What is Twice Exceptional, 2e?
When explaining that my son is both gifted AND needs special education I am often given looks of confusion by other parents, teachers, and administrators.
And although the reported numbers of 2e students and awareness is on the rise, with some states and public school districts even having in depth 2e Handbooks (linked here Maryland, Colorado, Virginia) , there is limited educational awareness, leading this population to be one of the most misunderstood student populations.
In the case, of "Twice Exceptional" , we define exceptional to mean ability or performance outside the norm.
These are students that appear on both side of the bell curve, with above average cognition as well as below the average in certain areas- a real combo of oppositional strengths and weaknesses.
Asynchronous development is the best description of these students jagged profiles of strengths and weaknesses. “Asynchronous development” refers to uneven intellectual, physical, and emotional development.
"They straddle two worlds, each with its own misconceptions. Educators see a student who either isn’t trying hard enough or is too advanced to need help. Parents feel torn, trying to find accommodations for learning differences while trying to nourish their child’s unique gifts".-Ilse Gevaert
These students display amazing gifts, talents, or potential in some areas while also being challenged in other areas with learning differences, such as ADD/ADHD, dyslexia, autism spectrum disorder, sensory issues, and more.
Twice Exceptional students often experience intense emotions or have heightened sensitivity to their environment. In addition, they can be averse to challenges because they have not experienced much failure, want to maintain perfection, or are simply unused to rigor at their level. Educators and parents of 2e students can foster holistic social development tailored to each child’s needs. Emotional regulation, self-perception, social skills, ability to cope with challenges and handle criticism, willingness to take strategic risks, motivation, and confidence should all be taken into consideration.
Gifted NYS has adopted the definition of twice exceptional developed by The National Twice-Exceptional Community of Practice (2e COP):
Some Common 2e traits can include:
deep empathy
perfectionism
intellectual strength
intensity
existential considerations
art/music/athletic abilities
strong leadership skills
creativity
charisma
over excitabilities
Dr. Toni Tarnell, a psychologist who specializes in 2e students,
"Twice-exceptional students represent a very small percentage of the student population. Thus, part of the issue is that schools do not have teachers trained in how to appropriately support 2E students, a specific educational track, and the resources to accommodate them.
Unlike students with autism, development delays, or learning disabilities, twice- exceptional students are not adequately supported by our special education system in New York (See The Twice Exceptional Dilemma by the National Education Association)- Here is an excerpt,
‘How many twice-exceptional students are there? No one really knows. Twice-exceptional individuals are found within every socioeconomic, cultural, racial, and ethnic population and are present in most school classrooms. Regrettably, no federal agency or organization collects these student statistics resulting in a lack of available empirical prevalence data.’
They require, but don’t often receive, both academic challenges and simultaneous support for learning issues, executive functioning deficits, and socio-emotional vulnerabilities.
What is also common with 2E students is mischaracterizations of behavior as being willful and/or oppositional. FBA’s and BIP’s don’t accurately identify antecedents or triggers. The wrong conceptualization results in ineffective behavior plans that tend to make the behaviors worse."
Unfortunately, this lack of support can lead 2E students to underachieving and developing mental health issues. These conditions are unfortunately common with 2E students, as are such issues as self-harm and bullying.
Dr. Susan Baum, chancellor of Bridges Graduate School of Cognitive Diversity,
"The matter of appropriately educating students who are both intellectually gifted and who also have another significant exceptionality is not fundamentally an issue of helping them to reach their potential, but instead attending responsibly to what it is they need to learn and retain good health."
The Law:
Unfortunately, in most cases, Identifying twice-exceptional students is not yet seen as a priority. Often it takes a knowledgeable and proactive parent, who knows their child best, to push for understanding and identifying their student.
One of the biggest hurdles to getting these students supports is their grades. If they are performing at or above grade level their struggles may not be recognized and parents are often falsely told that they cannot have an IEP unless they are failing. Schools can be reluctant and even wrongfully refuse to evaluate kids like these for special education services. No child’s IQ is too high to be considered eligible for special education and related services- period.
