The College has adopted Gagné’s (2002) model of giftedness and talent (see below) as the theoretical basis for its conception of giftedness. This model is widely accepted both throughout Australia and internationally. Gagné (1985) stated that giftedness corresponds to a promise or potential ability, which is distinctly above average in one or more domains of natural ability, namely: intellectual, creative, socio-affective or sensorimotor. Talent, by contrast, refers to a fulfilment of such promise, a set of systematically developed skills that demonstrate a distinctly above average human performance in one or more fields. Under Gagné’s model, a child may demonstrate potential (giftedness) without necessarily showing the fruits or talent of their gifts.

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References

http://www.nswagtc.org.au/info/definitions/gagnemodel.html

Gagné, F. (1991). Toward a differentiated model of giftedness and talent. In N. Colangelo and G. A. Davis (Eds.), Handbook of gifted education (pp. 65-80). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Gagné, F. (1993). Constructs and models pertaining to exceptional human abilities. In K. A. Heller, F. J. Monks & A. H. Passow (Eds.), International Handbook of Research and Development of Giftedness and Talent (pp. 63-85). Oxford: Pergamon Press.

Professor Gagné’s distinction between giftedness and talent has dominated gifted education in recent years. He prepared this summary for the NSW Ministry of Education, as a comparison to its own distinction on this basis of whether the child’s potential was based in a single domain (called “talented”) or in multiple domains (called “gifted”). It was published in Gifted in July 1997, pp 15-16.