Gifted Adolescents

Are Their Needs Being Met?

What is giftedness?• Office of Educational Research and

Improvement in the U.S. Department of Education (1993):

• “Children and youth with outstanding talent perform or show the potential for performing at remarkable high levels of accomplishment when compared with others of their age, experience, or environment. These children and youth exhibit high performance capability in intellectual, creative, and/or artistic areas, possess an unusual leadership capacity, or excel in specific academic fields. They require services or activities not ordinarily provided by the schools. Outstanding talents are present in children and youth from all cultural groups, across all economic strata, and in all areas of human endeavor.” (p. 26)

The Columbus Group, 1991(theorists, practitioners, and parents)• “Giftedness is asynchronous development in

which advanced cognitive abilities and heightened intensity combine to create inner experiences and awareness that are qualitatively different from the norm. This asynchrony increases with higher intellectual capacity. The uniqueness of the gifted renders them particularly vulnerable and requires modifications in parenting, teaching and counseling in order for them to develop optimally.”

• Adolescents can be gifted in different areas and by varying degrees. They may have learning disabilities or deliberately mask their intellectual abilities to “fit in.”

There are advantages and disadvantages:

• Advantages: higher comprehension than their peers (and some adults), advanced language abilities, being highly creative, quick thinking, having an endless supply of energy, a high concentration level, and the ability to think at an adult level.

• Disadvantages: sometimes find it difficult to relate to their peers, monopolize conversations, solve problems uniquely which may conflict with what the teacher has prescribed, are easily bored, may finish work very quickly, are easily distracted, get so involved in a project they miss deadlines, or say rude or embarrassing things because they lack the tact that usually accompanies higher level thinking (Strip, 2000).

Gifted or Smart?• Learning Speed and application of concepts• Questioning Style• Emotional Outlook• Level of Interest• Language Ability• Concern with Fairness• Self ImageIt is important to note that a gifted adolescent

may not exhibit every trait, and that just because a child exhibits one or two of these traits, it may not mean he or she is gifted (Strip, 2000).

Learning Speed and application of concepts• Smart adolescents build fact upon

fact, benefit from practice, follow directions and understand class information

• Gifted adolescents process information differently, dislike drills, can apply information they learned to other situations

Questioning Style• Smart adolescents ask questions that

have answers and may prefer that facts are in a sequential manner

• Gifted adolescents ask questions that may not have easy answers. They enjoy complexity and are comfortable with ambiguous answers

Emotional Outlook• Smart adolescents are able to talk

about their emotions and get over an upsetting event fairly quickly

• Gifted adolescents can experience deep emotion, and it affects the other areas in their lives

Level of Interest• Smart adolescents-when interest is

shown, they ask questions and are curious. They finish their projects and work hard to please others

• Gifted adolescents-show intense curiosity. They may get so deeply involved in a project, they may not finish on time or they may dream up their own projects or assignments.

Language Ability• Smart adolescents acquire new words

easily, but choose words typical for their age group. They take turns in conversations.

• Gifted adolescents have advanced vocabularies, enjoy wordplay and often talk over the heads of their peers. They tend to dominate conversations. However, there are also quiet gifted students.

Concern with Fairness• Smart adolescents have definite

opinions about what is fair• Gifted adolescents show an

intense concern about fairness and on a much broader scale. They will debate the fairness of a situation.

Self Image• Smart adolescents tend to have a high self

esteem. Perfectionism is rarely a concern.• Gifted adolescents also tend to have high self

esteem, but some feel they don’t “fit in”. May be extremely critical of themselves and perfectionistic. (Strip, 2000)

It is important to note that a gifted adolescent may not exhibit every trait, and that just because an adolescent exhibits one or two of these traits, may not mean he or she is gifted.

Typical Adolescent vs. the Gifted Adolescent• Typical Adolescent Behavior:• Conflicts with the family exist• Some concern about body image• Vacillation between lethargy and

excessive physical activity• Fad behavior with strong loyalty to

peers• Dating and emergence of a sex drive• “At-Risk” behaviors can be tried

In addition to what typical challenges adolescents face, gifted adolescents struggle with:• Impatience• Competing expectations

