Ten years later: What has changed; what remains the same in gifted education

When I launched this blog in January 2013, I never imagined it would last. Ten years ago, my youngest child was approaching high school graduation, and my involvement as co-chair of a gifted parents advocacy group was winding down. Yet, my interest in advocating for the gifted extended beyond my own experience with my children's education. I found that writing - through this blog and other platforms - provided an outlet for advocating, sharing information, and expressing my concerns. Rather than a personal blog or one describing my children's trajectory, Gifted Challenges became a vehicle for confronting misperceptions about giftedness, voicing my opinions, and disseminating and sometimes critiquing information found online. 

What has changed in ten years?

Over these past ten years, there has been some gradual progress in how the gifted are perceived and how gifted education is implemented. We have seen an explosion of awareness about neurodiversity, twice-exceptionalities, and the social/emotional needs of the gifted. Many in the field have championed the necessity of universal screening for giftedness, identifying gifted Black, Hispanic, Indigenous, inner city, and rural children who are often ignored, addressing the excellence gap, and acquiring accurate diagnoses of conditions such as autism, ADHD, or sensory processing disorders. Adults who previously doubted their own giftedness are learning to acknowledge their strengths and parents of the gifted are admitting to the stressors and worries so unique to their family dynamics. Given the variety of new platforms, such as webinars and podcasts that disseminate information and opinions directly to the consumer, it would seem that finally, more information is readily available regarding life as gifted.

Nevertheless, much remains the same in gifted world. Legal mandates safeguarding gifted education are non-existent in many US States. Even within those States where gifted accommodations are mandated, service delivery is often haphazard and limited. Antiquated views of flexible ability grouping, acceleration, or the social/emotional needs of gifted children persist. The G-word remains misunderstood; rather than acknowledging that "gifted" is a diagnostic label, the term is a projection screen for misinterpretation and stereotyping. Claims pronouncing that everyone is gifted or that giftedness is a choice, or that it is an elitist construct are the subject of endless online debates and discourse within just about every school community. Yet, this imperfect "gifted" label is what we have (and are stuck with) right now, and it is up to us as parents, educators, and other professionals to educate the public about this diagnostic term.

Of course, the world at large has confronted us with many disturbing events - with negative effects on our sensitive gifted children's well-being (and our own). The Pandemic has altered us in fundamental ways not even yet fully appreciated. Politics and social media have become divisive and inflammatory; our right to free speech is all too frequently co-opted with misinformation, lies, and hateful commentary. Gun violence is rampant in many impoverished neighborhoods and now surpasses motor vehicle accidents as the leading cause of death among children. Students routinely practice active shooter drills, with the disturbing awareness that mass shootings can happen anywhere. Books are banned. Threats related to climate change affect us all. And a culture of anti-intellectualism and anti-science has flourished. Anxiety, disenfranchisement, and a distorted embrace of rugged individualism (fueled by the anonymity of social media and supported by some public figures) have amplified pre-existing elements of bigotry, racism, antisemitism, genderphobia, and anti-immigrant sentiment.

Despite these challenges, there is cause for hope! 

Although we cannot fully shield our children and teens from widely disseminated information (sometimes hastening an unwelcome level of pseudo-maturity), their increased awareness of the world around them also engenders greater wisdom and maturity. This explosion in knowledge can be a positive influence if we guide them, answer their questions, and instill values that frame and support healthy attitudes.  Many young people possess an astounding level of optimism and wisdom as they combat social, political, and environmental challenges. Gifted children, in particular, have the potential to impact the future; their empathy, passion for social justice, and keen sense of logic can help transform the world as we know it. If we can supply them with an emotionally secure, socially supportive, and academically challenging childhood, our gifted children will flourish.

