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Supporting Gifted Underachievers: Understanding and Intervention Options

Explore causes and intervention strategies for gifted students underachieving in school. Learn how to identify issues such as inappropriate expectations, inadequate programming, family factors, and personal characteristics. Discover ways to address motivation, study skills, emotional issues, and family dynamics to help these students thrive academically and emotionally.

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Supporting Gifted Underachievers: Understanding and Intervention Options

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  1. Students Who Are Gifted and Underachieving: Why & What Can We Do?Victoria B. Damiani, Ed.D., NCSPDirector, IUP Center for Gifted Education

  2. Multiple Causes • Inappropriate expectations • Inadequate/Inappropriate educational programming • Family factors • Personal characteristics

  3. Inappropriate Expectations • Incomplete assessments • Assessments misread or not read • Disabilities or emotional factors missed • Program doesn’t match assessment results

  4. Educational Programming • Fails to challenge • Not academic • Study skills not developed • Not enough time spent with other capable students • Anti-intellectual climate • Student’s interests ignored • Crazy schedule

  5. Family Factors • Disorganization • Conflict (often between father & son, but daughters can also be affected) • Modeling underachievement • Modeling devaluation of educational system • UA a form of aggression against parent • Parents take on too much responsibility • Parents have inappropriate expectations

  6. Characteristics of Student • Lack of motivation • Negative feelings about school • Poor study/work skills • Inaccurate beliefs about self/school • Fear of success/failure • Poor concentration

  7. But, Most Common Factors Are: • Inability to self-monitor in learning & performance • Lack of motivation • Emotional issues such as perfectionism and depression • Inappropriate educational programming

  8. Intervention • Begin with educational program • Least intrusive • Required by regulation • Carries potential for prevention of UA in other students • Most research available • Expertise present among educators

  9. To assess appropriateness of program for any student you must know at least: • Academic levels/skills in reading and math (Standardized & curriculum based) • Achievement history • Study & work habits • Results of any full MDT assessments Adjust program accordingly/Share with student & parents

  10. Move Next to Related Services that are Educational in Nature • Career exploration • Real world experiences • Study/organizational skill instruction • Relationship with adult • Exploration of student interests • Educational time spent with other capable students • Variety of extra-curricular activities

  11. Thirdly, fully evaluate self-monitoring, social, emotional, & family issues • Depression • Perfectionism • Anxiety • Family factors • Student’s self-regulation & self-messages

  12. Depression • May present as disinterest • May present as anger/rebellion • Will be evident in other parts of child’s life • Is treatable • Requires careful psychological assessment that can be done at school • Will most likely be treated outside of school, but a school component is essential

  13. Perfectionism • May begin work but not complete • May do one part of assignment well and others not at all • Pattern usually evident over time • May be familial connection • Interventions can be done at school if symptoms are not too severe

  14. Anxiety • May be related to one subject only • May be related to one activity only, such as testing • May coexist with perfectionism • Can appear with or without a history • Can be addressed at school if focused and not generalized • If addressed outside will need a school component as well

  15. Family Factors • Accurate information about student’s strengths & needs may help • May be related to family cognitions about giftedness • Will often be evident if parents & student are seen together • May generalize beyond academics • Can be addressed at school if focus is on school-related issues & intervener is appropriately trained

  16. Student Self-regulation & messages • Cognitions regarding giftedness • Self-reports of thoughts & feelings when doing academic work • Metacognitive interview (Rafoth, 1999) • Time and materials report

  17. Cogntive-Behavioral Interventions • Goal setting & Tracking (teach to record their own behavior) • Modeling (self-messages for organization) • Organization (step by step through a project) • Rubrics for self-evaluation

  18. Cognitive Behavioral Interventions • Have student practice positive self-talk • Teach relaxation techniques • Teach self-reward • Use self-report rating scales to get baseline & assess progress • Student participation in development of plan is essential

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