Six Personality Profiles: Type I: The Successful• 90% of gifted students in school programs• Have learned the system• Learning is easy and test scores high• Eager to please• Tend to become bored and are satisfied with

going through the motions• Dependent on teachers and parents for

directions• Typically have high self esteem, are well liked,

and do achieve

Type II: The Challenging• Many school systems fail to identify this group• High level of creativity, but may appear

defiant or sarcastic• Questions authority and may challenge the

teacher• Sometimes challenge peers• Sometimes, creativity and sense of humor

appealing to peers• Considered “at risk” for drug addiction or

delinquent behavior if proper interventions not implemented by middle school

Type III: The Underground• Tends to consist of middle school girls• To fit in, girls deny their talents and

may appear to lose all interests in previous passions

• Gifted boys tend to go underground in high school

• Tends to be anxious and insecure• Seem to benefit from being accepted as

they are at the time

Type IV: The Dropout• Angry and feel rejected• Have interests outside the regular

school curriculum and fail to receive support in those areas

• Benefits form both individual and family counseling

• Requires a close working relationship with an adult they can trust

Type V: The Double-Labeled• Both gifted and challenged in some way• Typically overlooked because they don’t

fit the “mold” of a typical gifted student. • May have sloppy handwriting or such

disruptive behavior that their work goes unfinished

• Tend to lack self confidence• Typically perceived as average or given

remedial assistance

Type VI: The Autonomous• Have mastered the system• They make the system work for them

rather than being satisfied working in the system

• Strong, positive self-concepts and are successful

• Well liked and typically hold leadership roles

• Set goals• Express needs and feelings

appropriately (Betts & Neihart, 1988)

Challenges for the Gifted Adolescent• Depression• Peer relations• Lack of Motivation• Self Concept• Perfectionism• Stress

Depression• Perfectionism• Sensitivity• Social Isolation (Neihart, 2003)

Peer Relations• Invests heavily in friendships• Perfectionism-with such high

standards, very few people measure up. Student may be perceived as stuck up or conceited

• Others feel threatened (Strip, 2000)

Lack of Motivation• When expectations of others too high,

it’s easier to drop out• A way of rebelling, avoids the possibility

of failure, and can help gain acceptance from peers

• An attention seeking device• Sign of depression (Webb, Meckstroth,

& Tolan, 1994)

Self Concept• Studies have been mixed• Most generally favor gifted

students

Perfectionism• One of the most pervasive traits • Goals set according to mental age

instead of chronological age• Become afraid of failure• perfectionistic teachers and parents and

competitive peers• Introverts tend to be strong

perfectionists. Introverts represent half the gifted population (Schuler, 2002)

Stress• Feeling out of place with surroundings-a

“lack of fit”• Expectations too high• Desire to solve the world’s problems• Parents overly intense or disconnected• Involved in too many activities• Bored• Lonely

Responses to Stress• Some become hyper• Some become clingy• Some demand constant support

and reassurance• Some appear bored and apathetic• Some develop school phobia

Coping Strategies: least acceptable to most acceptable• Act like you don’t know as much• Act like a “know it all”• Disguise true abilities by adjusting

words and actions• Don’t participate in programs for

gifted/talented students• Get involved in the community

where age isn’t an issue

Coping Strategies continued• Excel in areas outside of school• Have friendships with adults• Participate in gifted and talented

programs• Make friends with other gifted

students• Help peers do better in class

Strategies for Supporting the Gifted Adolescent• Helpful to know the “Eight Great Gripes of Gifted

Kids” (Delisle & Galbraith, 2002):1. No one explains what being gifted is all about2. School is too easy and too boring3. Parents, teachers and friends expect us to be perfect

all the time4. Friends who understand us are few and far between5. Kids often tease us about being smart6. We feel overwhelmed by the number of things we can

do in life7. We feel different and alienated8. We worry about world problems and feel helpless to

do anything about them

Supporting and Working with Adolescents in the Three Domains of the ASCA Model:• Career Domain• Academic Domain• Personal/Social Domain

Van Tassle-Baska (1998) recommends three types of counseling:• Life as well as career planning• Academic planning that matches

the learner’s needs• Psychosocial counseling

Career Domain• Gifted and talented students require

career counseling that is appropriate and comprehensive

• Traditional definitions of career and career counseling should be broadened—taking a life span approach that regards potential and creativity

• Career counseling should be multidimensional (Greene, 2002)

Career Domain and Multipotentiality• Junior High:• Discuss work that is meaningful and

valuable• Discuss how values pertain to work• Facilitate volunteer work in area of

interest• Provide “shadowing” opportunities• Decide on a few extracurricular

activities

Career Domain and Multipotentiality• Senior High:• Seek appropriate vocational testing• Encourage visits to a few college classes• Set up opportunities for volunteer work• Explore paid internships• Ensure curriculum is aligned with student’s

career goals• Provide guidance that aligns student’s career

with deeply held values• Introduce student to uncharacteristic career

models

Career Domain and Early Emergers• Students with extremely focused

career interests are early emergers. These students show an early commitment to a career area and are passionate about it. It is important to identify these students and facilitate their growth.

