In recent weeks,\nthe only constant has seemed to be that there is no normal. Every day we are\ninundated with reports and numbers and projections that do little to quell the\ncollective anxiety we are feeling. Parents, in particular, are struggling to\nbalance suddenly having to homeschool their children in addition to keeping up\nwith whatever demands their work requires. It can be hard to see past the\nimmediate uncertainty and fear, but once we do, we find that much can be\nlearned from this situation about our children, how they learn, and how to\neducate them most effectively. Remote learning opens up new possibilities for\nindividualizing education. \nIndividualizing education, in turn, allows us to encourage curiosity,\ninternal motivation and learning beyond studying for tests. One population in\nparticular that can benefit from this kind of individualized approach to\nlearning are twice-exceptional children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Twice-exceptional\nchildren are children who are both gifted (generally accepted as having an IQ\nof 130 or above) and have a learning, emotional, physical, sensory, and\/or\ndevelopmental disability (4). Many twice-exceptional children go unidentified\nor are misdiagnosed. A report from the National Educational Association has\ncalled these students “the most frequently under-identified population in\nour schools\u201d (4). There are three common\nreasons why the struggles of twice-exceptional children often go unnoticed or\nare misunderstood by the school:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr. Emily W. King,\na North Carolina-based psychologist, has commented that \u201ctwice-exceptional\nstudents are often caught between two worlds\u201d (1). They don\u2019t feel as though\nthey fit in with gifted students or with students with disabilities. Many have become incredibly frustrated and\nhave difficulty coping with the significant discrepancy between their high\nintelligence and their particular areas of weakness. To truly meet the needs of twice exceptional\nchildren, it is imperative to use a two-tiered approach that addresses both\ntheir areas of strength and challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Two-Tiered Intervention<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTwice-exceptional\nstudents require a \u2026 combination of gifted and special education. Rather than\nsatisfaction with at or near grade- level performance, schools should provide\nspecial services, programs, and instruction to address both giftedness and\ndisability, thereby teaching the whole child\u201d (4). Currently, twice-exceptional\nstudents are frequently denied access to gifted services because of their\ndisability. Alternatively, gifted programming is dangled as an incentive for\nchildren as a way of addressing problem behaviors (\u201cyou can go to the\nhigher-level math class, but only if you keep your desk organized\u201d).\nUnfortunately, these types of practices have a negative impact on students\u2019\nmotivation and self-concept, leading them to disengage from school and the\nlearning process. When it comes to teaching twice-exceptional students,\neducators should never take time away from their strength areas to create more\ntime to work on their deficiencies (8). \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n We recognize that given a student\u2019s particular disability, access to gifted programming may be difficult to implement. Gifted programming might need to be modified \u2013 not in content, but in the method of delivery and requirements for work output. In addition, appropriate special education services and accommodations should be put in place to properly address the child’s particular area of disability. These services could range from tutoring in specific academic areas, to specific skills training, to classroom accommodations, such as extra time on tests. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Dr. Ross Greene, clinical psychologist and author of Raising Human Beings<\/a><\/em>, believes that “children do well if they can.” Therefore, if we implement the two-tiered approach described above, twice-exceptional children can thrive as students. Just as children do well if they can, we believe that teachers do well if they can, as long as they\u2019re given the proper training, tools, and support. With no federal mandate to identify or serve gifted students, legislation addressing gifted education is left up to the states and, often, to individual school districts. In the many districts where there are no specific guidelines addressing gifted education, teachers are left to fend for themselves in figuring out how to educate gifted and twice-exceptional students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Teacher Training\/Professional Development<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In order to\neffectively implement the two-tiered strategy described above, training and\nresources need to be made available to teachers and school administrators.\nCurrently, many colleges offering degrees in education do not have courses\ndedicated to gifted education. Out of the approximately 5,000 degree-granting\ncolleges and universities in the United States, only 36 offer certificates or\ngraduate degrees in gifted education (5) (2). Interestingly, out of the 151\ncolleges and universities in Massachusetts, none offers one of these programs (3).