Seeing and Supporting Twice-Exceptional Learners

Through a four-part discussion, this essay advocates for seeing the characteristics and special needs of gifted students with disabilities and using best practices to support their learning. Part 1 delineates the evolution of the legislative acts and professional initiatives regarding twice exceptionality. Part 2 discusses the educational rights of twice-exceptional learners. Part 3 presents challenges to understanding and supporting this student population, followed by a call for ongoing personnel training in part 4.     

From the editor's desk

This article examines the underrepresentation of African American and Hispanic students in gifted education, proposing that social inequality, deficit thinking, and microaggressions contribute to the inequitable segregated programs. Underrepresentation trends are presented, along with methods for calculating underrepresentation and inequity. Underrepresentation is placed under the larger umbrella of achievement gaps and inequities in school settings with attention to de jure segregation. I argue that underrepresentation is beyond statistical chance and is a function of attitudes and beliefs grounded in deficit paradigms among those with power or social capital. Denying access to gifted education based on race is counterproductive and illegal and is discussed with Brown v. Board of Education as the legal background and a recent court case in gifted education (McFadden v. Board of Education for Illinois School District U-46). Recommendations for desegregating gifted education are provided.     

Intellectually gifted rural-to-urban migrant children’s attention

The term “intellectually gifted rural-to-urban migrant children” refers to intellectually gifted children who are in migration from rural to urban areas. We compared performances on seven attention tasks among intellectually gifted (n = 26) and average (n = 30) rural-to-urban migrant and intellectually gifted urban children (n = 31). Our results showed that intellectually gifted rural-to-urban migrant children performed more correctly and faster on some attention tasks than did the intellectually average rural-to-urban migrant children, but they did not perform as well on some attention tasks as did the intellectually gifted urban children. Based on the attentional structures, it was evident the intellectually gifted rural-to-urban migrant children developed more mature than did either the intellectually gifted urban or the intellectually average rural-to-urban migrant children. This suggests the intellectually gifted rural-to-urban migrant children’s attention is overall superior to that of their intellectually average peers. However, there are advantages and disadvantages in terms of the quality of their attention compared to the intellectually gifted urban children. While their attentional structures seem to develop earlier, their accuracy on some of the attention tasks seems to suffer. This suggests that rural-to-urban migration is a double-edged sword for intellectually gifted children.     

Cognitive Development in Gifted Children: Toward a More Precise Understanding of Emerging Differences in Intelligence

To truly understand gifted performance, it is necessary to merge research on giftedness with current thinking in cognitive development and intelligence. This article presents traditional research on gifted children's cognitive development then considers how the application of newer models and theories from the field of cognitive development can be combined with research on giftedness to change the way people think about gifted performance. First four factors that have often been associated with giftedness are discussed from the perspectives of cognitive developmental psychology and gifted education. Next, emphasis is placed on investigating the strategic development of gifted children. Specifically, R. S. Siegler's (Emerging Minds: The Process of Change in Children's Thinking, Oxford University Press, New York, 1996) model of strategy development is addressed in terms of what it may contribute to understanding gifted cognition. Finally, future lines of research using models from cognitive development and complex systems models of development are recommended.     

Recognizing the Outliers: Behaviors and Tendencies of the Profoundly Gifted Learner in Mixed-Ability Classrooms

This article focuses on (a) distinctions between the profoundly gifted individual and others, and (b) a chart describing tendencies and/or behaviors associated with the profoundly gifted student in common, mixed-ability educational settings. The intent is to provide educators, parents, and policymakers with preliminary awareness about the unique behaviors and tendencies of the profoundly gifted learner in heterogeneous educational settings. Learners with measured IQ scores greater than 3 SD units above the mean are a statistical rarity—outliers—in most educational settings. The current inability of most educators to identify and even minimally address needs leaves these students anxious, frustrated, and otherwise unable to reach their intellectual capacity in the majority of school settings across the country. Focused research and careful attention to the nature and needs of these individuals throughout their lives can contribute substantially to our developing understanding.     

