

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  Built on the success of our first edition best seller…

  The Gifted and Talented Coordinator's Handbook was originally published in 2006 and was the first of its kind, explaining exactly what is expected of schools and G&Tcoordinators. The new edition follows in the footsteps of the original by including all you need to know about changes to government measures for more able students in 2007 and what this means for your role. It also gives more information on the newly developed role of the leading teacher.

  

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  Essential guidance on the role of leading teachers and G&T coordinators

  The Gifted and Talented Coordinator's Handbook is written by three experienced consultants with an impressive track record in working with more able students, as well as many years of classroom practice.

  It will allow you to ensure the best possible provision and opportunities for your more able students by enabling you to:

  • involve your school governors and parents in overseeing G&T provision
  • ascertain what training you or your staff may need to be able to meet the needs of your students
  • get professional support and practical advice on implementing new ideas and creative solutions in your school – including ready-made templates and tools to save you time
  • find out what the latest research says about best practice – offering practical guidance and case study examples detailing how to implement this in your school
  • improve your school policy and provision for more able students – using a whole-school approach to more able student support by using the personalisation agenda
  • deal with strategic management issues in an effective and efficient way – offering frameworks and ready prepared templates to professionalise your work
  • bridge the gap between government and LA advice and your own day-to-day school practice – combining theory with practical tools and advice.

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  Gain a better understanding of your role and your responsibilities

  The Gifted and Talented Coordinator's Handbook takes you through the development of the role of the leading teacher and outlines the government’s vision of what the responsibilities of a leading teacher are. It offers helpful guidance on where you can get specialist training which can then help you to identify areas of need within your school as well as highlight the areas that you need to focus on for improvement. This information can be used within your self-evaluation and will also ensure that you are ready for any question thrown at you regarding your schools procedures when inspected by your School Improvement Partner or Ofsted inspectors.

• The diagram below shows the framework for effective G&T provision in schools. The Gifted and Talented Coordinator's Handbookwill take you through each stage of this framework, and provide you with the support you need as a G&T Coordinator or Leading Teacher.

  Example page from The Gifted & Talented Coordinator's Handbook:

  

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  A comprehensive resource This updated version of The Gifted and Talented Coordinator's Handbook gives you all you need to know about the new measures look set to build upon the government’s white paper, Higher Standards, Better Schools for All (2005), in which it is outlined that schools will need to provide students and parents with more choice, which has important implications for leading teachers and gifted and talented coordinators.

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  Everything that you need to know within one book There is no need to look elsewhere for guidance once this comprehensive resource is on your shelf. It provides clear and practical guidance on the roles and responsibilities of the leading teacher and G&T coordinator and details best practice methods for working with your more able students. It uses a unique combination of academic content and practical tools to provide support on everything from management and policy issues to designing classroom activities.

  The Gifted and Talented Coordinator's Handbook brings together all the resources you need in one place. This one-stop resource:

  • uses an inclusive and innovative approach to help you get the best from your more able students
  • provides a unique combination of theoretical content, ready-to-use frameworks and  practical guidance
  • includes 36 case studies to show what can be done and how others did it
  • features self-contained sections, ideal for dissemination within the school and for sharing with key staff
  • covers everything from strategic management issues to designing appropriate lesson activities for more able students
  • provides 30 templates and tools that will save you time and effort and help you to professionalise your work
  • includes a CD-Rom with tools, templates and PowerPoint presentations for ease of reproduction.

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  Author information

  Brin Best Brin is the director of Innovation for Education Ltd, a company providing training and consultancy services to schools and education authorities on a range of contemporary issues. Brin has worked in schools and local authorities as a teacher, head of department, development officer and gifted and talented strand coordinator. He writes and speaks widely on a variety of education issues and is the author/editor of 14 books, including the bestselling Gifted & Talented Resource Handbook, published in 2004. He is the series consultant and has written six titles for Teachers’ Pocketbooks, which won an Education Resources Award in 2005.

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  Sophie Craven Sophie is schools and colleges liaison officer at the to this she was enterprise coordinator at Barnsley working with schools and businesses to develop real-National Curriculum. Sophie has written articles for Curriculum, Teaching Geography and was a contributor Resource Handbook. She has also been involved in of training courses for educationalists and for organising development placements.

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  Jane West Jane is a freelance writer specialising in education. From 2002, Jane worked with Optimus Publishing to develop Gifted & Talented Update, the national newsletter that she edited for five years. Jane has written extensively for groups as diverse as the National Trust, Nelson Thornes, Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood, the environmental pressure group Surfers Against Sewage, Badger Publishing and Barrington Stoke. She won the Holyer An Gof Best Children’s Book Award for Pip of Pengersick – a smuggler’s tale, has led several writing masterclasses in West Country schools and is the writer in residence at a school in Falmouth.