Promoting Mental Health and

Learning for Gifted and

Talented Students
Monique Jones

Gifted children", children who exhibit

precocious development of mental

Gifted
Children
Definition

capacity and learning potential as

determined by competent professional
evaluation to the extent that continued
educational growth and stimulation
could best be served by an academic
environment beyond that offered
through a standard grade-level
curriculum
- (National Association for Gifted Children,
2016).

Subtypes of Gifted
Children

Underachievers
These children underachieve in the classroom, despite their exceptional intellectual ability.
Some gifted student become underachievers at school to divert special attention from
others.
These students are often overlooked for gifted assessment because they dont act like
stereotypical gifted children
In Peterson and Margolins (1997) study of teachers referral language, teachers who were aware of students high
ability could be harshly critical toward low-achieving gifted students and unwilling to refer them for possible
participation (Peterson, p.154).

School counselors and teachers may not notice students gifted abilities due to higher
concerns with other mental health issues
Family circumstances; social challenges; extreme investment in social relationships; difficulty with authority;
conflicted teacherstudent relationships; depression; and physical, emotional,and social issues are among the
possible development-related contributors to underachievement for gifted students (e.g.,Peterson, 1997, 2001,
2002, 2012; Reis & McCoach, 2002; Rimm, 2003; Whitney, 2007) (Peterson, p.155).
Mendaglio and Peterson (2007) found that academic underachievement was among the most common presenting
issues for counselors specializing in giftedness, along with depression, anxiety, social difficulties,and behavioral
problems(Peterson, p.154).

High Achievers
These children are characterized as high achieving students in school, and are typically the
students that want to go beyond and above expectations.
Students are seemed as not needing any additional assistance aside from gifted course
placement
School counselors may confer with individual gifted students only rarely, if ever, during the school years, except for
orienting students if they have relocated, changing a class schedule, checking in during a personal crisis, and
writing letters of recommendation late in high school (Peterson, 2013) (Peterson, p.154)

Have a higher likelihood of developing extreme perfectionism, social anxiety, depression

etc.
School personnel may not be aware that social and emotional aspects associated with giftedness may contribute
to a number of concerns, such as extreme and denied emotions and problematic behaviors (Peterson, 2002, 2012);
isolation or social anxiety (Peterson, Duncan, & Canady, 2009) especially for profoundly gifted individuals (Gross,
2004);undeveloped expressive language (Peterson, 2006); high-stress hyper involvement in school activities or
academics(Peterson, Duncan, & Canady, 2009; Peterson & Rischar,2000); debilitating perfectionism, driven by fear
of failure(Greenspon, 2000); perceived and real danger from homophobic peers (Peterson & Rischar, 2000);
existential angst even at a young age (Webb, Meckstroth, & Tolan, 1982); and depression and suicidal ideation
(Cross, Cassady, & Miller,2006; Jackson & Peterson, 2003). (Peterson, p. 155).

Twice-Exceptional
Twice exceptional gifted children are those that have high intellectual ability but also
possess a disability.
Currently not a lot of research done on twice-exceptional students, so their needs are
often misunderstood or not fully fulfilled
Expectations for these children may be higher due to their strong intelligence and they are often viewed as -lazy"
or -deliberately choosing not to live up to their potential (Whitaker, 2013).

These students mental health needs can be better assisted by school faculty educating
themselves on twice-exceptional assessment
From a school-based perspective, this entails inclusion of gifted educators and counselors in the identification
process who understand how test data manifest among twice-exceptional youth and who can examine both
standardized and nonstandardized (e.g., interviews, rating forms, work samples) data that demonstrate students
talent domains and areas for growth (Foley-Nicpon et al., 2013; Morrison & Rizza, 2007) (Foley-Nicpon, p.204).

Risk Factors

Stereotyping
Giftedness is stereotyped as a positive, and can mislead others to thinking these students
have no issues.
Paradoxically, giftedness is likely to be both an asset and a burden amid developmental challenges and negative
life experiences (Peterson, 2012; Peterson, Duncan,& Canady, 2009) (Peterson, p. 154).

In return students that are gifted may not want to bother others with their problems,
believing that no one quite understands them
With regard to giftedness as a burden, a gifted students success in school may precipitate extreme expectations
from self and others (Peterson, Duncan, & Canady,2009) (Peterson, p.155).

