What Are Twice-Exceptional Learners?
Imagine a student who regularly talks at length about history lessons covered in class, sharing detailed insights and using advanced vocabulary as they address the concepts.
Now imagine that each time the same student has an assignment to write a short paper about one of those history lessons, they sit staring at the blank page. Frustrated, they frequently give up and submit incomplete work.
How could the same student who demonstrates a keen understanding of lessons and mastery of vocabulary regularly produce written work that doesn’t reflect that knowledge or ability? The student might be a twice-exceptional learner.
Twice-exceptional, or 2e, students are gifted learners who have one or more learning differences, such as dyslexia or autism. A 2024 research article in Education Sciences estimated about 1 in 9 students fits the description of a twice-exceptional learner.
To help ensure that twice-exceptional learners receive the assistance they need, bachelor’s degree programs in special education typically include instruction about how to identify and nurture these students’ abilities.
Understanding Twice-Exceptional Learners
Twice-exceptional learners’ intellectual, emotional, executive functioning and social skills develop at different rates, a phenomenon known as asynchronous development. On one hand, these students display traits typical of high-ability students. On the other hand, they show signs of learning differences, emotional challenges, or neurodivergence.
A single junior high school student who’s a twice-exceptional learner could have the reasoning skills of a 12th grader, for example, and the social skills of a third grader.
Signs of High Ability
Twice-exceptional learners have one or more traits of high-ability students, including:
Making connections between academic subjects
Easily recalling stories and concepts in discussion
Showing keen interest in specific topics or skills
Focusing closely on details
Mastering content quickly
Signs of Learning Differences
Learners who are twice-exceptional also have learning differences. The following are some behaviors associated with these challenges and a learning difference they might indicate:
Trouble focusing or impulsivity: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Communication and emotional regulation challenges: Autism
Avoidance of difficult tasks and fear of failure: Anxiety
Reading and spelling difficulties: Dyslexia
Because twice-exceptional learners have both high ability and learning differences, one may mask the other. This can make it difficult to identify this type of learner and provide instruction that addresses both their talents and their challenges.
What Challenges Do Twice-Exceptional Learners Face?
When twice-exceptional learning abilities aren’t identified, students must often navigate their learning challenges without appropriate support. Unidentified twice-exceptional learners can face numerous difficulties.
Unfair Labels
When high-ability students who underperform on assignments or have behavioral issues aren’t recognized as twice-exceptional learners, they risk being mislabeled, which can damage their self-esteem and social interactions. Other people may consider these students:
Lazy
Unmotivated
Inconsistent
Disorganized
Underachieving
Defiant
Incorrect Placement
Schools may place students whose twice-exceptional learner status is unidentified in classes that don’t align with their abilities or needs. Incorrect placement and lack of support can lead to frustration for twice-exceptional learners as well as their educators and families.
The following are examples of those mismatches:
A twice-exceptional learner identified only as high-ability might struggle in gifted education programs because of their unidentified learning differences.
A twice-exceptional student’s learning difference might mask their high ability, leading to their placement in classes they find boring because the work doesn’t align with their advanced aptitude.
A twice-exceptional student might appear to have average ability because their strengths and challenges prevent them from being placed in either high-ability or special education programs that could address their needs.
How Can Special Education Teachers Help Twice-Exceptional Learners Excel?
The first step toward effectively supporting twice-exceptional learners is understanding the signs that can indicate this type of learner. Twice-exceptional learner identification extends beyond simply monitoring test scores and includes considering signs of both high ability and learning challenges.
Indicators of twice-exceptionality can appear as early as preschool, and prompt identification can ensure that students get the help they need to build on their strengths and manage their challenges throughout their education.
After identifying twice-exceptional learners, educators can effectively address their needs by taking some key actions.
Focus on Strengths
According to federal law, any student identified as needing special education must generally receive it, but assistance should focus on strength building, not remediation. While special education teachers should support twice-exceptional learners’ learning differences, they should also encourage and nurture the areas in which those students demonstrate high ability.
Accommodate Learning Styles
To facilitate the individualized learning style that allows a twice-exceptional learner to flourish, teachers can give them choices about how to approach assignments while still ensuring that they’re meeting learning objectives and expanding their knowledge. Educators should encourage students to be creative and explore subjects that are of particular interest.
Provide Emotional Support
Social and emotional learning can be an area in which twice-exceptional learners struggle. Special education teachers should provide support that helps these students manage their emotions and accept mistakes they make as they learn.
Collaborate With Families
Families often know a student best, and teachers can provide insight into their academic activities and peer interactions. Teachers and families should work together to identify and address student needs as soon as they arise.
Build the Skills to Support Twice-Exceptional Learners
Pursuing a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Special Education degree from Wilson College Online can give you the skills you need to become a special education teacher who meets the needs of all their students—including twice-exceptional learners.
You’ll learn about cognitive development in children, signs of learning differences, and how to communicate with colleagues and family members to provide the support students need to thrive. Also, because the online coursework allows you to work at your own pace and at times that are convenient to you, you can manage work and other commitments while pursuing your degree.
Discover how Wilson’s B.A. in Special Education degree program can help you build a career that helps students address their unique learning needs.
Recommended Readings
The Importance of Social and Emotional Learning Activities in Special Education
How Special Education Professionals Use Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports
What Is ‘Least Restrictive Environment’?
Sources:
Edutopia, “How to Support Twice-Exceptional Students”
IEPfocus, “Twice-Exceptional Learners (2e): A Complete Guide for Parents & Educators”
PositivePsychology.com, “Twice-Exceptional Students: How to Support 2e Learners”
REEL2e, Identifying and Supporting 2e Students
The Edvocate, “Unlocking Potential: Supporting Twice-Exceptional (2e) Learners”
Understood, “The Challenges of Twice-Exceptional Kids”