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gifted students have unique needs<\/a>. Without specific training in gifted education, teachers cannot be expected to know how to meet these needs. When, in addition to being exceptional for their giftedness, students have learning or emotional challenges, teachers have an even more formidable task. To rise up to this challenge, teachers need to have access to professional development and training opportunities regarding gifted and twice-exceptional students. In addition, it would be helpful for schools to have a staff member with specific expertise in gifted and twice-exceptional education. This person would be a resource for teachers and administrators, as well as an advocate for the students. If teachers suspect they have a gifted or twice-exceptional student, or they are unsure of how best to support that student, there would be a person with whom they could consult. This resource person would also be involved in the process of class placements to ensure gifted and twice-exceptional students are not isolated in their class. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Existing Programs<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n While the idea of integrating twice-exceptional education into a public school might sound foreign, there are school systems across the country that have accomplished that goal. In Colorado, twice-exceptional education falls under the Department of Gifted Education. The state established \u201cThe Twice-Exceptional Project\u201d as a collaboration between the Offices of Gifted Education and Special Education as a means of providing statewide professional learning around identification and support of twice-exceptional students (6). There are trainings in twice-exceptional education multiple times a year, and resources for teachers and parents are readily available on the Colorado Department of Education’s website<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS)<\/a> in Maryland, there are multiple educational options specifically designated for twice-exceptional students (7). MCPS refers to twice-exceptional students with a specific learning disability as GT\/LD students, and use this designation when referring to the supports available for this population. Specialized programs for GT\/LD students begin in the 3rd<\/sup> grade and continue through the 12th<\/sup> grade. There are eight schools in the county that have these specialized programs (two elementary schools, three middle schools, and three high schools). The county indicates that most twice-exceptional students are able to be accommodated in their neighborhood schools with the support of an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). However, if the neighborhood school isn\u2019t able to offer the necessary level of support, the IEP will be revised to indicate that the student will be attending a GT\/LD program. In this way, there is district-wide coordination to ensure that the students are receiving the best kind of instruction and support for their specific needs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n At the moment, it’s hard to imagine what the world will look like once children are allowed to go back to school. It’s impossible to predict what will remain the same, what will be different, and even when that might happen. As challenging as this time period is, it also provides an opportunity for parents to learn something new about their children as students, and for teachers to find new, creative ways to reach their students and individualize instruction. Schools will reopen, and when they do, we can carry over what we have learned and integrate it with what we already know. Just like all other students, twice-exceptional students will benefit from adults getting to know them better as learners, from teachers finding new and creative ways to educate, and individualizing their instruction based on the students’ specific needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Acknowledgements<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This article was prepared with the invaluable help of Courtney Plutte, a second-year graduate student at Tufts University\u2019s Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development. Courtney is passionate about improving the lives of children with developmental disabilities and has become increasingly focused on bringing awareness to the unique needs of twice-exceptional children. In the future she plans to work as a psychologist to help children and families through assessment, consultation, and treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n References<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n (1) King, E. W. (2005). Addressing the Social and Emotional Needs of Twice-Exceptional Students. TEACHING Exceptional Children<\/em>, 38<\/em>(1), 16\u201321. <\/p>\n\n\n\n (2) National Association for Gifted Children (2017). Graduate programs offering training in gifted education<\/em>. https:\/\/www.nagc.org\/sites\/default\/files\/Network_Newsletters\/University%20Programs%20in%20Gifted%20Education%209%2022%2017.pdf<\/p>\n\n\n\n (3) National Center for Education Statistics (n.d.). College navigator: Massachusetts<\/em>. https:\/\/nces.ed.gov\/collegenavigator\/?s=MA&l=91+92+93+94<\/p>\n\n\n\n (4) National Education Association. (2006). The twice-exceptional dilemma<\/em>. http:\/\/www.nea.org\/assets\/docs\/twiceexceptional.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n