Running Head: ARTICLE ANALYSIS: SELF ESTEEM OF EXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN

Article Analysis: Self Esteem of Exceptional Children

Kathleen Jacot
College of Southern Nevada
Principals of Educational Psychology
Edu 220
Spring 2014

ARTICLE ANALYSIS: SELF ESTEEM OF EXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN

Article Analysis: Self Esteem of Exceptional Children

In the article Social and Self-Perceptions of Adolescents Identified as Gifted, Learning
Disabled, and Twice-Exceptional the hardships of twice exceptional students within the social
arena are studied. The study compared non-identified students, exceptional students both gifted
and learning disabled, and twice-exceptional students, which are students who have been
identified as both gifted and learning disabled. Learning disabled students have a greater
difficulty in social relationships because they do not participate in classroom activities to the
same extent as their non-identified peers. Their lack of social participation increases both a
rejection by peers and a feeling of being lonely and isolated which might cause the students to
have a low self-esteem and self-concept. All the groups of identified students reported a low
acceptance rate between peers; however, gifted students show a higher acceptance rate than their
other identified peers probably due to their ability to adapt. Twice exceptional students tend to
turn to class disruption or humor to gain peer acceptance.
Unlike with gifted or learning disabled students who have high perceived maternal
acceptance twice-exceptional students have a low perceived maternal acceptance. Evidence
points to a close link between perceived support from parents and positive self-perceptions
(Barber). This lack of parental support is especcially bad when you consider the extent of
current recommendations for meeting the students needs. Considering that the students may not
perceived their parents as supportive teachers and counselors may need to fulfill the role of
additional support. It would also be helpful to educate parents of the issues that their twiceexceptional children face. The twice exceptional student has the unfortunate case of having a a
double stigma attached to them. They have a pressure to perform (because of the gifted label) but
the do not always have the ability (due to their LD status). This could lead to a low self-esteem

ARTICLE ANALYSIS: SELF ESTEEM OF EXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN

because of the high expectations that they are not able to accomplish. These students have a high
incidence of disruptive behavior probably due to the inability to find true peers due to the
difficulty of fitting in with gifted students or their learning disabled peers. So this group of
students needs positive social support from teachers and parents for positive socio-emotional
development.
To be an effective teacher for students with exceptionalities one must look at all the sides
of the coin. These children need help fitting in and feeling good about themselves. In the case of
twice exceptional students it is the job of educators to take in the social portion of a students
development along with their educational development in order to create an optimal plan for the
twice-exceptional. In the case of all exceptional students parents should be educated in both their
childs limitations and their abilities so as not to lower their self perception by either not being
believed in or held to too high of standards this is especially so for twice exceptional students.

ARTICLE ANALYSIS: SELF ESTEEM OF EXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN

References
Barber, C., & Conrad, T. M. (2011). Social and self-perceptions of adolescents identified as
gifted, learning disabled, and twice-exceptional. Roeper Review, 33(2), 109-120.
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