On a personal note

I don't usually broadcast my personal life in this blog, but will share a few of the changes I have experienced over the past ten years. I have witnessed my children's initial launch toward college - and then, their second launch as they pursued graduate education and engaging careers. I continue to work as a clinical psychologist, and now have options for providing telehealth in over 30 US States due to PSYPACT legislation. I have expanded my psychotherapy practice to include workshops for parents and schools, and consultation/coaching for adults and parents of gifted children. Although coaching is a bit more relaxed and straightforward than psychotherapy, my training and experience as a psychotherapist are still an essential part of this process. 

Creating and nurturing this blog has been an unanticipated joy. I have learned a lot, met some amazing fellow parents and colleagues in the gifted and twice-exceptional field, and honed my writing skills. I get to advocate for gifted kids and adults through this blog; what an incredible privilege and opportunity! It sounds pretty nerdy, but this sure has been a lot of fun! While I have written many articles (some unrelated to giftedness) and several book chapters, I feel quite excited about my new book, The Gifted Parenting Journey, which addresses the emotional lives of parents and provides tools and support as they navigate this complicated parenting process. Parents' needs and emotions have been ignored for much too long. In their search to support and educate their gifted or twice-exceptional children, parents often discount their own experiences. My hope is that this book will offer the validation and support parents of the gifted need - along with a vehicle for encouraging a deeper understanding of their motivations and emotions.

Thank you to all of my readers who have hung in there with me over the years! I am so grateful for your readership and especially appreciative that so many of you responded to the Gifted Parenting Survey I circulated online last year. Some findings from this survey are included in my book, but I am also working on analyzing the data more extensively. I also plan to offer more workshops for parents (if you are interested, send me an email and let me know!). If you have requests for blog post topics, please let me know as well. I wish you well as you traverse your own path as a gifted adult and/or the parent of a gifted child. We still have much work to do as we advocate for all gifted children, with the hope that they receive the intellectual stimulation and social/emotional engagement they desperately need. Please join me in that mission!

Why does giftedness remain unrecognized among some gifted children?

Why are some gifted kids' talents ignored? What happens when your child doesn't "look gifted" - when they don't conform to widely held notions of giftedness and high achiever stereotypes? What contributes to the under-identification of giftedness?

There is a widespread assumption that giftedness is readily noticed and that parents and teachers easily recognize when a child is gifted. However, giftedness remains unidentified and ignored among many gifted children. 

Yes, there are some gifted kids who burst forth right out of the starting gate, displaying their precocious talents at a very young age. As they mature, their advanced abilities are so apparent that few could deny their giftedness. However, others are late bloomers, or their strengths are more visual-spatial than verbal, or their passions are skewed toward only one area of interest. Parents may doubt their perceptions when developmental milestones seem to zig-zag along a haphazard path. A child might be delayed with motor skills, for example, yet speak before their first birthday. They might be able to name every dinosaur or perform advanced math calculations, yet cannot tie their shoes.

This uncertainty about whether a child is gifted may persist for years. Parents may doubt the accuracy of their observations. They are especially likely to question their perceptions when their child is neither highly verbal nor an early reader. For example, Silverman and Golon noted that: “Children with advanced visual-spatial abilities may not be perceived as gifted by their parents or teachers unless they also demonstrate verbal precocity. When children develop speech later than their siblings, parents often worry that the children are developmentally delayed, even if they display extraordinary facility with puzzles, construction toys, creating things from odds and ends, disassembling items, and spatial memory” (p.3).

Just as some parents doubt their perceptions, overworked teachers (or those with little training in gifted education) often fail to notice gifted children who do not fit stereotypes of cooperative, high achieving, and highly verbal students. Gifted children who frequently remain unidentified may be found among students who are quiet or shy or rambunctious, who underachieve, who cannot adapt to the slow, regimented pace of traditional classrooms, or whose passions are skewed toward only one area of interest. A bored gifted child who constantly chats with other students or acts out in class may receive reprimands rather than a further investigation into what drives them. A shy gifted child may want to avoid any fanfare or attention and hide their giftedness so they can be like everyone else.

