Twice exceptional students: Teacher’s perceptions

Introduction: Twice exceptional students (2e) have, at the same time, giftedness and one or more physical, cognitive, behavioral, and/or socio-emotional disabilities. This group of students continues to be overlooked and unrecognized in the school system and they also deserve attention and special measures. So, this research is related to 2e students.

Goals and Methods: The present study, framed within the phenomenological approach, aims to explore teachers' perceptions and experiences with 2e students.

Participants were 15 teachers (11 women and 4 men). The ages of the participants ranged from 37 to 62 years. Data collection was carried out using an online questionnaire designed for this purpose, organized into four parts: Characterization, knowledge, assessment, intervention, and personal perspective. The questionnaire was formed by open and closed questions. The data collection technique was convenience sampling and snowball sampling through social networks. Data analysis was quantitative (statistics) for closed questions and qualitative (contente analysis) for open questions. In this case, the content analysis was performed by two researchers under the supervision of a third researcher, following a deductive and inductive process, until consensus was reached about categories.

Results: Few teachers reported having worked directly with 2e students (usually in the context of teaching practice or through participation in educational projects). Participants described these students as having high intellectual abilities, accompanied by difficulties, especially concerning attention, behavior, and socialization. When asked about identification and intervention, teachers highlighted the importance of a collaborative approach, involving specialized professionals, family, school, and health services. They also highlighted the lack of specialized training on 2e students, considering it essential for the proper identification, effective intervention, and adaptation of teaching to the needs of these students.

Conclusions: The results revealed that teachers have limited knowledge and experience with 2e students, and also revealed the need for teachers training on this subject.