Cognitive and Psychosocial Characteristics of Gifted Students With Written Language Disability

Abstract

Gifted and talented students who also have a specific learning disability (SLD) are typically referred to as twice-exceptional and are among the most underserved students in our schools. Previous special education laws promoted a wait-to-fail approach; therefore, gifted students with SLD often were overlooked because their average academic performance was not “failure” enough. The flip side to this was the fact that students’ giftedness, as measured by general ability tests, often was masked by average, yet relatively weak, academic achievement. They were not only waiting to fail, they were failing to flourish. The authors present the data gathered from 14 gifted students with SLD, specifically a disorder of written expression. Students were determined to be gifted if they earned a score of 120 (Superior) on the Verbal Scale of a cognitive ability test. They were considered to have a written language disability through an evaluation of their written language skills. The average Verbal IQ for the group was close to a standard score of 130, whereas the average Written Language Score was close to a standard score of 99. In addition to the cognitive profile for these students, the authors obtained measures of their psychosocial functioning. On average, parents, teachers, and students reported typical adaptive behavior, yet group elevations also were present on several clinical scales. The authors’ main conclusion is that a comprehensive assessment plays a critical role in (a) determining whether a student is twice-exceptional, (b) identifying the possibility of psychosocial concerns, and (c) developing educational recommendations. Putting the Research to Use The results from our empirical study suggest that only through a comprehensive evaluation, which includes both individualized achievement and ability tests and allows for an analysis of the performance discrepancy between the two, is it possible to discover cognitively gifted students with a disorder of written expression. Diagnostic/identification procedures that do not include a comprehensive evaluation place gifted students at serious risk for “missed” diagnosis and ultimately, missed opportunity for intervention. The missed diagnosis arises from the observation that their written work is average relative to that of their peers. Equally important is the concern that some very capable students may be over-looked for screening for gifted programming because their achievement is average. Educators of students who appear to have high verbal ability while simultaneously demonstrating difficulty completing written assignments—and may even appear to be lazy or unmotivated—have a responsibility to further investigate the students’ difficulties and strengths.

A Case Study of Giftedness and Specific Learning Disabilities: Bridging the Two Exceptionalities

“…Waldron and Saphire (1990) also established through the comparison of WISC-R sub-test scores of students who were gifted and students who were gifted with a learning disability that "there is no evidence that rank ordering of WISC-R subtests is an effective method of identifying the existence of a learning disability" (p. 497). Assouline, Foley Nicpon and Whitman (2010) noted that students who are gifted with a learning disability have a wide range of score variability supporting that it is difficult to establish a specific profile for identification of these students. Maker and Udall (1997) suggested that a wide variety of information is required in order to identify students who are gifted and learning disabled.…”

Language Anxiety among Gifted Learners in Malaysia

“…And, above all, an analysis between ability and achievement is crucial in clarifying whether learning disability or learning style is the reason for gifted students' academic struggles. It is very important to have a syllabus or program or activity which guides teachers in identifying students who do possess high verbal abilities but might be hidden due to disability (Assouline et al, 2010). Therefore, it is also vital for all authorities to address the issue of whether or not the students really are academically gifted; whether or not these students have a learning disability; and whether or not a particular gifted program applies the right pedagogical approach.…”

“…And it was proven by the result of this study that the subjects scored higher on communication apprehension. Assouline et al (2010) explained in a study that gifted students' verbal abilities were extremely well-developed and advanced than their non-verbal abilities eventhough they were diagnosed with a disability that is verbally-based. They further elaborated that eventhough the gifted students' verbal and non-verbal abilities were generally above their age-level expectations, however, their working memory and processing speed abilities were similar to normal children.…”

“…Most of such researches which focus on average learners such as school and college students, however, revealed consistent moderate negative correlation between language and language learning specifically the achievement (Horwitz, 2001). Assouline, Nicpon and Whiteman (2010) found that gifted students rely strongly on their astounding verbal ability. This might be the reason for the slight difference found between achievement and of being gifted (ability) (Assouline et al, 2010).…”

“…Assouline, Nicpon and Whiteman (2010) found that gifted students rely strongly on their astounding verbal ability. This might be the reason for the slight difference found between achievement and of being gifted (ability) (Assouline et al, 2010). Hence, this study aims to examine the relationship between language anxiety and English language achievement, focusing specifically on gifted learners, whichrequires extensive research contribution.…”