Career Domain: Interventions for Early Emergers: Junior High• Provide support and encouragement• Allow for alone time• Provide job shadowing opportunities• Provide opportunities for volunteer work• Allow student to decide if he/she wants

to participate in social activities

Career Domain: Interventions for Early Emergers: High School• Continue to support and encourage time alone• Facilitate opportunities for internships and

work experiences in the areas of interest• Seek career guidance from a qualified

professional• Create a detailed plan for training and

education for the chosen career. Be sure to include a financial plan

• Explore options for higher education and include visits

• Find a mentor for the student in the area of interest

Career Domain: Promoting Development• Remind students that their career

choices are limitless• Use leisure activities to continue to

build areas of interest• Focus on values during career

counseling• Facilitate group sessions with other

students who have multipotentiality to provide support (Colangelo, 1997)

Academic Domain• Help partner the gifted adolescent

with a teacher who has traits that are conducive to a positive relationship with the student. Those traits are:

• Self-confidence• Resourcefulness and flexibility

Academic Domain: teacher traits for mentoring continued• Creativity and openmindedness• Trusting attitude• Cultural knowledge• Technical knowledge• Stamina• Subject matter competence and skill• Sense of humor• Real interest and love for gifted

students (Strip, 2000)

Academic Domain: counselor support• Help students understand that it’s okay

to fail• Teach students ways to cope with

stress. An effective method is changing negative self talk.

• Help students learn to reward themselves for hard work and achievements

• Teach them not to blame others, but be responsible for own behavior

Personal/Social Domain• Counseling strategies for students:• Individual counseling either in

school and/or private practice• Group counseling either in school

and/or private practice• School programs and grouping

options

Personal/Social Domain: Counseling Strategies for students continued• Help gifted students adjust to their gifts• Proactive approaches to address issues

gifted students face• Discussion with gifted adults to help

students adjust to their gifts• Coping strategies• Role-playing

Personal/Social Domain: Counseling Strategies Continued• Video therapy and cinema therapy• Mentorships• Journaling• Higher education workshops

and/or classes• Bibliotherapy (Reis & Moon, 2002)

References• Betts, G.T. & Neihart, M. (1988). Profiles of gifted and

talented. Gifted Child Quartley, 32(2), 248-253.• Buescher, T., & Higham, S. (1985). Young Adolescent

Survey: Coping Skills among the Gifted/Talented. Unpublished instrument. Evanston, IL: Center for Talent Development, Northwestern University

• Colangelo, N. (1997). Counseling gifted students: Issues and practices. Handbook of Gifted Education, 353-365.

• Delisle, J. & Galbraith, J. (2002). When gifted kids don’t have all the answers: How to meet their social and emotional needs. Minnesota: Free Spirit Publishing, Inc.

• Frederickson, R. H. & Rothney, J. W. M. (1972). Recognizing and assisting multipotential youth. Columbus, OH: Merrill.

References• Greene, M. J. (1994). Career counseling for gifted and talented

students: The social emotional development of gifted children. Texas: Prufrock Press, Inc.

• Keer, B. (1991). A handbook for counseling the gifted and talented. Alexandria, VA: American Association for Counseling and Development.

• Marshall, B. C. (1981). Career decision-making patterns of gifted and talented adolescents. Journal of Career Education, 7, 305-310.

• Neihart, M. (2003). Gifted children and depression: The social and emotional development of gifted children. Texas: Prufrock Press, Inc.

• Reis, S. M. & Moon, S. M. (2002). Models and strategies for counseling, guidance, and social and emotional support of gifted and talented students: The social and emotional development of gifted children. Texas: Prufrock Press, Inc.

References• Rysview, K. J., Shore, B. M. & Leeb, R. T. (1998). Multipotentiality,

giftedness, and career choices: A review. Journal of Counseling and Development, 77, 423-430.

• Schuler, P. (2002). Perfectionism in gifted children and adolescents: The social and emotional development of gifted children. Texas: Prufrock Press, Inc.

• Strip, C. A. & Hrisch, G. (2000). Helping gifted children soar: A practical guide for parents and teachers. Arizona: Great Potential Press, Inc.

• Sutton, S. (2006). Unique social/emotional needs of gifted children and adolescents. Unpublished manuscript, University of Northern Colorado at Greeley.

• U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement. (1993). National excellence: A case for developing American’s talents. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education.

• Van Tassel-Baska, J. (1998). Excellence in educating gifted and talented learners (3rd ed.), Denver, CO: Love.

• Webb, J. T., Meckstroth, E. A. & Tolan, S.S. (1994). Guiding the gifted child: A practical source for parents and teachers. Arizona: Great Potential Press, Inc.