Best practices in gifted identification and assessment: Lessons from the WISC-V

School psychologists in today's schools have the unique opportunity—and responsibility—to guide identification for gifted programs. “Who is gifted?” remains a perennial question in the gifted education literature, not answered by group intelligence screeners that purportedly level the playing field for all. As the student body grows more diverse, there is increasing necessity to ensure that all students have equal access to gifted programs. Failure to identify and develop the advanced abilities of gifted children who are culturally diverse, economically deprived, highly gifted, or twice exceptional is justifiably viewed as a civil rights violation. The National Association for Gifted Children's 2018 position statement, “Use of the WISC-V for Gifted and Twice Exceptional Identification,” offers important considerations for identifying the gifted. Based on a national research study of 390 gifted children on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fifth Edition (WISC-V), the statement recommends that the traditional practice of mandating Full Scale intelligence quotient scores be abandoned. Instead, it embraces the use of any one of six expanded index scores that are better measures of abstract reasoning for selecting students for gifted provisions. As gifted children are oftentimes asynchronous, alternate index scores are less biased and better able to document the strengths of all gifted children. What is learned from the WISC-V can be applied by school psychologists to improve the choice of comprehensive individual intelligence tests, brief intelligence tests, and the body of evidence gifted children must exhibit.     

Giftedness and social adjustment: evidence supporting the resilience approach in Spanish‐speaking children and adolescents

Do gifted students adjust poorly to their social environment? There are currently two competing positions: one that sustains that giftedness is by itself a risk factor for social adaptation, and another that holds that high cognitive abilities involve distinctive features that are protective and hence increase individual resilience. Empirical support has been provided for both positions. This paper provides data from a study performed with 50 Spanish‐speaking gifted children and adolescents using a comparison group of 50 average‐ability peers matched by sex and chronological age. The results show no significant differences between gifted students and their peers on global measures of adjustment. Instead, they suggest that gifted students are neither significantly more poorly nor better adjusted than their peers during different age periods. Our analysis of the results provides moderate support for the resilience position.     

Finnish Elementary School Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Gifted Education

This study examined Finnish elementary school teachers’ (N = 212) attitudes toward the gifted and their education. On a general level, teachers’ attitudes toward gifted education were slightly positive. Teachers saw that gifted students have social value and that they need special services. The results of teachers’ attitudes toward specific gifted education options were in line with earlier Finnish research, because teachers supported differentiated teaching but were more negative toward acceleration or separating the gifted into their own groups. However, despite the strong support for differentiated teaching for the gifted, teachers’ positions toward practice were more skeptical.     

天才的表现、实质与发展

本文以心理学领域的相关研究结论,首先解释了天才表现的参照系、行为内容和绩效水平;然后分析了天才的内在特殊能力与独特的认知加工过程,以及天才的情感特征与人格特质;最后讨论了天才发展中自然成长与有意训练、常规发展与认知跳跃这两类关系。对天才的深入探索,有助于纠正传统关于“天才”的错误认识,形成科学的天才观和人才观,有效指导人才培养及相应的教育实践工作。     

The Finnish public discussion of giftedness and gifted children

The purpose of this paper is to present the results of research in which the Finnish public discussion of giftedness and gifted children, and conceptions of giftedness and gifted children presented in it, were examined. The research was conducted by analyzing articles from the Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat and the teachers’ periodical Opettaja, using the content analysis method. The results show that giftedness is seen as multidimensional, and both intrapersonal and environmental contributions are recognized as essential in talent development. The conceptions of gifted children were quite diverse, and gifted children’s possible problems were frequently discussed. Moreover, misunderstandings were revealed as well as areas that have not been adequately addressed.     

