Troy Eggleston

Proposed Title

The efficacy of NSW comprehensive public high schools with a new gifted education initiative from the NSW Department of Education

Supervisors

Principal Supervisor: Dr Jennifer Munday
Co-Supervisor: Dr Nikki Masters

Research

For a long time, the NSW Department of Education (NSWDOE) had sporadic initiatives for public high schools. There were some notional resources online, but not much support to back them up. This changed in 2021, when the department name was changed to HPGE (High Potential and Gifted Education) and the associated policy was updated. This was further amplified in 2025 with a state-wide staff development day in HPGE and the “Inspire” program, which mandated that schools in the NSWDOE have an HPGE program. Gifted education is not a compulsory part of a teaching degree in NSW. As a result, there are inconsistencies in the training and implementation of the HPGE policy across schools. I want to see how the HPGE initiatives are being implemented in schools, whether they are being applied properly in line with the academic literature, and whether the NSWDOE are holding schools accountable for their proper application. As the program is so new, the expected results are hard to say. However, since there is an inconsistency in teacher training, one could extrapolate and say there will be inconsistencies in the application of the new initiative.

Why I chose Charles Sturt

I attended a Highly Accomplished and Leading Teacher conference where CSU presented that having high accreditation could make you eligible for a Masters. However, since I already have a Masters, it made me eligible for a PhD, which is something I always wanted to do. As well as this, I grew up in Orange and did my original teaching degree through CSU Bathurst in 2005, so I have always felt connected to the university.

Engagement and Memberships

I attended a Highly Accomplished and Leading Teacher conference where CSU presented that having high accreditation could make you eligible for a Masters. However, since I already have a Masters, it made me eligible for a PhD, which is something I always wanted to do. As well as this, I grew up in Orange and did my original teaching degree through CSU Bathurst in 2005, so I have always felt connected to the university.

Publications

Presentation:Neurodivergence, Affirmation and Advocacy in Gifted Education. AAEGT Gifted Awareness Week Symposium, 23 May 2026