The Upside of Being Atypical: Twice-Exceptional Gifted with Neurologically Based Achievement Difficulties (original) (raw)
Specific learning difficulties, attention deficit disorder, hyperactivity disorder, and autism spectrum all involve some special mode of information processing and can be subsumed under the term atypical development. All of these phenomena have a neurological basis, which is usually identified in the early stages of kindergarten or primary education. Mild variants are not easy to identify and often the diagnosis is false or the syndromes are mixed up owing to the overlapping symptoms. All of these exceptionalities are independent of an individual's intelligence and motivation. However, early intervention and environment can be crucial in the development of these special brains. Particular care is required when neurological exceptionalities are coupled with high abilities and a strong drive for internal development. In light of recent research, atypical brain structure is the norm rather than the exception among the most gifted. Many of the great creators show some atypical brain functioning that is usually associated with some form of dysfunction. A special cognitive structure, persistent and obsessive practising, commitment or lack of social skills are all characteristics that are often mentioned in connection with people with outstanding talent. In most cases, they stem from a significantly different from usual brain functioning. In the provision of gifted children, these multiple exceptionalities should be considered as possible ways along which their talent can evolve. Particular attention should be paid to executive functions, which are key to achieving high performance, but often come into the spotlight as a major problem in neurologically-based achievement difficulties. In this chapter, we present the shared neurological developmental features of neurologically-based achievement difficulties and highlight important aspects of the executive functions, thereby informing complex developmental procedures.
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