Gifted Characteristics and 2e: An Overview
Understanding Twice-Exceptionality
Colorado Twice-Exceptional Definition
According to the Colorado Department of Education, twice-exceptional students are those who are identified as gifted according to state criteria
AND
Identified with a disability according to federal/state criteria - and the disability qualifies the student for either an Individual Education Plan (IEP) or a Section 504 Plan.
Not all disabilities require that the student have one of these plans. Twice-exceptional students are those who are identified as gifted and who qualify for an IEP or a 504 plan.
(Optional: For a list of the categories in which a student can be identified as gifted in Colorado, see HERE. For a list of disability categories, visit the Special Education webpage with the disabilities listed and more information about each one. )
Beginning to Understand 2e Students
Beginning to Understand 2e Students
"The term 2e [twice-exceptional] is utilized to describe students who have both gifts/talents and disabilities. Over three decades of scholarship has indicated that the needs of this group overlap and yet are distinct from both individuals who are gifted and individuals with disabilities" (Reis, S.M., Gelbar, N.W. & Madaus, J.W. , 2021).*
Twice-exceptional children generally have little difficulty grasping concepts or generating ideas. If they have a physical disability, such as visual impairment, we automatically understand that supports must be provided for them to access the curriculum, but when they falter in getting their ideas down on paper, writing legibly, doing calculations accurately, staying organized, following instructions or decoding text, they are often accused of being distracted, uninterested, disruptive or lazy. It is easy to think they could improve by just trying harder, but usually they are trying harder than most students--until they give up.
According to Micaela Bracamonte
Researchers have worked to shed light on the pattern of abilities and relative deficits displayed by 2e students in order to simplify their identification by teachers and administrators. These students are a diverse group with a wide variety of gifts and talents in combination with various learning challenges that often resist categorization. There is, in fact, no single defining pattern of characteristics or test scores. Credit: 2e Newsletter
- An outstanding talent or ability
- A learning challenge--which might be physical, cognitive, or affective
- A discrepancy between potential and actual achievement - without support for their learning challenge(s)
* Reis, S.M., Gelbar, N.W. & Madaus, J.W. (2021). Understanding the academic success of academically talented college students with autism spectrum disorders. J Autism Dev Disord.