Dr Marie McGregor

Marie teaches undergraduate, postgraduate and professional learning courses in gifted education. Marie encourages critical and creative thinking through debate, dialogue and collaboration. Current courses taught include:

EDST4096 Responding to Gifted Students [undergraduate, Term 1]

This course is designed to provide practical, evidence-based information and skills on the following issues related to the education of gifted students: 1/ the nature of giftedness within a talent development framework, 2/ cognitive and affective characteristics of gifted students, 3/ underachievement of gifted students, 4/ curriculum differentiation for diverse gifted learners, including gifted learners with disability, disadvantaged gifted learners, and linguistically diverse gifted learners. 

EDST5803 Developing Programs for Gifted Students [postgraduate, Term 1]

This course involves the evaluation of and development of a program for gifted students. Students conduct needs analyses to critically reflect on current offerings for gifted students with regard to best practice. Research on the effectiveness of grouping, acceleration, counselling, and mentoring will be closely examined, with particular attention to the efficacy of these program components in supporting the academic, social, and emotional needs of gifted students. The course will involve the development of a program for gifted learners. 

EDST5805 Curriculum Differentiation for Gifted Students [postgraduate, Term 2]

This course examines curriculum differentiation for gifted and talented students. The course focusses on assessment strategies to identify individual needs and enhance differentiated curricula for gifted learners. Current research on models of differentiation, as well as instructional strategies used to facilitate higher-order, critical and creative thinking skills, will be explored. Additionally, this course explores intrapersonal factors that are conducive to talent development, including awareness, motivation, and volition.

SHORT COURSES:

Mini-COGE [ongoing]

GERRIC's Mini-COGE is a two-day NESA-accredited course that offers practical professional development for educators to support high-potential and gifted students. This course will help educators identify gifted, high-potential and talented students, including those who may be underachieving, have a disability, be disadvantaged, or be linguistically diverse. The course assists educators in designing differentiated curricula and assessments for gifted learners, with a focus on the creation of low-floor/high-ceiling learning activities that are meaningful, challenging, and encourage intellectual thinking (e.g., critical, creative, divergent, analytical, complex).

Mini-COGE Advanced: Supporting Gifted Learners with Disability [ongoing]

What is not often well-known or well-understood is that students who are gifted may also have a special need or disability— just as students with disabilities may also be gifted.  Gifted Learners with Disability (GLD) are gifted children who have the potential for high achievement and give evidence of one or more disabilities as defined by federal or state eligibility criteria. These disabilities may include specific learning disabilities (e.g., dyslexia, dyscalculia), autism spectrum, or other impairments such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This population of students require a strength-based approach that concurrently offers opportunities for talent development whilst supporting areas of relative challenge. This course builds on the knowledge of the Mini-COGE and includes a discussion on the diversity of gifted learners with disability, their characteristics, strengths, challenges, and strategies to support these students. In this course, educators will develop tailored individual education plans to support gifted learners with disability. Attendees must have completed the two-day Mini-COGE to participate in the Mini-COGE Advanced: Supporting Gifted Learners with Disability.

https://www.unsw.edu.au/arts-design-architecture/our-schools/education/professional-learning/gerric-gifted-education/short-courses/mini-coge