Individuality of Children
Individuality of Children
Twice-exceptional children are children who are gifted, but also have special educational needs. These include, learning disabilities, Asperger Syndrome, among others. Because these students are gifted, this can mask their special needs and on the other hand their special needs can hide their giftedness (Besnoy, 2006).Twice exceptional students face a lot of challenges within the education system right from placement into schools. A student is identified as gifted by the identification and placement committee and hence is recommended to undertake educational options that would support performance at higher levels of complexity that the student has. At the same time, the student is identified to have a learning disability, and this entitles the student to get an individualized education program to meet his special needs (Kirk et al., 2008).Getting a school that can offer these diverse needs is hard and such students end up in regular schools in class with other students that do not have any special needs. If the teacher does not take the time to understand the individuality of these children, they can easily be labeled as gifted, but lazy and this further details their achievement.
Understanding twice exceptional students are important if the teacher is to bring out the best in each student (Besnoy, 2006).These students have strong observation skills but have a problem with memory, some of these students also show attention deficit but can concentrate for a long time if interested in the area. A teacher can expose these children more to study areas that they enjoy sustaining their interest in the learning process. They are also very inquisitive and can easily be viewed as rude especially when constantly questioning facts presented by the teachers. These students do well in high order thinking but have problems with rudimentary activities(Kirk et al.,2008).Once a teacher understands these traits of twice exceptional children, she will be more patient with these students and carefully nurture them so that their gifts shine and make them able to overcome their challenges.
Comorbidity refers to a situation in which a person has two or more diagnosable conditions both occurring at the same time (Callard-Szulgit,2008).A study done in Baltimore Maryland showed that many children with attention deficit disorder also presented with other disorders that include anxiety, pervasive developmental disorder, sleep problems, obsessive disorder among others (Pfeiffer,2008).It is important for the teacher to understand the different disorders that the student has because they occur in different combinations. It will help the teacher to approach each learner differently depending on their needs. Each child has a right to education and the teachers have a moral obligation to ensure that each child that they handle excess to their optimum potential. For example, if a child that is twice exceptional also appears to be suffering from anxiety, It’s important for the teacher to assess and see if the anxiety is situational or not. Anxiety can occur in these children due to the fear that they may not be able to perform to the level of their perceived capabilities, The teacher can reassure the child of acceptance irrespective of their performance and help resolve the anxiety issues. Professionals in the field of child development need skill to identify children with comorbid conditions, this is because they spend the most time with the children in an environment with structured activities and are hence more able to identify if the child has a problem. Also, when these problems are identified earlier in a child’s life, and the child receives proper attention early in life their chances of overcoming their challenges are higher (Callard-Szulgit, 2008).
References
Besnoy, K. D. (2006). Successful strategies for twice-exceptional students. Waco, Tex: Prufrock Press.
Callard-Szulgit, R. (2008). Twice-exceptional kids: A guide for assisting students who are both academically gifted and learning disabled. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield Education.
Kirk, S. A., Gallagher, J., & Coleman, M. R. (2008). Educating exceptional children. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.
Pfeiffer, S. I. (2008). Handbook of giftedness in children: Psychoeducational theory, research, and best practices. New York: Springer.
