High potential and gifted education

At Murwillumbah East Public School, High Potential and Gifted Education (HPGE) is embedded within everyday teaching and learning practices. Many of our students demonstrate strengths and potential across a range of areas, and we are committed to identifying, supporting and developing these capabilities into meaningful learning growth and achievement.

Teachers identify students’ learning needs within the classroom and use evidence-based strategies to extend and challenge learners appropriately. A range of learning pathways is provided, including enrichment, extension and, where appropriate, acceleration. Students may be identified as having high potential or giftedness across the intellectual, creative, physical or social-emotional domains, with teacher professional judgement informed by assessment data and family insights. This information is shared across the school to ensure consistent and effective support for each learner.

Classrooms at Murwillumbah East Public School are inclusive and nurturing environments that promote belonging, creativity, collaboration and positive risk-taking. Students demonstrating high potential, particularly in the intellectual domain, are supported through targeted differentiation, open-ended learning tasks and enrichment opportunities that provide appropriate levels of challenge.

Flexible grouping, leadership opportunities and ongoing feedback are key features of our approach. Feedback is strengths-based, with clear learning goals and opportunities for student reflection and self-assessment.

Our practices align with the NSW Department of Education’s High Potential and Gifted Education Policy, which emphasises the development of students across four key domains:

Creative Domain:
Supporting students to generate original ideas and express creativity through innovative thinking, problem-solving and artistic pursuits.

Intellectual Domain:
Providing challenging learning experiences that promote higher-order thinking, deep inquiry and advanced understanding.

Physical Domain:
Encouraging physical development and wellbeing through opportunities that enhance coordination, fitness and physical skills.

Social-Emotional Domain:
Supporting students’ emotional wellbeing by building resilience, self-awareness and positive relationships.

At Murwillumbah East Public School, we are committed to nurturing the whole child by recognising and developing each student’s potential across these four domains, ensuring every learner is supported to thrive.

At Murwillumbah East Public School, we provide a range of opportunities to support and extend students identified as high potential or gifted, both within the school and through engagement with the wider community. Our approach focuses on nurturing individual strengths across multiple domains, with particular emphasis on leadership, collaboration and authentic student voice.

Students have significant opportunities to develop leadership capability within the social-emotional domain. Through formal and informal leadership roles, student voice initiatives and collaborative learning experiences, students are supported to build confidence, responsibility, empathy and interpersonal skills. Leadership opportunities are embedded across the school, allowing students to contribute meaningfully to school life, decision-making and community events.

In the Creative Domain, students are supported to pursue and develop their talents through high-quality performance opportunities. This includes representation in school choir and participation in Far North Coast Dance, providing pathways for students to collaborate with peers beyond the school and perform in authentic contexts.

Students with strengths in the Physical Domain are supported through school sport and access to representative sporting pathways, encouraging skill development, teamwork and resilience. These opportunities promote both physical excellence and positive wellbeing.

Intellectual potential is fostered through differentiated classroom practice, enrichment learning opportunities and participation in academic extension activities and competitions where appropriate, ensuring students are challenged at an appropriate level.

At Murwillumbah East Public School, we are committed to providing a rich and balanced HPGE experience that recognises student strengths and empowers learners to thrive academically, creatively, physically and socially, both within our school community and beyond.

Across the NSW Department of Education, high potential and gifted students are supported through a wide range of opportunities designed to extend learning, build talent and foster personal growth beyond the classroom. These opportunities enable students to engage with like-minded peers, access expert instruction and participate in authentic learning experiences that challenge and inspire them across intellectual, creative, physical and social-emotional domains.

Students may access enrichment and extension programs, leadership development initiatives, representative pathways, academic competitions, creative and performing arts programs, and sporting opportunities at local, regional and state levels. These experiences support students to deepen skills, build confidence, develop collaboration and leadership capability, and apply their strengths in real-world contexts.

Through these opportunities, the Department ensures high potential and gifted learners are provided with equitable access to challenge, growth and recognition, supporting both excellence and wellbeing in line with the High Potential and Gifted Education Policy.