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The "Inception" of the VAGTC

The following is an extract from "The History of The Victorian Association for the Gifted and Talented Children" written by Noelle Cahill in January, 1990.

In 1978, a group of Victorians launched their energies into the creation of an Association for Gifted and Talented Children. Indicators on the world education stage revealed a disturbing, yet challenging, scenario of opinion and misinformation about children of high intellectual potential which demanded the establishment of such an organisation.

Not only in Victoria, but nationally and internationally, an increasing need was manifest for groups committed to advocacy, parent and professional support and provision for gifted students.  Parallel to the belief that the move towards egalitarianism was best served by an education geared towards equalizing outcomes, a counter-belief was gathering momentum on a world scale: the belief espoused by Start, that

"concern for the underachievement of the slow child should be matched by equal concern for the potential waste in the underachievement of the bright child" (Braggett, 1985, p42).

In response to groundswell of world opinion sharing the latter concern, the First World Conference on Gifted Children was held in London from September 8th to 12th, 1975. This was central to the emergence of the V.A.G.T.C.

Cahill, N. (1990). The History of The Victorian Association for Gifted and Talented Children. University of Melbourne. p. 12.