Gifted and Talented Programme

We ensure gifted students are supported and appropriately challenged to develop their natural gifting into talents.

Secondary GATE  Programme and Academic Scholarships

The SCBC GATE programme ensure that gifted and high achieving students are appropriately challenged and prepared for the future.  Students are supported in developing their academic passions and talents through the three pillars of the program: Academic Extension and Enrichment; Project-based Learning and competitions and Academic Progress Management & Mentoring.

In an encouraging environment, students will develop a love of learning, a growth mindset, and resilience to respond to many challenges that life may throw at them in the future.  Students will develop skills of leadership, critical thinking, collaborative problem solving, and other 21st Century skills that are essential for success in the contemporary global economy.

Students who receive an Academic scholarship will automatically be granted entrance into the Gifted and Talented Programme and placed alongside their peers who share similar abilities and capabilities for learning.

The Programme offers opportunities for:

  • Placement into the top stream classes for their areas of exceptionality where programmes have been tailored to build in more collaboration, problem-based, and project-based learning.
  • Partnerships with Universities and Industry.
  • Participation in projects that respond to student interests, engaging them in diverse areas of study, such as Sustainability, Engineering, Physics, Social Justice, the Arts, Coding, and Environmental Science.
  • Participation in a wide range of co-curricular extension opportunities, including the Australian Mathematics Competition, BrainBee Neuroscience Competition, Western Australia Debating League, Synergy Solar Car Challenge, WA Schools Hackathon, the Talented Young Writers' Programme, Tournament of the Minds, and various other national and international initiatives.

Students in the program will also have access to SCBC's range of electives, allowing students to discover their talents and apply learning in an inter-disciplinary manner.  Some of these include, click on links below:

Entrance to the Programme

Entrance to the Secondary GATE programme is selective, and offers are awarded on the basis of performance in the Higher Abilities Selective Test (HAST) and other supporting evidence submitted in the application process that demonstrates giftedness.  The HAST testing instrument has been created by the Australian Council for Educational Research and is used by over 100 Secondary schools across Australia and internationally.

Students who are in Year 6 in 2023 can apply towards the end of Term 3, 2022.  All other Secondary Year groups are welcome to put forward an Expression of Interest by emailing enquiries@scbc.wa.edu.au.

Application timeline for 2024

Applications for 2024 entry are now Closed.

Applications Close:  24 February 2023

Academic Test Date:  10 March 2023

Interview: May 2023

Intake Year: 2024

Academic Scholarships 2024 are now open.

Academic Scholarships are selective and highly competitive.  These scholarships will only be based on the results of the HAST test.  The continuation of scholarships relies on the student's good behaviour and academic progress.  Scholarship recipients will be reviewed annually.

Example of GATE initiatives by our students:

On Friday the 25th of October, our Secondary GATE students launched their Waste Warriors Initiative at the Primary Assembly.

They announced the commencement of a four-week competition, encouraging families to reduce the amount of packaging and single-use plastics in student lunchboxes. Over the next four weeks, the Waste Warrior will visit classes of students in Years 3 to 6. Students who ‘opt-in’ to the competition will be awarded stars based on how little waste they bring to school.

The winning student will earn a ‘zero waste lunch pack’, including a bento lunch box, steel drink bottle, and wax wraps. The top 3 students will also earn a pizza lunch, and all students who participate will win a prize.

For those who would like to reduce their reliance on plastic wrap, the students have created wax wraps in a variety of colourful designs. These can be purchased from College reception until the end of the term.

Students launched their website, which features lots of advice for families on how to pack low waste lunches. Click on https://rfaw99.wixsite.com/scbc