The 3 scenarios of Twice-Exceptionality

Twice-exceptional (2e) individuals are both gifted and learning disabled. At school, it is often quite challenging to identify twice-exceptional students, due to 3 common scenarios:

1 - Giftedness Masks the Challenges:

In this scenario, the student’s exceptional abilities hide their learning challenges and / or disabilities. Teachers, parents, and friends see a high-performing student who excels academically. As a result, the student’s challenges are overlooked. These students frequently go undiagnosed because their giftedness compensates for their difficulties, making it appear as though they do not need extra support when, in fact, they do.

Example: Emma is a bright, high achieving student who is often praised by her teachers. What her teachers do not know is that she unconsciously uses her exceptional cognitive resources to hide her efforts to keep up with reading assignments due to undiagnosed dyslexia. This leaves her feeling exhausted and anxious. Since Emma is unaware of her dyslexia, she internalizes her struggles as personal failure. This only increases her anxiety further and makes her feel incompetent.

2- Challenges Mask the Giftedness:

Here, the learning difficulties overshadow the student’s giftedness. This is the case of the ‘underachieving’ student who struggles academically. The student’s exceptional strengths and talents go unnoticed because their challenges are more apparent. This scenario can lead to long-term frustration and even depression, as the student’s true capabilities remain hidden behind the difficulties they experience.

Example: Malik struggles with severe executive dysfunction. He has difficulties with organization, planning, prioritizing, and regulating his attention. He often turns in late or incomplete homework and appears disengaged in class. His teachers say, “Malik has potential but is lazy and uninterested.” Due to his learning difficulties, how he is perceived at school, and the lack of opportunities to express himself, his exceptional talent for visual arts goes unnoticed.

3- Giftedness and Challenges ‘Cancel Each Other Out’:

In this scenario, the student’s giftedness and challenges balance each other, making the student appear “average” in the classroom. Neither the exceptional abilities nor the difficulties are obvious, making it harder to identify the need for support. These students often feel misunderstood or unseen because their unique needs and strengths are not recognized. They tend to fade into the background and go unnoticed.

Example: Sarah has an exceptional talent for creative writing, but she also struggles with ADHD. In the classroom, she uses her giftedness and all of her energy to finish her work on time and meet the teachers’ exceptions, but this leaves her too drained to tap into her full creative potential. Consequently, she completes her tasks adequately and gets ‘ok’ grades, but cannot showcase what she is truly capable of. This balance between giftedness and challenges makes her seem like an average student.

Identifying twice-exceptional students is a real challenge, but it can be life-changing for them. It requires looking beyond their surface-level performance, involving careful observation, attention to subtle contradictions in their behavior, and challenging assumptions. As parents, educators, friends, and mentors, we must remain curious and keep an open mind to uncover these exceptional students’ hidden strengths and provide the support they truly need to thrive (remember, support is needed for BOTH the giftedness and the challenges).