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Gifted and Talented Education: The Global Perspective
Gifted Phoenix's Blog: http://giftedphoenix.wordpress.com/
Outline
Analysis of Global Practice
Globalisation
Increasing worldwide economic integration, through trade, transport and communication
Removes barriers to flow of goods, capital, services and labour
Began at end of 19th Century; increased over last 40 years
Global higher education market
Global labour market, especially for highly- educated and highly-skilled
Knowledge-based economies
Recognise the role of human capital and technology in increasing economic growth
Know-what (facts), know-why (science), know-how (skills), know who (networks)
High demand for highly-skilled 'knowledge workers'; innovation
Rapid expansion in IT, education, communications sectors - often an explicit link to STEM
Human capital as key to national competitiveness in a globalised market?
National plans to transform countries into KBEs
Some Notes of Caution
More education does not necessarily produce more growth
Formal education versus on-the-job training
The quality of education matters as much as the quantity
Higher levels of education may signal innate ability
International studies do not show clear results – importance of interaction with wider reforms
Growth can generate education as well as vice-versa
The Economics of Gifted Education
KBEs must balance higher standards for all v developingelite 'knowledge workers'
The latter is typically associated with HE but may require foundations in compulsory education = G&T
Examples include Singapore, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia
Little systematic study of the economic basis of such decisions
The economic cost of 'excellence gaps'; 'Smart Fraction'
The Role of Social Media
Sharing knowledge and information was previously via books, research journals, conferences, training
– Slow; inefficient; hierarchical
Social media has brought immediacy, sharing, democracy, unreliability, 'crowdsourcing'
Personal Learning Network via:– Connectors (blogs, Twitter, FB, SL)– Sifters (RSS, social bookmarking, search engines)– Organisers (multimedia aggregators, maps)
Benchmarking or Policy Tourism?
International Quality Standards?
Common flexible standards framework for national and
state-wide provision
Linked improvement benchmarks based on best performance
Case studies library exemplifies variation in practice
within standards
Linked tools and resources to support improvement
Social media interaction keeps every element under
permanent (crowdsourced) review
International Observatory and Research Network?
Open access global gifted education database
Open access online gifted education research library
Research map shows under-researched and
over-researched areas
Social media network supports collaborative peer-to-peer
and master-student interaction
Accredited online and blended learning opportunities
International Federation of Parents' Organisations?
Single online meeting point for all national and state parents' associations
Build online map/repository of information and resources
Link together multiple forums/listservs
Deploy full armoury of multimedia collaboration tools
Foster bilateral and multi-lateral partnership
Pool resources to achieve economies of scale
Accredit best practice; publicise worst practice
Influence international bodies and national governments
Your Global Perspectives?
