Requiem for the Unicorns

Gifted education in Queensland has a relatively short history dating from the 1970s when awareness raising by a few special individuals like Monique Bond and Ralph Pirozzo resulted in mention of the needs of the gifted and talented in the Ahern Reports (1978-79) to state government. The establishment of QAGTC, Queensland's only organisation advocating for the needs of gifted children, and a working party in the education department followed, and the first state policy was published in 1985. As a member of the department's advisory committee on gifted and talented education in the '80s in a research capacity I was part of the push to appoint education advisers (then called consultants) to support schools and train teachers in gifted education in each region. This was done reluctantly in some areas but Dianne Rankin in Head Office ensured that the process was expertly maintained until changing priorities (which could be cynically interpreted as a victory for ignorance and prejudice) saw the program dismantled in the early '90s.

Taking over from Dianne in a refocused role I accessed federal government funds in the absence of state funding although a new policy had been approved and distributed in 1993 (followed by a memo from the then Director General of Education telling state schools they didn't have to implement it!). Interestingly the federal government could not admit to the needs of gifted children per se and would only fund programs for gifted children if there was attached to them what the government considered a 'real' disadvantage such poverty, disability, or poor English proficiency. Thus was born the Zigzag program which developed a framework for schools and trained teachers to act for gifted children, thanks to the excellent endeavour and inspiration provided by Jill Hole and Justina Crawford. The Cygnet program also flourished in north Queensland for a short time through the considerable intellect and talents of Lyne Meggarity, and both of these programs showed the way for Unicorn, the longest running, most successful gifted education program in Queensland history.

The first Unicorns in the early '90s were Sandra Lummis and Carol Laherty. They worked in catholic and state schools, and built creatively and with great wit and intelligence on the work of their forerunners to refine the curriculum model which is still in use today, adding an identification model and integrating both under the banner of Unicorns are Real: We believe in the magic of schooling. Unicorn continued until 2002 through the work of gifted teacher educator, Ros Roodveldt, as a joint project with The Association of Independent Schools of Queensland (AISQ), Catholic Education having dropped out when federal funding dried up. When no longer considered of value to the state system Unicorn was taken over and supported by AISQ in 2000. The independent schools working with Ros have produced exemplary units of differentiated curriculum unique to Queensland.

At the end of 2002 AISQ discontinued the Unicorn program. A program for gifted children that cost so little and operated so successfully in all major education systems in Queensland could no longer find favour. It was a great privilege to develop and manage the Zigzag and Unicorn programs in the state system for all those years. Extensive publications resulted from this group of talented teachers and deserve greater recognition and attention in the education community. Thanks Ros, the last Unicorn, for keeping the dream alive for so long.

Vale Unicorn

Judith Hewton