No. 6 Summer 2021
The Complexity of Cultures in 2e Education Race, Gender, and Scholar Identity | Asian Americans and Twice-Exceptionality Indigenous Youth in Education | 3e: Cultural and Linguistic Barriers to Identification
2e News Publications about 2e in a World of Cognitive Diversity 2eNews.com and Variations2e magazine provide readers with high-level information and perspectives about twice-exceptional (2e) education and cognitive diversity. We cover a broad range of topics that are essential for all educators, parents, and professionals. 2eNews.com membership is free. Sign up at 2eNews.com.
CONTENTS 02 Letter from the Publisher 03 Letter from the Editor 04 Cradling Different Thrice-Exceptional (3e) Voices of Ethnically Diverse Parents 12 Asian Americans and 2e Stereotyping the Parental Instinct
14 I’m Gifted Too Using Culturally Responsive Teaching to Address the Learning Needs of 3e Students 18 Stories That Know Barrio Nerds and Intelligences
20 Indigenous Youth in Education Overlooked, Underrepresented, Invisible
26 Exceptionality (e), 2e, and 3e: Cultural Factors and Considerations in Identifying and Serving Gifted Students of Color with Other Exceptionalities 31 Culture Matters Race, Gender, and Scholar Identity
WHAT IS 2e?
An annual subscription is just $35. Twice-exceptional kids and adults display gifts, talents, Weinaccept allyetmajor credit cards via Stripe.34 and potential some areas are challenged in other Over Here! areas. Learning can include attentional Ask differences about special pricing for organizations. challenges, autism spectrum disorder, sensory integration issues, and more.
Youngsters require both support and enrichment, as well as special counseling to help them grapple with the myriad obstacles that can stand in the way of their success. Children and adults alike benefit from understanding the duality of their needs, the importance of self-advocacy, and the possibilities for accommodations.
BRIDGES 2e MEDIA
Seeing Twice-Exceptional Youth in a Neuroblind Society 38 Shifting the Narrative Addressing Systemic Racial Disparities of Gifted Students of Color 41 The Cultural and Linguistic Barriers to 2e Identification Why Latino Students Are Being Left Out
44 Neither Could He Breathe Exceptionality, Victimization, and the Death of Elijah McClain 48 A Call to Action Practice Allyship in Our Everyday Lives 50 Bagatelles
54 Black Brains Matter Interview with Colin Seale 56 Furthering a Shift in the Twice-Exceptional Paradigm Understanding the Sociocultural Milieu of Gifted Student Development 61 Smart Books For Smart Kids Diversity Through Books
CONTRIBUTORS Join the Conversation Do you work with 2e students and have insights about research, theory, and best practices? Are you a parent of a 2e child with an informative or inspiring story to tell? Are you a 2e student who wants to tell your story? We welcome contributions from writers with experience and insights about twice-exceptional and neurodiverse populations. We look forward to sharing your stories with the international 2e community.
For editorial inquiries, send an email to info@2enews. com.
PUBLISHER Carl Sabatino
MANAGING EDITOR Chris Wiebe
HEAD OF CONTENT OPERATIONS Jon Baum ART DIRECTOR Heather Lembcke
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Brian Chu Stephanie Coxon Stuart Matranga COVER Heather Lembcke
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2e NEWS ADVISORY BOARD Susan Assouline Susan Baum Paul Beljan Kim Busi Kathi Kearney Deirdre Lovecky Marlo Payne Thurman Dan Peters Julia Roberts Ellen Rosen Linda Silverman Meredith Warshaw Variations2e — Not all great minds think alike is owned and published by Bridges 2e Media.
Publication and content copyright Bridges 2e Media © 2021. All rights reserved.
Letter from the Publisher: Toward a More Perfect System Some people argue that many of our institutions will require a substantial or complete overhaul to bring about equity and justice. But what would the perfect educational system look like? All of us think deeply about the education of those we work with directly — the students we see every day, get to know, and care most about. But taking responsibility for the whole system requires pondering the process, means, and ends of educational decision-making.
Professor Samuel Freeman argued that “being in a position to develop one’s capacities and talents, whatever they may be, is needed to maintain one’s status and self-respect as a free and equal citizen capable of social cooperation over a complete life.” Clearly K–12 education has a significant role to play in this all-important process of developing capacities and talents, and the 2e philosophy revolves around these critical concepts. What is the best “system” for accomplishing this? How would we even go about divining such a perfect balance of possibilities with all of the differences that influence the direction of our decision-making?
