Some children are exceptionally talented in certain areas.
Behavior
2e kids
Some children are exceptionally talented in certain areas.
These areas include math, writing, or music, while others may struggle with learning challenges like ADHD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, autism, and sensory processing issues. However, some children fit into both categories, known as twice-exceptional or “2e” children.
2e children possess exceptional abilities and disabilities that affect their learning and development. It cannot be easy to identify and understand 2e children because their strengths may compensate for their challenges, and their challenges may obscure their giftedness. Once identified, these children may continue to struggle to receive the necessary support they require from a school setting, as they may not fit into gifted or special education programs. As a result, they may experience anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and emotional dysregulation, leading to behavioral issues.
Education resources
Why are 2e kids often overlooked?
One factor contributing to the difficulty in identifying and supporting twice-exceptional children is that traditional educational systems are designed to support students in meeting grade-level academic skills. Many 2e children may be able to meet these expectations despite their challenges, leading to a lack of recognition for their difficulties, which manifests as a lack of support for the child.
For example, let’s imagine an intelligent child who happens to have a reading disability. As they read, there may be words that they struggle to decode, but with the use of high cognitive capacity and inferential reasoning, they might manage to figure out a potential missing word. Their reading disability might go unnoticed for some time – that’s if it is ever diagnosed.
Twice-exceptional children, therefore, might not receive a diagnosis or necessary support until they begin to struggle in higher grades when expectations are typically increased. Alternatively, their challenges may go unrecognized, leaving them without the support they need. In some cases, the difficulties faced by these children may overshadow their giftedness. It is important for educational systems to be aware of and prepared to support the unique requirements of 2e children.
Behavioral and emotional issues in 2e children
The failure to identify disabilities and talents in 2e children can have behavioral and emotional consequences for those involved. 2e children generally understand that they’re capable of achieving more but become frustrated because they can’t figure out why they are underachieving in certain respects. As a result, 2e children often display signs of anxiety and behavioral dysregulation.
In some instances, 2e children might be wrongly construed as lazy purely because they are intelligent but performing badly in certain areas. This can lead to criticism from teachers and parents, resulting in low self-esteem or depression.
In some cases, 2e children may seem oppositional to parents and teachers. The frustration caused by their difficulties can lead them to act out in various ways, leading to them being labeled as confrontational, oppositional, or misunderstood.
Misdiagnosis in gifted children
Gifted children may exhibit behaviors similar to those associated with ADHD or autism. These behaviors may result from the intensity with which they approach their interests and their frustration in traditional educational settings where they may have to wait for their peers to catch up. Gifted children may also be oversensitive to stimuli, leading to difficulty in noisy or crowded environments or difficulty interacting with their peers.
It is important to note that a child can also be gifted and have ADHD or autism, known as twice-exceptional or “2e.” Educational professionals need to be aware of gifted children’s unique needs and characteristics to provide appropriate support and accommodations.
Identifying 2e children
Parents and teachers need to be aware of the concept of twice-exceptionality, or the presence of both exceptional abilities and disabilities in a child. While disabilities are usually easier to notice, giftedness can often be more difficult to identify. Giftedness can refer to various extraordinary capabilities, including creative thinking, specific academic areas, psychomotor functioning, or visual/performing arts.
A neuropsychological evaluation is the most effective way to understand a student’s full profile of cognitive and academic strengths and weaknesses. It also serves as a way to individualize their curriculum. One of the most common challenges parents and teachers of twice-exceptional children face is having to choose between cultivating the child’s intellectual abilities and addressing their special education needs, as they are often not simultaneously covered.
One way to address this challenge is placing the child in an Integrated co-teaching class with a general education teacher and a special needs teacher. However, if the child is performing at grade level, it may not be easy to persuade the school to provide additional support through an Individualized Education Program or a 504 Plan. Enrichment opportunities outside school, such as those provided by certain institutes and museums, can also be helpful for twice-exceptional children.
How support can help 2e children to flourish
Support can benefit twice-exceptional children by simultaneously improving their academic performance and self-esteem. When these children are identified and supported, they may thrive in school and benefit from a more personalized approach to education.
It is important for teachers and parents to be aware of the child’s strengths and weaknesses on a personal level and to be able to provide a supportive and understanding environment. Additionally, it is crucial to let twice-exceptional children know that their challenges may ease as they get older and that they can choose courses and careers that align with their strengths. Parents may also need to advocate for their child’s needs and seek additional resources and support outside of the traditional educational system.
The challenges of educating 2e children
There are several solutions to helping 2e children excel. However, these are not without issues. For example, moving 2e to older classrooms for subjects they excel in may not be viable due to maturity and social demands. Alternative options for parents may include private schools with smaller classes and tailored curricula or enrichment opportunities outside of school.
What are the common characteristics of twice-exceptional students?
