Because

Giftedness is human development and potential. Including identifiable emotional, intellectual, imaginational, psychomotor, and sensual experiences, and development.

The advanced and often asychronous development of gifted individuals is driven by greater-than-typical intensity, sensitivities, awareness, excitability. The term “overexcitability” refers to the greater-than-typical internal and external response of the nervous system.

Often, overexcitabilities are expressed internally.

Multiple high overexcitabilities have been documented in empirical research studies as the predominate profile in highly and profoundly gifted children and adolescents (Gallagher, 2022; Guilbault et al., 2024; Wood et al., 2024).

However, giftedness is often misconceived as academic, school-based achievement alone without regard for the greater-than-typical emotional, intellectual, imaginational, psychomotor, and sensual development.

Due to this mismatch in understanding and identification, many highly gifted and profoundly gifted children are not being identified or served.

Tragically, many highly–profoundly gifted children are being misidentified in schools or misdiagnosed by practitioners who do not have training in giftedness or profoundly gifted individuals. 

Many highly–profoundly gifted children are overlooked completely.

As such, the social, emotional, cognitive, physical, and altruistic-moral development of highly–profoundly gifted children, adolescents, young adults, individuals, and families is vulnerable and at high risk. 

This is a global systemic problem that must be addressed if we are to serve and support our education, our development, and our well-being.

the stakes are beyond our comprehension.