Ideally, we could all come together and work genuinely and collaboratively to design and redesign, and then tweak some more. But in the meantime, we could play with an idea by philosopher John Rawls, who suggested a thought experiment as a starting point for confronting tough problems and reaching just outcomes. Rawls imagined sitting in a “veil of ignorance” that keeps us from knowing who we are and identifying with our personal circumstances. By being knowledgeable about real-world issues but ignorant of our personal circumstances, he believed we could more objectively consider how societies should operate. Rawls’s thought experiment assumes three principles of justice. One of which is the “difference principle,” which states that the outcome of our exercise should guarantee that all advantages should be available to everyone — and if there are any social or economic differences in the social contract, under a veil of ignorance we would all likely agree that justice would obligate us to help those who are worse off. Given a deeper look at the veil concept and the application of the difference principle, his argument in the education space might be that all participants would advocate for the besttrained faculty and optimal educational resources, programs, and strategies to be available for everyone. I think he would agree that under the veil of ignorance, no one would choose 2
to create an educational system where sexual orientation, race, ethnic background, economic status, and/or gender identity would or should negatively impact a student’s prospects of economic success or psychological well-being. We know enough about the mechanism of self-actualization in education to conclude that whatever our position is in the real world, we would expect to see ourselves and our history referenced in the ideas, events, and values embodied in any curriculum. There clearly would be a need for agreement on the big ideas, essential questions, and enduring understandings that we would want to see addressed in the curriculum before stepping back into the real world.
Under the veil, I’m quite certain that there would be agreement that everyone should have the opportunity to benefit from access to the ideal education system and from the opportunities that follow. According to Rawls, approaching tough issues through a veil of ignorance can help us decide more fairly how the rules of society — or in our case, educational systems — should be structured. Of course, the education system is part of a larger set of interlocking and overlapping systems, and all would have to be constructed justly to maximize the benefits in education. There also are assumptions in the Rawlsian method that are problematic; there always are in thought experiments. It is interesting to note how self interest and group interests merge to become the model for an improved system.
If nothing else, the exercise might be helpful in some communities. People absorb information differently; they respond to arguments differently and are moved by different approaches. A Rawlsian-like approach could contribute to positive dialogue, mental and emotional shifts, and perhaps a set of shared goals that could make a real difference. It’s doubtful that this or any other approach would result in a perfectly just system; bumps and snags would occur at every turn. But a Rawlsian approach could take us on an exploration of self and others, and on to the discussions and work to create the ideal education system with passion and great optimism. If we came up with a system, we would then be obligated and justified in expending the time, energy, and resources to make sure that everyone in our country has access to one of the most fundamental rights and to one of the most significant cultural creations: education for all.
Carl Sabatino Publisher
Letter from the Editor
Producing a magazine issue exploring relationships amongst culture, ethnicity, and twice-exceptionality has long been a goal of ours here at Variations2e. As advocates, educators, and parents, we know all too well the challenges that 2e students can face. They can struggle in school. Their profiles are complex. They are often underidentified in traditional educational settings, which can impede their potential and squash their love of learning.
While being both gifted and having learning differences poses unique and formidable challenges, students of color face obstacles and forms of oppression in many, if not all facets of life. We exist in a society with systems that are rooted in white supremacy. Within the American education system, this looks like marginalized communities’ history and culture not being represented in America’s largely Eurocentric curricula. It looks like the underfunding of public schools in low-income areas, and Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) being particularly vulnerable to the school-to-prison pipeline. It looks like students of color being subject to the stereotypes, microaggressions, and implicit biases of their educators and peers. It looks like students of color not having access to the guidance or resources necessary to succeed in school, or apply for and attend college. All of this contributes to a world in which students of color are vulnerable to internalizing our society’s message that their voices and identities do not matter.
Another important goal of this issue is to spread awareness of the challenges that students of color face so those of us in positions of privilege can be better allies. We must reflect upon and recognize the benefits we have experienced as a result of our ethnicity, focusing on accountability over fault. While this issue does not explore all cultures and dimensions of race, we have produced it with a spirit toward expanding our ongoing conversation about twice-exceptionality to include these critical social justice components. We also recognize that gifted and twice-exceptional students of color are only a small percentage of a broader BIPOC community who deserve our support and advocacy.
Chris Wiebe, Ed.D. Managing Editor
Our primary goal for this issue is to give voice to the scholars and educators whose important contributions and continuing work explore the intersections of race, culture, giftedness, and twice-exceptionality. Their insights underscore the specific challenges that twice-exceptional and gifted students of color face and provide guidance for educators and parents about how to be a part of improving the situation for these students. The work of these scholars and practitioners holds lessons and recommendations for improving educational policy and bolstering strategies, curriculum, and programs to better serve the needs of BIPOC students. The issue of Variations2e also presents the voices and experiences of families of color who have twice-exceptional students. Their stories underscore the challenges of being a 2e student of color, as well as sow hope and inspiration for positive change.
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