While 2e children possess great intellectual potential, they may also have a simultaneous disorder or disability which could inhibit their overall learning experience. Common co-existing conditions can include the following:
- ADHD
- Learning disabilities (dysgraphia, dyslexia, and dyscalculia, among others)
- ASD (Autism spectrum disorder)
- SPD (Sensory processing disorder)
- Behavioral or emotional disorders
- Physical disabilities or issues
2e children often have heightened intellectual capabilities, which means they may exhibit the following traits:
- Photographic memory
- Rapid learning
- Advanced comprehension
- Large vocabulary
- A strong level of curiosity for the world around them
- Divergent thought patterns
- Unusual emotional depth
Due to these skills, 2e children are typically highly creative and capable of holding down a variety of intense interests. They may exhibit strong problem-solving skills and have an advanced or sophisticated sense of humor. However, 2e children also struggle with the following:
- Inconsistent performance
- Social interaction
- Organization
- Transitions/changes
- Fatigue
- Executive dysfunction
Twice-exceptional children may exhibit above and below-average academic performance due to their combination of exceptional abilities and disabilities. Identifying these children can be challenging as their strengths and challenges may not be immediately apparent.
If not adequately supported, 2e children may experience anxiety, stress, sadness, and feelings of underachievement. Therefore, teachers and teaching assistants must address the full range of their abilities and challenges to support their academic and emotional well-being.
The cognitive development of twice-exceptional children
Research has demonstrated that the “2e brain”, without accounting for any condition in particular, can often be physiologically different from neurotypical brains. The brains of twice-exceptional children are often (but not always):
- Slightly physically larger than the standard neurotypical brain.
- Capable of greater sensory intake with greater connectivity. This means the brain’s white matter is denser, leading to greater information storage.
- Over-excitable. This means emotions can be more intense due to the limbic system, which is the part of the brain responsible for emotion.
The limbic system, which plays a role in emotion and behavior, may be placed under additional strain in twice-exceptional children, resulting in delays in social-emotional development and accelerated intellectual growth. This may explain why these children experience similar struggles and have asynchronous development paths.
Assessment steps during an evaluation of whether a child is 2e
Psychologists may use intellectual assessments such as the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-V) and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales to identify twice-exceptional children. These assessments involve multiple sections, and the results are analyzed and interpreted by a specialist who may provide recommendations or suggest further testing.
Testing for 2e is often conducted when the child reaches school age. It is common for 2e children to have significantly different scores on different sections of these assessments, and these discrepancies may indicate areas of deficit. When interpreting the specialist’s recommendations and considering the testing experience, parents and educators alike should consider the following factors:
It is important to look for signs of anxiety, examination stress, and discomfort during testing, as these may affect the child’s ability to perform to their full potential. To ensure the best possible results, it is necessary for twice-exceptional children to feel comfortable and trusting. If necessary, breaks should be incorporated into the testing process to help the child relax and give their best effort.
2e-friendly testing environment: To ensure that sensory stimuli do not interfere with concentration during testing, it is important to create a 2e-friendly testing environment, particularly for children with ADHD. This may involve considering factors such as the materials used for testing, including pencils and paper. It is essential to consider the individual needs of each student to ensure that testing conditions do not present unnecessary challenges.
During certain sections of the assessment, it may be helpful for assessors to consider the perfectionist tendencies that many twice-exceptional children tend to exhibit. These tendencies may cause the child to take longer to achieve accuracy, and the assessor needs to consider this when interpreting the results.
Tasks that require immediate recall may present a challenge for twice-exceptional children. These children can process large amounts of information, but it may not be organized sequentially in the brain. It may take longer for them to organize this information, select the best response, and deliver the most accurate result.
A specialist with experience working with this condition must conduct assessments of twice-exceptional children. There are many nuances involved in working with 2e children, from the administration of the assessment to the interpretation of the results. A general specialist may miss that. The specialist must establish a trusting relationship with the child to ensure the best possible results. Parents should confirm that the specialist gets to know the child before the assessment.
Accommodating 2e children: advice for educators
Accommodations for twice-exceptional children may range from providing notes before class or allowing doodling or fidgeting to assist with focus. The key to effective accommodations is understanding how the child’s condition manifests and prioritizing their strengths and interests over their weaknesses.
Some potential accommodations for the classroom include:
- Extended time on assessments and assignments (such as using untimed Measures of Academic Progress tests).
- Individualized curricula are developed through diagnostic assessments that evaluate a child’s knowledge before and after learning units.
- Alternative projects that allow the child to explore concepts through their interests.
- Assistive technologies like recording devices, typing instead of writing, and learning apps.
- The use of multimedia resources and thematic instruction that incorporates the child’s passions or interests.
Emotional support for 2e children
Helping a child to develop their social-emotional intelligence can be a key challenge for educators of twice-exceptional children. One way to support 2e children in this area is to help them expand their emotional vocabulary, allowing them to express their needs better. Additionally, encouraging the formation of healthy friendships, particularly with intellectual peers, can be important for the social and emotional development of twice-exceptional children.
Conclusion
Twice-exceptional students possess both disabilities and giftedness, and educators need to recognize that these students may have strengths and challenges in different areas. Before considering removing a student from a gifted program, it is important to rule out the possibility of twice-exceptionality by evaluating the student for potential disabilities. It is also important to identify giftedness in students with disabilities, as they may require additional support to develop their talents and abilities.
