Brainworks® - The Dilemma of Being Twice Exceptional (2e)
The Dilemma of Being Twice Exceptional (2e)
Part 1 of 2
"I stopped to think, and forgot to start again."
- Anonymous
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Question
I have just returned from "another" meeting with my son's teachers. I don't understand what is going on with him. His counselor showed me the results of the state assessments, the ITBS, and the district's 12 week assessments. My son received "commended," "shows mastery of subject," or scored above grade level on all of them. I should be happy, right? Wrong!! His teachers also keep telling me that my son wastes class time doing nothing, and he daydreams. They also said that he rarely turns in a completed assignment; but when he does, his work is excellent. He is in 8th grade; and before this year, he has not had any academic problems. I have tried to talk with my son about this situation, but all I get is a blank stare. What is going on? Has he hit a wall?
Answer:
Without meeting your son, it is difficult to say for sure what is going on with him. I suspect that he is a Twice Exceptional (2e) Student. His high intelligence may have been covering up a learning disability such as ADHD, dysgraphia, or dyslexia. Consequently, I suggest an evaluation for any undiagnosed learning disabilities.
Brainworks defines the Twice Exceptional (2e) Student in the following three ways:
- Labeled as gifted due to high intelligence but has "hit a wall."
- Labeled as having average intelligence, but the intellectual abilities mask one or more disabilities.
- Labeled as learning disabled and treated as LD at the expense of developing gifts and talents.
Life with a 2e student is very confusing and full of contradictions.
- Reading and Math: 2e students can be gifted in math and yet be two grade levels below peers in reading or vice versa.
- Verbal Skills: 2e students can be very creative and gifted verbally, but have "brain freeze" when putting thoughts on paper.
- Organizational Skills: 2e students have poor organizational skills –– lack a sense of time (yesterday, today, tomorrow), lose papers, miss deadlines, and can’t stick to a schedule.
- Memory Skills: 2e students are too impatient when they are trying to memorize; they are easily overwhelmed and tend to give up easily; they make careless mistakes and can experience test anxiety. They have a problem applying what they have learned (working memory).
- Visual/Motor Integration: 2e students are often directionally challenged (left, right, before, after, north, south, up, down); as a result, their handwriting, gross motor, time management, and driving skills suffer.
- Learning Style: 2e students generally learn and remember what they see or do and forget what they are told. In fact, they retain 90% of what they have been taught if they teach others!
- Self-concept: 2e students tend to have low self-esteem; they feel defeated because their high goals are rarely achieved. Their negative self-talk does not help the matter.
- ADHD Behaviors: ADHD is the most common learning disability for this gifted and learning disabled population (ex: distractibility, impulsivity, inattention, hyperactivity).
For further reading on this topic, read "The Twice Exceptional Student: High Potential; Low Performance" by Carla Crutsinger and Lori Bivens, Brainworks Newsletter, Fall 2007.
Next topic: Strategies to Motivate the Twice Exceptional (2e) Student
