Are gifted children over-diagnosed with the disorder? In what ways are gifted ADHD children different from gifted children without the disorder and from other ADHD children? Does the emerging research suggest any differences in interventions or support? (Neihart, p.2)Determining if a gifted child has ADHD is more difficult than a non-gifted child. The characteristics of giftedness can mask the symptoms of ADHD. Some gifted children that have mild forms of ADHD get overlooked, while the impulsivity and deficits in attention may affect the ability to identify giftedness. As a result of these difficulties, highly qualified professionals of a multidisciplinary team are needed to make the diagnosis.
The team must include at least one clinician trained in differentiating childhood psychopathologies and one professional who understands the normal range of developmental characteristics of gifted children (Neihart, p.3). The rest of the team will include school personnel that would otherwise conduct an evaluation.
Gifted children with ADHD are similar to non-gifted children with ADHD in respect to their social and emotional maturity. Children with ADHD tend to lag two to three years behind their age peers (Barkley, 1998). This holds true for gifted children with ADHD which makes it difficult for them to relate to gifted children without ADHD. Gifted children without ADHD have social and emotional development two to four years older than children their own age (Neihart, Reis, Robinson, & Moon, 2002).
In regards to interventions and support for gifted children with ADHD it is suggested that the focus be placed on talent development while attending to the disability. (Neihart, p.4). By keeping the focus on talent development, there is a positive approach rather than a negative approach that focuses on the deficits. Development in talent will lead to more positive outcomes and minimize problems of social and emotional adjustment (Baum, Owen & Dixon,1991; Olenchak, 1994; Olenchak & Reis, 2002; Reis, McGuire, & Neu, 2000). Typical approaches to ADHD interventions may be counterproductive for a gifted child with ADHD. As we experienced in the PBS simulations, extra time or modified instruction could be beneficial for a child with ADHD but a gifted child with ADHD needs the quick paced stimulation.
I feel this article contained a lot of information that needs to be looked at more closely. It contains information that may not be the first thing one considers when evaluating a student with ADHD. How many children are misdiagnosed, diagnosed later in their school years, and if they are diagnosed as gifted ADHD, are they getting the proper interventions? I think classroom teachers need more education on ADHD so they can recognize different possibilities in the disorder.
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ReplyDeleteThis seems like a very interesting article. I think it is often we don't associate individuals who are gifted with having ADHD. We assume children with ADHD can't focus in school are fall behind because they can't focus long enough to have the information received. In your post you stated "child with ADHD are 2-3 years behind their peers." Gifted children are typically 2-3 years ahead of their peers. It is something to further look into. At the end you said classroom teachers need more education on ADHD so they can recognize the possibilities in the disorder. I completely agree. The article I did my post on was about more training for teachers in classroom management on ADHD. We all know one size does not fit all with ADHD. What works for one child does not work for the other and their symptoms can be completely different.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your article summary. I remember hearing/learning a little bit about how gifted students can have ADHD in the past. However, I completely forgot about it until now. Most do not typically associate ADHD with being gifted. I would love to learn more about these cases, and the "signs" to look out for.
ReplyDeleteThis is a really important topic. I struggled with this last year with a few of our students in our enrichment program. Our enrichment teacher (who is no longer with us), had a difficult time understanding that gifted children can have ADHD. I really think there needs to be a stronger focus in schools about this topic. You did a good job with your first APA citation. I encourage you to check out the Purdue OWL resource for APA 6th edition. There are some specific capitalization rules for the title you will want to know for the future (only capitalize the first word and proper nouns in the title.) Great first blog posting!
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