Twice-Exceptionality Post-IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) 2004

• In Event: Twice Exceptionality: Insight Into Paradoxical Learners Through Neurological and Neuropsychological Investigation

Abstract

Purpose: To present current research on highly gifted students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), specific learning disabilities (SLD), and/or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Objective: Use empirical results to clinically and educationally describe twice-exceptionality and generate best-practice recommendations.

Perspective: Twice-exceptional individuals are an at-risk population. On one hand, their high cognitive ability is masked or under-appreciated due to the disability. On the other hand, the disability is often misunderstood, misdiagnosed, and/or the diagnosis is missed completely. Ironically, this highly vulnerable population has been grossly under-researched, which suggests that educational and clinical interventions may not necessarily be related to best-practice. Coincidentally, re-authorization of the federal special education act, IDEA-2004 (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act-2004) introduced, for the first time, the perspective that students with a disability may also be gifted and that research on this population should be a priority.

The 13 disability categories in IDEA-2004, as well as the respective definitions have remained largely unaltered since the first re-authorization (1990). However, one change in the specific learning disability (SLD) category, which serves the largest percentage of students identified with disabilities, has the potential to significantly impact gifted students. The change refers to the introduction of Response to Intervention (RtI) as another option to the traditional ability-achievement discrepancy model for identifying individuals with SLD. Officially, RtI did not eliminate the need for a comprehensive evaluation. Unofficially, RtI has short-circuited the referral-assessment-identification system.

Methodology and Data Source:
1. Recruit a sample of up to 100 gifted students with ASD, SLD, and/or ADHD (twice-exceptional)
2. Administer a battery of measures constituting a comprehensive assessments (IQ, achievement, psychosocial, etc., to the sample
3. Conduct quasi-experimental analyses of data obtained from the assessments
4. Provide empirically-based recommendations for clinical and education interventions.

Results: To effectively differentiate among diagnostic categories; a comprehensive evaluation that uses gold standard measures is needed. For example, when clinicians are assessing to determine the presence of ASD, it is imperative to use measures designed specifically for ASD (the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule and the Autism Diagnostic Interview- Revised).
With respect to SLD, we found that a disorder of written expression was the most common SLD. We also determined that the presence of the disability was best established through the traditional ability-achievement discrepancy.

Low self-esteem or poor self-concept are common characteristics among individuals with ADHD. However, for twice-exceptional students with ADHD, high cognitive ability appears buffer low self-esteem or poor self-concept.

Scholarly significance of the work: Foley Nicpon, Allmon, Sieck, & Stinson (2011) reviewed 20 years of empirical literature examining twice-exceptionality finding that over that period of time there were 43 empirical studies examining twice-exceptionality related to ASD, SLD, and of ADHD. This is a critical area with sparse research. Our comprehensive descriptions of these populations have established a foundation for future researchers to build from.

Reference:
Foley Nicpon, M., Allman, A., Sieck, B., & Stinson, R. D. (2011). Empirical investigation of twice exceptionality: Where have we been and where are we going? Gifted Child Quarterly, 55(1), 3-17. doi:10.1177/0016986210382575

Author

• Susan G. Assouline, University of Iowa