Complicating the picture even further, some gifted children display social and emotional delays where their maturity lags well behind their intellect. A five-year-old might possess the vocabulary of a teen, yet sometimes act like a toddler (often at the worst possible moments!). Asynchronous development is viewed by many as a hallmark of giftedness, and is described by the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) as a “mismatch between cognitive, emotional, and physical development of gifted individuals.” These varying strengths and developmental lags confuse parents and teachers alike, and confound decisions regarding school placement or options for academic acceleration. Stephanie Tolan claimed that “gifted children are on a developmental trajectory that is outside of norms from infancy onward. They reach recognized milestones of development on a schedule that is unique to them, putting them out of sync with society's expectations. In addition, they may be out of sync internally, with cognitive, social, and emotional development on separate and sometimes quite different timetables.” (p. 2). She further commented that:

“The young gifted child may appear to be many ages at once. He may be eight (his chronological age) when riding a bicycle, twelve when playing chess, fifteen when studying algebra, ten when collecting fossils, and two when asked to share his chocolate chip cookie with his sister. This variability in behavior and perception is difficult for parents and schools to handle and difficult for the child as well” (p. 2).

Gifted identification also can be clouded by a variety of developmental, learning, and social/emotional factors. Gifted abilities can be overlooked when twice-exceptional concerns (such as anxiety, learning disabilities, speech or motor delays, or signs of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Autism Spectrum Disorder) coexist along with giftedness. The intellectual strengths of an anxious gifted child, hesitant to speak up in class, may not be noticed. A gifted child with ADHD or a hidden learning disability might utilize their intelligence to compensate for distractibility or struggles with reading or math. Yet, their gifted abilities allow them to coast through school with average grades. As a result, their ADHD may remain hidden and untreated, and their needs as a gifted learner are ignored. 

Gifted under-identification often occurs among persons of color, children raised in impoverished environments, English Language Learners, and those who are culturally different from the school’s norms (as noted here and here and here). The failure to identify giftedness in underrepresented minorities has sparked a call to action for change with how giftedness is defined and conceptualized, how gifted children are selected for enriched programming, and how gifted education is implemented (as noted here and here and here).
 The under-identification of gifted children within these populations has contributed to an “excellence gap”, where potential is neglected, enrichment is not provided, and later accomplishments never materialize. These are the children who are most in need of gifted services, yet rarely receive it. 

What can you do?

1. Educate yourself. Learn as much as possible about the intellectual and social/emotional needs of gifted children, as well as twice-exceptional concerns. Read books, articles, and research publications. Listen to podcasts, watch webinars, attend gifted education workshops, and join (or form) a gifted parents advocacy group. If your child has not yet received a cognitive evaluation, insist that testing will be provided. The more you and the school know about your child's strengths and challenges, the more you can advocate for the services they need. Parents of homeschooled children also benefit from the knowledge obtained through cognitive testing. The more you know, the more you can support your child. 

2. Make a commitment to advocate for your child. You are launched into the role of advocate - something you may not have expected, and even might resent. Yet, you know more than most about the challenges gifted children face. Advocacy does not stop with addressing academic problems at school, though. It falls on you to tactfully and persistently educate others who hold misconceptions and stereotypes about the gifted. This might include friends, extended family, neighbors, teachers, healthcare professionals, coaches, babysitters, camp counselors, and anyone else who shrugs, glares, or rolls their eyes in exasperation when your asynchronous child acts out. Approach your child's teacher as an ally and as someone who shares your goals for providing the best possible education. Gather as much information as possible, and express your concerns. And if your child is not yet identified, learn about testing and educational options that may best meet their needs. 

3. Speak up about giftedness. The "gifted" word may be fraught with controversy; it irritates those who assume the label implies that someone is "better" or more privileged. Our job involves educating others about neurodiversity, asynchronous development, and the complexities inherent in raising and educating a gifted child. Move past any possible ambivalence associated with speaking up about giftedness. Advocate for the gifted with the school administration, the school board, and state legislators (especially if gifted education is not a legally protected right in your state). Keep in mind that school policy not only affects academics but peer relationships as well.  Even more, when the school faculty become more aware that gifted abilities may remain hidden (and learn how to notice those children who have been overlooked), gifted children will have more opportunities to receive the education they need.