And the IDEA is not silent on their standing on supporting Twice Exceptional students, they just use slightly different terminology, but the same description- High Cognition with Disabilities.
"The IDEA does not specifically address “twice exceptional” or “2E” students. It remains the Department’s position that students who have high cognition, have disabilities and require special education and related services are protected under the IDEA and its implementing regulations."
NYSED LINK to their page on the law.
I am also attaching the links to the original letter and the second letter issued by the Dept of Education. Keep these handy if your district denies testing or an IEP because of high cognition.
Author of Gifted and Distractible, Julie Skolnick,
"By recognizing and nurturing their strengths, 2e students develop resilience and confidence, which empowers them to address areas requiring additional support or improvement.
This approach promotes a positive mindset and encourages students to embrace their unique abilities, leading to a more holistic and effective developmental process."
She recommends using a Strength-based approach:
Focus on their passions and interests
Rather than addressing specific behaviors, consider triggers that underlie challenging behaviors (“Behavior is communication!”)
Validate emotions to help regulate emotions
Dr. Susan Baum,
Research on twice exceptional students promotes the idea of dual differentiation, that is
1. to assure the appropriate content is being offered (novel with depth and complexity)
2. at the same time offering choices that can help the students get around their challenges.
Based on my son's IEE by Dr. Tarnell, below are some Critical Accommodations / Modes of Support based on his 2E Status:
Twice-exceptional children demonstrate unique needs and require support based on their asynchronous development. Unlike typical gifted children, they struggle with uneven performances, executive functioning weaknesses, frontal lobe overload and impulsivity, trouble with monitoring, sensory sensitivities, a self-determined nature, and emotional intensities.
Based on this understanding, the following accommodations and/or strategies will be important to ensure that Oscar is supported appropriately as a twice- exceptional child:
Placement in a small, structured, and supportive classroom environment
A challenging academic curriculum to address his unique learning profile.
Support for his social skills and social-emotional development, de-escalating from extreme emotion.
Monitoring of bullying and feelings of safety within his school.
• Self-directed learning for a portion of every day
• Project-based learning
• Partner with intellectually matched peers
• Leadership/Helping opportunities to enhance feelings of control and
efficacy
• Compact (Renzulli) and then enhance learning
• Movement breaks
• Sensory breaks
• Opportunity to move during learning time without disrupting peers
• Standing desk
• Allowance for fidget or squeeze toys to help channel energy and focus
• Recognition that the child may appear distracted but may be
absorbing
• Sensitivity around redirection with a focus on preserving self-esteem
• More positive comments than negative comments or consequences
each day
• Understanding of the importance of relationship with teacher
• Need for understanding and sensitivity, generally, as twice-
exceptional children experience feelings more profoundly
Through education, awareness and advocacy, we must improve the identification and support of these great and unique minds. They have so much to contribute to society, but only if this goal is realized. “They represent a potential national resource whose future contributions to society are largely contingent upon offering them appropriate educational experiences. Without appropriate education and services, their discoveries, innovations, breakthroughs, leadership, and other gifts to American society go unrealized.”- The Twice Exceptional Dilemma by The National Education Association.
A few historical examples of those who are Twice Exceptional : Stephen Hawking, a Nobel prize-winning physicist who has ALS, is an example of a person with a physical disability who is also gifted. Helen Keller, who was deaf and blind, is an example of a person who had sensory disabilities and was gifted. Dr. Temple Grandin, Assistant Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University and accomplished author and designer of animal facilities, has written of her experiences as an individual with autism. Princeton University professor and Nobel prize-winning mathematician John Nash Jr., whose struggle with schizophrenia was the subject of the movie “A Beautiful Mind,” is an example of a gifted individual who has an emotional disorder. Nikola Tesla, a foremost inventor who helped usher in the age of electrical power in 1887 with his patent on alternating current motors, would also be characterized as having ADHD today. An example of an individual who was gifted and had a learning disability was Albert Einstein who gave the world the theory of relativity even though he struggled to learn how to read.