It is often misunderstood that gifted children can still struggle developmentally

Teachers might not consider that developmental tasks are probably just as challenging for gifted students as for
other students, albeit probably a different kind of experience (Silverman, 2013) (Peterson, p.155).

Misdiagnosis and Missed Diagnosis

School counselors need to pay close attention to all students identified as having a mental
health need.
Student that fall under twice-exceptional often dont get the diagnosis of gifted because
their disability is more apparent. High achieving gifted students may be diagnosed with
ADHD, rather than giftedness due to a situation of not being challenged in the classroom,
leading to boredom and low attention.
Observing children can do wonders in identifying students that may need to be tested or retested for giftedness.
Oftentimes, students with very superior cognitive abilities simultaneously experience deficits that prevent them
from reaching their full potential; however, these difficulties may be overlooked if they are still performing within an
acceptable level for their age or grade (Whitaker, 2013).

Counselor Bias
Check your bias
In addition to feeling intimidated, insecure, inferior, competitive, or judgmental,counselors might assume that
successful students cannot have serious counseling concerns. (Peterson, p.156).

All mental health needs should be met, regardless of personal opinions about student
behavior
Counselors might also believe that participation in special programs should be earned and deserved, rather than
warranted because of significant needs, regardless of social behaviors and achievement level (Peterson, p.156).

The School Counselors

Role

Special Programming
Ensure that the gifted child is placed into special programming that is appropriate for the
childs abilities and development
School counselors may underestimate the personal impact on exceptional students who are not identified for
special programs or services because they do not fit common stereotypes associated with giftedness (Peterson,
p.157).
In addition, a one-size-fits-all program may not appeal to, address the needs of, or be appropriate for gifted children
who are extremely creative (Piirto, 1998), value wisdom instead of knowledge, prefer collaboration over competition
(Peterson,1999), or learn best in ways that do not fit teachers teaching styles or typical classrooms (Peterson,
p.157).

Be aware that teachers may overlook students for giftedness testing who exhibit these
behaviors:
Disruptive behaviors, lack of classroom assertiveness, low English proficiency, and depression

Communicate and collaborate about students that you may feel need to be placed in
special programming with your administrators, teachers, school psychologist, and
parents

Advocacy
Learn more about the student and educate the parents about resources that are available
to their student
Teachers comments about unusual behaviors or abilities also might prompt a counselor to learn more about
individual students strengths, potentially then following referral protocols for further assessment related to giftededucation services (Peterson, p.157)

Inform parents of the disadvantages of not placing their student in special programming if
they are initially resistant
Press for administrators to equip your school with the best mental health resources and
programming possible for students

Counseling Approaches
Focus on the student as a whole, not just their academic achievements
However, both high achievers and underachievers may believe that invested adults are focused only on their
performance,not on their self-doubts, confused feelings, unsettling thoughts,and struggles related to developmental
tasks (Peterson, p.157).

Explore identity development with students

Exploring how adolescents manage identity, direction, relationships, visible and invisible conflict with family,
emotional differentiation, and autonomy, for example, is not only appropriate and interesting for intellectually gifted
students but also potentially effective in helping them to make sense of struggles (Peterson, 1990, 2008)
(Peterson, p.157).

Address the students personal goals early in the school year

In general, when achievement matters to the student, stress level and the pressure to perform increase with each
new school level (Peterson, Duncan, & Canady,2009) (Peterson, 157).

Reframe the students perceptions of their own abilities

Respectful reframing appeals to cognitive strengths, can generate insights, and can lead to productive
conversations (Peterson, p.157)

References
Peterson, J. (2015). School counselors and gifted kids: Respecting both cognitive and
affective. Journal of Counseling & Development, 153-162.
Whitaker, A. M., PhD., O'Callaghan, E. T., PhD, & Houskamp, B. M., PhD. (2013). Executive
functioning in intellectually gifted children and adolescents. Cognitive Sciences, 8(2), 161188.
National Association for Gifted Children. (2016). What is giftedness. Definitions of
Giftedness. Retrieved from http://www.nagc.org/resources-publications/resources/definitionsgiftedness.
Foley-Nicpon, M. & Assouline, S. (2015)Counseling considerations for the twice-exceptional
client. Journal of Counseling & Development, 202-211.