Will, Emma (SEN)
From:	Rob Wight [robwight@impulse.net.au]
Sent:	Friday, 21 July 2000 8:07 AM
To:	eet.sen@aph.gov.au
Subject:	Inquiry into the education of gifted and talented children
15th February 2001

 

The Secretary

Employment, Workplace Relations, Small Business and Education References Committee

Suite S1.61 Parliament House

CANBERRA ACT 2600

Email: eet.sen@aph.gov.au <mailto:eet.sen@aph.gov.au>

 

Dear Sir or Madam

I am a parent of three gifted children and despite being a conservative person, have recently made the radical decision to withdraw my children from the school system. The simple reason for this is that the trauma involved in being a gifted child in school means that school does them more harm than good. 

As a parent, I am totally sympathetic and understanding of the plight of teachers in this issue, given most teachers have no formal training in gifted education and/or no specialist consultant to assist them. An untrained teacher with a gifted child in his/her class can not be expected to "whip something up" to solve the related problems without professional backup support and ongoing training. 

The school which my children attended is, I still believe, the best available school for gifted children in our region. Yet despite this and the efforts of a dedicated principal and one talented teacher, my eldest son suffered for much of his four years at school. He entered school excited about learning and left it in a state of misery close to depression. His experience included:

•	continual bullying (ranging from exclusion and verbal abuse to being chased around the yard with a lump of wood studded with protruding nails);
•	inadequate provision - often no provision at all;
•	some hostile teachers who appeared to believe he was the product of a pushy parent and took it out on him; 
•	unsupported grade skipping. Skipping from grade prep to grade two he was again excited and hopeful of more challenging work. Instead the content of the work was barely different and he struggled with the physical demands of producing more written work without any intellectual challenge or incentive;
•	disappointment and confusion when the most effective provision offered (access to much older children) was withdrawn. 
•	and, above all a feeling of being "weird" or dumb and never being accepted by the other children near his own age with whom he was shackled. 

When my second son commenced school, I was hopeful that given his different and more sociable personality, he would fare better. He skipped grade prep and went confidently into grade one. He experienced no problems academically or socially but the lack of challenge in the work provided seemed to make the grade skipping worthless. My husband and I had agonised over the decision to grade skip each of the boys. After extensive reading, we decided that grade skipping was their best option but had the feeling we were transgressing social laws in proceeding. Having reached this "radical" decision on each occasion we subsequently found that it made little concrete difference to the content/complexity of the work they received. While his teacher reported him to be a "model student", his behaviour at home deteriorated rapidly into violence. He was taking out his boredom and frustration on us. 

In the interest of our children’s mental and emotional well-being we therefore made yet another radical decision in September last year and withdrew the two school age children from the system. We have no intention of sending our third son to school. The process of undoing the damage done at school will take time but already we have much happier, more co-operative children who are regaining their natural love of learning. I feel it is a sad indictment on the school system that two children who are so keen to learn had to leave school in order to be secure and happy in a supportive learning environment.

Yours sincerely

 

 

Susan Wight (Mrs)

13 Waterford Drive

STRATHFIELDSAYE VIC 3551

Ph: 03 54395134

Email: robwight@impulse.net.au <mailto:robwight@impulse.net.au>