Twice Exceptional Students

Characteristics

Twice-Exceptional students are highly individualistic. Therefore, there will never be one profile of a student that could encompass all the various different characteristics that twice exceptional students could portray. One characteristic that will remain the same across the board is that these students do show both "peaks and valleys" of both strengths and challenges (Supporting Teaching, 2022, p. 4). Before jumping into the multitude of characteristics they could exhibit, it is first beneficial to have a definition to go off of. According to the Association for the Gifted, the twice-exceptional student is defined in three ways:

1) Twice-exceptional (2e) individuals evidence exceptional ability and disability, which results in a unique set of circumstances

2) Their exceptional ability may dominate, hiding their disability; their disability may dominate, hiding their exceptional ability; or each may mask the other so that neither is recognized nor addressed

3) Twice-exceptional individuals come from and are impacted by neurological, linguistic, socio-economic, individual, and cultural diversities.  (Supporting Teaching, 2022, p. 4)

Most students who are identified as twice-exceptional are most often identified with a disability such as Specific Learning Disability (SLD), Autism, Emotional and/or Behavioral or Communication disorders. Therefore, I found it beneficial to first list out general characteristics that Twice-Exceptional students could exhibit first, and then included infographics for characteristics related to Autism, ADHD, Specific Learning Disorder, and Emotional/Behavioral disorders, since it would help to showcase all the different characteristics that are attributed to the specific disabilities, since both the exceptional ability and disabilities are showcased in twice-exceptional students, and often times one or the other could be masked, so knowing both lists can help future educators be on the lookout for students who could potentially be twice-exceptional. Unfortunately, most of the characteristics listed are in a negative tone, focusing on their difficulties, rather than their strengths and how they could be seen as positives. 

From the Virginia Department of Education Toolkit done in 2022 titled Supporting Teaching Twice Exceptional Students, they list some potential characteristics, and what was interesting to note, is that the tone of most of the characteristics listed, seem to be in a negative spotlight, whereas only one or two mention strength or a positive trait. Instead, many of these relate to difficulties these students share, differences between abilities, or struggles with emotions. Below is their list: 

• Attentional weaknesses

• Impulsivity

• Organizational weaknesses

• Difficulty learning in one or more specific areas of content

• Significant strengths and advanced knowledge in one or more specific areas of content

• Difficulty with emotional regulation

• Emotional intensity

• Significant issues with perfectionism and frustration

• Difficulties with social interactions and social awareness

• Difficulties with visual or auditory processing

• Wide range of differences between academic areas of strength and areas of challenge

• Widely different levels of motivation and persistence between areas of strength and areas of challenge

• Wide differences between verbal and performance abilities

• High levels of anxiety and existential angst

(Supporting Teaching, 2022, p. 4). 

Because of the mainly negative characteristics listed above, I loved the chart that Castellano & Frazier included on page 160, which I have included alongside the other infographics of characteristics, because it lists the strengths of these students FIRST, and then acknowledges the challenges that might be exhibited because of their strengths. This helps to demonstrate that there will be peaks and valleys with each student because they each come with their own unique set of areas of strength and areas of weakness. 

Perhaps the biggest and most challenging characteristic is the uneven development, or "asynchronous" development, where they have very high scores in specific content areas, but very low scores in global areas or processing skills (Supporting Teaching, 2022, p. 11). This can lead to students having a wavering self-concept of success and failure, as well as social and emotional challenges with peers as listed above. 

Effectiveness of Identification and Assessment Practices

Just as with programming, specialized methods of identification are important in order to consider all the possible interactions of exceptionalities that students could exhibit. It is also difficult because either the ability or the disability could be masked, meaning one or the other is hidden from being easily identified. Another difficulty that could emerge with identification, is if students are unable to qualify for special programming, due to the change in definition of learning disabilities in IDEA (Castellano & Frazier, 2011, p. 157). Other students might not be able to be identified for gifted programs, either. Therefore, if they are unable to be identified with a disability or exceptionality, it automatically makes it difficult to identify as twice exceptional, since 2e students have both an ability as well as a learning disability. Most identification happens based on varying scores on cognitive and academic assessments, however, since this population could also have significant social-emotional issues, it could affect their learning and performance, making it difficult to correctly identify them (Supporting Teaching, 2022, p. 11). In a report done by the National Association of Gifted Children, they show that twice exceptional kids may be identified in one of three different categories. In other words, all twice-exceptional students fall into one of these categories, but will still have unique characteristics and exhibit different traits, scores, performances, etc. I did, however, like that they gave examples of what those students might go through if identified in each category. I have included those under each category because I think it gives a picture of the negative challenges that students face no matter which category they are identified in. 

• Students identified as gifted but do not have an identified disability

  • Go unnoticed for possible special education evaluation

  • Be considered underachievers, often perceived as lazy or unmotivated

  • Achieve at grade level until curriculum becomes more difficult, often during middle and high school

• Students identified as having a disability but not as being gifted 

  • Be a part of programs that focus solely on their disability

  • Be inadequately assessed for their intellectual abilities

  • Become bored in special programs if the services do not challenge them appropriately

• Students not formally identified as gifted or disabled

  • Be considered achieving at grade level and assumed to have average ability

  • Struggle as curriculum becomes more challenging

  • Never be referred for a special education evaluation due to deflated achievement and standardized test scores

(Twice Exceptional, 2021, para 6)

Unfortunately, in a survey of school districts nationwide started in 2000 by Johns Hopkins University, they noticed that a majority of school districts had no procedures in place for identifying twice exceptional children (Bracamonte, 2010, para 26). Therefore, from the very beginning, students from this population had no way of being identified, let alone given the resources needed to succeed in the classroom. Therefore, I have included a list of identification tips given in an article titled "Twice Exceptional: Definition, Characteristics & Identification", by the Davidson Institute, because I believe that it gives a great pathway into correctly identifying this population, especially in regards to assessment. 

• Take a multi-dimensional approach to identifying twice-exceptional students and consider using both written tests and behavioral assessments

• Use both formal and informal assessments

• Separate out test scores on IQ tests; most 2e children are inconsistent performers with uneven skills and asynchronous development

• Reduce qualifying cut off scores to account for learning differences or disabilities

• Consider oral questioning instead of formal written testing if the student experiences difficulties with processing details

• Extend the time available for the student to demonstrate their knowledge

• Use assessment procedures that accommodate language and cultural differences to avoid bias in the identification process

(Twice Exceptional, 2021, para 9). 

Due to the fact that most 2e students perform high on gifted screening tests, but poorly on standardized assessments used to measure individual student progress, it is critical to separate out their test scores on IQ tests (Bracamonte, 2010, para 28). One of the most commonly used assessments is the Wechsler Intelligence Scales for Children, because it includes a series of subtests, and a review of those subtest IQ scores can help identify 2e students. In other words, students can do well on the spatial, pattern recognition, verbal comprehension, and abstract conceptualization measures, but do less well on measures of processing details and rote memorization, but the IQ scores can help to showcase that discrepancy, allowing for educators to notice the potential for twice exceptionality. However, the best way for students to be assessed is to be allowed to demonstrate their knowledge in multiple ways. This could be written assessments such as the WISC, but also behavioral checklists, as well as portfolio reviews and interviews (Bracamonte, 2010, para 32). This lets students have a more complete profile for educators to look at, rather than solely on test scores, especially since this population can have such inconsistent test results.