台湾资优教育探析

台湾资优教育始于1962年,到现在已有五十余年的发展历史。了解台湾地区资优教育的发展概况,探讨台湾资优学生鉴别的相关规定和程序,分析其多元化的实施模式,讨论资优教育的原因和存在的问题,以期对我们的拔尖创新人才培养有所启发。     

家庭教养方式对10岁城市与流动超常儿童自我概念的影响

选取10岁超常儿童共74名,其中城市超常儿童34名,流动超常儿童40名。采用问卷法,考察了两组超常儿童在自我概念和家庭教养方式上的差异,分析了家庭教养方式对超常儿童自我概念水平的影响,结果表明：（1）城市和流动超常儿童在自我概念上的差异主要表现在城市超常儿童的非学业自我概念要显著高于流动超常儿童。（2）在家庭教养方式方面,城市超常儿童在情感温暖理解这一维度上的得分明显地高于流动超常儿童,而在惩罚严厉、过分干涉、拒绝否认、过度保护这四个维度上的得分均低于流动超常儿童。（3）家庭教养方式中的情感温暖理解、过分保护和拒绝否认对超常儿童的自我概念总分有较好的预测作用。具体来说,家庭教养方式对学业自我概念和非学业自我概念的影响是不同的,家庭教养方式中的情感温暖理解对超常儿童的学业自我概念有较好的预测作用,而成长环境和家庭教养方式中的情感温暖因素对超常儿童的非学业自我概念有较好的预测作用。     

Parent's views on education for the gifted

A survey was sent to parents of children enrolled in two public and three private school programs for the gifted to ascertain their educational philosophical positions and conceptions of giftedness. In general, the results showed that the parents preferred an eclectic, child‐centered instructional approach. Their conception of gifted intelligence was broad and complex, integrating many aspects of creativity, motivation, and mental power (IQ).     

Rocky Jones: Case study of a high‐achieving black male's motivation to participate in gifted classes

An increased body of research on the recruitment and retention of Black students in gifted programs provides guidance for educators to understand factors that impact Black male under representation in gifted programs. A common concern among high school educators is that schools cannot keep Black males interested in gifted programs. Even in culturally diverse high schools, gifted Black males often do not want to take advanced level classes because they are accused by peers of “acting White”. This case study reveals that while rare, it is not impossible. This article uses a Participation Motivation Expectancy‐Value Model (PMEVM) to explain the motivation of Rocky Jones, a gifted Black male, and his choice to participate in his school's gifted program. Findings from interview and archival data are reported that inform Rocky's participation choice, and implications are drawn to enhance teachers’ efforts to increase Black males’ motivation and representation in gifted education.     

Working toward equitable gifted programming: The school psychologist's role

As culturally, linguistically, and economically diverse students continue to be underrepresented in gifted programs, the beliefs that frame teacher perceptions of giftedness remain an important area of focus. Literature indicates that a lack of gifted-specific coursework in teacher preparation programs may sustain ill-formed preconceptions regarding giftedness, leading new teachers to rely on bias and stereotypic thinking when nominating students for gifted identification. Furthermore, deficit thinking and colorblind racial attitudes may interfere with the implementation of culture-fair identification practices and the implementation of multicultural pedagogy meant to elicit unique strengths and engage culturally diverse students. This article explores these barriers to equitable programming and concludes with broad recommendations for school psychologists in advocating for traditionally underrepresented gifted students.     

Fitting the school to the child: The mission of Leta Stetter Hollingworth,founder of gifted education

We are fond of stating that “what is valued and viewed as gifted in one culture may not be considered gifted in another culture.” This assertion appears in gifted education textbooks and in the writings of several scholars. However, beyond stating this assertion and providing a few examples to support it, scholars in gifted education, ourselves included, have not provided a substantive treatment of the concept of “culture” in their works. This void is addressed in this article where we share definitions and functions of culture, along with a theoretical model for understanding culture. The article ends with implications for gifted education.     

Curriculum and instruction for the gifted: The role of school psychologists

This paper explores the school psychologist's role in the academic and psychosocial development of students identified as gifted and talented via curriculum. Given the school psychologists' assessment expertize, they can inform the identification to service placement process for students, including advocacy for curricular and instructional opportunities that best meet the student's needs. We discuss modern conceptualizations of giftedness and talent development, the function of curriculum and instruction in meeting the needs of students who are gifted and the school psychologist's role in identifying which curricular adaptations are appropriate for students based on learner data. We also discuss how a school psychologist can work with educators to support the needs of twice exceptional learners and gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and questioning students and recommend professional learning opportunities for school psychologists to remain abreast of current issues in gifted education.