Both in ordinary schools and in special education, there are personalized attention programs to meet the specific needs of students with some type of disorder. But what happens if these children have high capacities? This is what is known as double exceptionality. A certain stigma attached to gifted students has created in the collective imagination the idea that they do not have difficulties to perform at school. It is precisely these palpable difficulties that make the real potential of these children invisible in certain areas.
If the detection of high abilities is already complicated in itself, when these are accompanied by a delay at the motor level, deficiencies in literacy or attention problems, the family and educational environments tend to focus on addressing these difficulties. In addition, it is common that in schools efforts are dedicated to ensuring that all students reach the minimum levels required, and not so much to maximizing the aptitudes of each individual. The most immediate consequence for doubly exceptional children is poor academic results, as well as a feeling of frustration due to the limited development of their abilities.
The education system offers separate solutions to gifted children and those with a learning related disorder. For example, for students with high capacities, acceleration strategies are implemented, by bringing forward a school year or curricular adaptation to promote their abilities and concerns.
On the other hand, double exceptionality is a characteristic that is difficult to detect and for which there are no specific methodologies. Instead of supporting doubly exceptional children in the development of high abilities as happens with other students, educational centers focus on solving the deficiencies due to their disorders, which ends up becoming a double difficulty for them.
The double exceptionality may be the coincidence of high abilities with cognitive difficulties. However, the most frequent is the concurrence with disorders related to learning. In any case, for children to know their potential, it is crucial to have psychological help for the diagnosis in the first place, and for the treatment of aspects that may affect their emotional balance.
Children with giftedness and a specific learning disorder (SLD), such as dyslexia or dyscalculia, have difficulty developing a particular academic aptitude. It is usually present in students who, for example, have a large vocabulary, but find it difficult to identify or spell words. Something similar occurs with students with high abilities and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), because in this case, their high capacity for communication and personal interrelationship stands out over their difficulties.
As for kids with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), they present significant difficulties when it comes to assuming certain standards of behavior in educational centers, and their attention problems also tend to worsen due to lack of motivation.