Some passages in this blog post are taken from an upcoming book with Gifted Unlimited Press, "The Gifted Parenting Journey: A Guide to Self-discovery and Support for Families of Gifted Children." 

This blog post is part of GHF Writer Collective's Blog Hop on "What people don't get about gifted." 

How gifted children view their giftedness

How do children come to terms with their own giftedness?

What happens when giftedness is veiled in mystery, minimized, discounted, or ignored?* What happens when children overhear that they are gifted, but the concept is never explained to them? How do they comprehend the term, interpret expectations from adults around them, or understand that they are differently wired than their neurotypical classmates? How do they grapple with heightened sensitivity, difficulty relating to same-age peers, or despair when their passion for learning is thwarted in classes that lack challenge and engagement? 

While each gifted child is different, most form conclusions about what giftedness means. Just like wrestling with a Rubix cube, curious and determined, they sort through the information they receive and try to figure it out. 

• They may compile information based on what teachers, you as their parent, or neighborhood children say.

• They may overhear hushed comments filled with awe from adults, and feel pressure to succeed. 

• They notice their teacher's frustration when they raise their hands too often or when additional enrichment is required and may assume that their drive for learning is a nuisance.

• They feel betrayed when peers rely on them for homework advice, but reject them on the playground. 

• They may field taunts from other kids. Nerd. Geek. Brainiac. 

• They don't understand why their gifted class or program is viewed with skepticism, envy, or unwarranted praise.

• They absorb impressions from negative portrayals in literature or film - from Sheldons to Sherlocks - where gifted role models are displayed as effeminate, socially clueless, arrogant men or unattractive, lonely women.

• They recognize that they learn faster and with more depth and curiosity than many of their peers, find themselves bored and waiting for other kids to catch up, and become impatient with others around them.

• They learn to distrust authority figures whose ideas seem simplistic and uninspiring. 

Gifted children will form their own conclusions. And this may be a problem.

Astute and sensitive, gifted children try to understand the conflicting information they receive about giftedness. But despite their curious and deep-thinking minds, they struggle to comprehend. Are they better than the other kids? Why are classes easier and yet, more tedious than they seem for others? Why can't they fit in with kids their age, or at least share the same interests? Are they always expected to get good grades or be the best? They didn't do anything to "earn" their gifted status. Is it a burden they must bear, or a vehicle for amazing opportunities?

Despite debates about whether giftedness is good or bad - or appeals to eliminate the construct altogether - gifted children know they are different. Attempts to minimize or deny or pretend their giftedness does not exist only confuse the matter. It denies what they already suspect about themselves, and can fuel apathy and despair once they realize that the adults in charge will never understand them. The unfortunate belief that acknowledging a child's giftedness will hurt them misses the point. These children are gifted, and need your help to understand what it means - not a blanket denial that their perceptions are false. 

It falls on you to help your child understand their giftedness and place it in context.* Without your careful, attuned explanation of giftedness, they will form their own conclusions. You can help them understand their strengths and weaknesses, appreciate that giftedness is only one aspect of who they are, and recognize that they are no more special than any other child. Help them recognize that while they are no more responsible for their giftedness than their eye color, they have control over how they utilize their abilities. They will face options in terms of educational and career paths and must sort through their multiple talents to define a clear direction. They will need to learn how to accommodate their heightened sensitivities and adapt to the schools/jobs/social circumstances they encounter along the way. Most importantly, they need to know that you will love them no matter what, that their giftedness has no impact on how you feel about them, and that you will support them as they face the choices and opportunities ahead.

*Articles related to these topics can be found in the new GHF book, Perspectives on Giftedness.