Withdrawal groups
Ideally departments would be able to have groups of more able students withdrawn form the classroom, in much the same way as SEN students often are, to follow a differentiated curriculum. Such a system could provide students with an opportunity to work with a subject specialist with a particular strength or interest in area, leading to a more dynamic and innovative lesson. Where possible, the group would be able to make use of City Learning Centres, ICT facilities and advanced texts. In situations where withdrawal is used the group would be able to follow a distinctive curriculum making use of alternative teaching and learning styles leading to natural extension of the students with in built opportunities for the student to be accelerated.
There are clearly problems with this arrangement. Schools often do not have the human resources to implement this; at best, there will often be opportunity for this to happen with one or two teaching groups. It is possible to achieve some elements of this ideal within an ordinary school though.

Student teachers have to work with and identify strategies for stretching the more able. Where schools have student teacher's they could be used to work with groups of more able students, allowing for some withdrawal of students over the course of the year.

Within a classroom, such a group can be formed through arranging the seating in such a way that the able students can be sat together. This allows students some opportunities to work on differentiated tasks and provides the teacher with a greater degree of flexibility as to the make up of the group. This arrangement limits the number of opportunities that the more able student will be able to have outside of the classroom though, which can be addressed through close collaboration and joint activities with other schools in the area facing similar resourcing and staffing problems.

Pages within this article.

Introduction,Defintions and Identification of Gifted and Talented Students,Characteristics of effective provision in the subject,Ideas for classroom provision,Withdrawal groups,Differentiating by task,Enrichment,Conclusions

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