Gifted & Talented Programmes for Students 2016/17

Dear Parents,

At Sha Tin College we aim to encourage all learners to achieve their potential and pursue a range of interests. Curriculum leaders and classroom teachers develop differentiated schemes of work and lesson plans to provide stimulating curricula at an appropriate level.

We are fortunate to have a significant number of students who have achieved very high levels of academic achievement, above what we might expect for their relevant age group. To help identify learners with high potential and performance ability we regularly ask for staff input into identification of our most able students. These subjective indicators, which reflect their interactions with the students, also combine with objective measures to help identify the students we feel would benefit the most from exposure to extraordinary learning experiences and promote pathways where our students can excel both inside and outside of school.

The efforts inside the classrooms are complemented by a vast range of extracurricular and CAS activities offered by staff. Many teachers also support our students through competitions which test academic, sporting and performance abilities. These opportunities happen throughout the year and involve various sporting competitions, local and international maths competitions, history, geography and general knowledge quizzes, Model United Nations, theatre and philosophy festivals, Chef of the Year as well as music competitions around the region.

Each year our students take part in a wide range of courses organised by outside agencies. The following outlines some of the many opportunities that exist in Hong Kong and beyond.

HKAGE

The Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education (HKAGE) are a non- governmental organisation providing support to all gifted students aged 10-18 and their parents across Hong Kong. They are currently advertising courses for this term. For further details, please visit their website or use the links below.

The Winter Program 2016 will be held at The Chinese University of Hong Kong from 22 December 2016 to 18 February 2017. It aims to offer specially designed enrichment courses for gifted students from Primary 3 to Secondary 6. In addition, the University is offering parent seminars to help parents better understand gifted education and how they can nurture their gifted children.

For details and application, please visit the website.

With its headquarters in the US, but with international braches, The Johns Hopkins University Centre for Talented Youth aims to identify and develop the talents of the most advanced K-12 learners worldwide.

In conjunction with SJS we have arranged an information evening for any interested parents. This is merely to help you, as parents, get easier access to first-hand information regarding the courses available through their programmes.

Click here or the link below for details of the upcoming sesson at SJS.

https://shatincollege.edu.hk/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Info-Session-2016-2017.pdf

Again based in the US but with international outreach, Stanford University’s EPGY aims to develop computer based courses in Maths, Physics, English, Computer Programming and other subjects. For further details, please visit their website or use the links below

Tournament of Minds (TOM) is a problem solving programme for teams of students from both primary and secondary years. http://www.tom.edu.au/

Teams solve challenges from a choice of disciplines:

Hong Kong branch: https://www.tom.edu.au/Branch/hk/Default.aspx

It is hoped that we will be able to enter a team in the 2017 event. Further details will be available closer to the time.

Brian Hagan

Gifted and Talented Coordinator

Sha Tin College