Twice-exceptionality in primary schools: Teachers' perceived barriers to identifying and supporting 2e students

Area of Science:

• Education
• Psychology
• Special Education

Background:

• Twice-exceptional (2e) students possess both giftedness and learning disabilities, often leading to underidentification and unmet needs in educational settings.
• Identifying and supporting 2e students presents unique challenges within mainstream classrooms, necessitating specific teacher awareness and skills.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate primary school teachers' perceptions of barriers to identifying and supporting twice-exceptional (2e) students in Saudi Arabia.
• To inform policy and practice by understanding the challenges faced by educators in catering to the dual needs of gifted students with learning disabilities.

Main Methods:

• A qualitative, cross-sectional study involving 200 primary school teachers from 20 public schools in Saudi Arabia.
• Open-ended survey questions were used to gather narrative data, followed by inductive content analysis by two independent coders.
• The survey instrument was piloted with eight teachers to ensure clarity and relevance.

Main Results:

• Key identification barriers include a shortage of dual-trained staff, large class sizes, and inadequate professional development opportunities.
• Support barriers encompass limited collaboration with specialists, insufficient resources, unclear policy responsibilities, and the need for continuous, evidence-based training.

Conclusions:

• Urgent need for ministry-led training equipping teachers with both gifted and special education skills.
• Recommendations include providing dedicated funds for enrichment and support, reducing class sizes, and scheduling collaboration time.
• Further research is needed to track the impact of implemented measures on 2e student progress.