What does it mean if a child is gifted but has a slow processing speed? I assume this means that they take longer to work out the answer to a problem? But wouldn't a 'clever' child be able to work something out quickly? So what if someone who is not gifted but is reasonably bright can work out the answer to the same question but in half the time? It doesn't make sense to me, but maybe I have the definition of processing speed wrong?
(This is in relation to my own child).
Hi there. My girl (Y9) is highly gifted with average processing. It helps me to think like this: they have big ideas in their heads or can see an answer but can't get them out fast enough. Process their thoughts to an output? So maybe writing is messy because they are trying to go as fast as their brain. In my daughter's case she just gets frustrated and gives up! Could come out as tantrums? Learning to touch type can help them. Tape recorder. I am still learning and she is still struggling! (and it is very hard to explain to teachers!) I have yet to find someone that understands and can help her reach her potential as she still presents as above average so no one spends time working on her weaknesses. Unfortunately I think there will be a time (soon) when 'cruising' doesn't work anymore.
Can't remember where I heard or read this but a good analogy is a computer. A child with processing difficulties simply takes longer to 'boot up.' Their brain is a top of the line model and does all the tasks at a higher level but it takes longer to output.
i have a 9yo with slow processing, my understanding is much the same as phillipas.
my ds uses a laptop at school now; we had to fund this ourselves and it was me who asked for his IEP to be reviewed at the start of the year to cover a) the inclusion of a laptop in his programme, b) making sure that this, and teaching him to type, was supported by the school - although has worked really well so now the school is taking credit for it, grr! has done wonders for him, he finds things so much easier now - he has writing difficulties which compounded the problem as well. despite recommendation from ed psych 2 years ago that he learn to type ASAP they assured me he would 'grow out of it' - yeah right!
other things to be aware of; if it's a noted issue she should be able to have extra time on exams and things when she gets to college (and type exams as well if this will help) - definitely something we will be looking at.
3kids, yes it is a noted issue, and it is recommended that she get more time in exams once she gets to college. I'll be interested to see how that goes down once we get there!
It was also recommended that she learn to touch type, but she doesn't seem that interested. We tried a couple of programmes online, but after the first couple of days it was a struggle to get her to practice - I guess she doesn't do any typing in her everyday life, so she doesn't see the point.
We had the test done a while ago now, and never thought much of the processing speed thing, but all of a sudden it seems to be becoming noticeable, so just wondered what exactly it was. Might have to go and have a chat to her teacher.
Hi,
When I asked our ed psych about this she said if my (gifted)son was to get an after school job he'd be better doing something unpressured like stacking supermarket shelves than working in a busy cafe taking orders.It really is about the time it takes to process information in their brains, but it is only about time, nothing to do with intelligence.
My son's processing speed was down at the 6th percentile and his verbal reasoning skills at 98%.The result was that he got 'average' results at school but was working incredibly hard to get them. He always ran out of time, homework took 3 hrs and he was miserable. Home educated now, no pressure and great results.
If you had a top of the line iPhone and you downloaded and installed OLD android programmes on it ..... how efficient would you expect the iPhones performance to be? Irrespective of what speed the processor was running at would you really expect it to perform tasks based upon those programmes at the same "speed" as an old android phone for which the programmes were actually designed?
I WOULDNT!
Would you consider it to be an indicator of your phones processing speed?
When I see a low processing speed result that is what I see .... a brain whose design is not especially compatible with certain programmes and processes that were once upon a time a VERY VERY long time ago "cutting edge developments".
Remember the story of the Hare and the Tortoise? Was the Hare SLOWER than the Tortoise? Hardly .... but in a race designed to the advantage of the Tortoise and designed to disadvantage the Hare it certainly took him more time to reach the same "finish line" (but which travelled the greater distance in that time?).
SOME people I know with low processing speed results do seem to prefer a "slow and steady" approach to life in general but I have yet to find evidence that it is linked directly to low processing speed.
I test as having LOW processing speed and in an educational environment the same accommodations mentioned about have been recommended - but like many people with low processing speed scores I know of - I would actually do better in the busy cafe situation than stacking grocery shelves. The IDEAL however would be finding solutions to highly "novel" and complex (from a conventional perspective) problems that require observational and comprehension skills that are above and beyond the "mean range" with relative ease without a specific "time table" to do so.
The stacking supermarket shelves MIGHT be valid for a specific individual - but I certainly wouldnt generalise that.
When I was assessed my "speed" was far from consistent across the subtests. Some I had the answers as soon as or even before the question was finished until I encountered a question that just didnt make sense to me and nor did the answer my brain kept coming up with (my way of calculating the answer is absolutely appropriate for new zealand - but not for the country of origin - it took me ages to realise the cultural context and by the time I did my confidence was shattered). Some I cruised through to the extent that I was confused when the test was over - I was waiting for the "difficult" questions to start!
Some tests it took me more time to complete for a wide variety of reasons .... block design I could see HOW the designs "went together" as a whole in terms of "all the pieces" but bugger if I could decide where to start or how it might be most timely to proceed because there was an inbuilt sequential element - with no obvious starting or finishing point that I could perceive.
Tasks involving tiny snippets of information with no inherent meaning that required "time referencing" (sequencing) of some kind I found exceptionally difficult - these were generally very low input and very low output tasks ..... I definitely wouldnt recommend stacking supermarket shelves for me given that task would be more similar to those tasks in terms of input and output and how much my brain was objecting to performing the tasks at hand! But SOME highly intelligent people thrive in relatively brain dead tasks that they can do without thinking - leaving their brain free to entertain itself with tasks that are both at the appropriate intellectual level and interesting to them.
Re typing .... I touch type - I dont need to stop and think about where to place my fingers or look at the keys ..... that is more than sufficient for me to type at speed. Typing is a spatial activity .... how formal programmes TEACH typing however may not be. Simply using a keyboard consistently was the ONLY "training" I needed to achieve a result that works for me. If I am expressing my own thoughts it works exceptionally well .... its "easy" meaning that a huge amount of information tends to "spill out" very quickly and before I know it I have screeds and screeds of writing and people are complaining about the length of my posts! - I am not having to try and force my brain to slow down and focus on the painful task of forming symbols "correctly" .... and words seem to "spell themselves" something that rarely happens when I have to write by hand.
If I am regurgitating information in a very specific (ie academic) format - it doesnt work AS well .... but still works much better than trying to regurgitate that information in hand written format.
Re "booting up" - I both agree and disagree with that analogy .... VS is much faster and more powerful than normal processing .... although my brain does indeed take much longer to "boot up" fully (boot up not being the correct term - more like have a multitude of programmes running simultaneously AFTER the boot up process is completed) and is slow from my perspective until it is up and running .... in my observation that even when not "warmed up" it still runs much faster than a "normal" model.
Warmed up is a better term than booted up because I actually literally experience that - my brain starts warming up across the back of the brain the warmth travelling in a forward direction .... but it needs a whole heap to be going on for that process to happen and then I feel "fully awake" ..... this very RARELY happens if I spend all day on academic tasks ..... and I spent the vast majority of my time at school basically "sleep walking" - my brain stayed cold ALL day most of the time and that resulted in difficulty sleeping at night time.
Not very surprising considering school (and formal education of an academic nature generally) typically requires one to be "switching" between different programmes just running one or maybe a few very basic ones at a time ..... rather than running a multitude of programmes simultaneously which is MUCH better suited to my brain design.
I am extrapolating but I suspect if I was "normally gifted" rather than VS/GT it would be a bit of a different story.
I am so thankful I found this forum. My son has been labeled gifted, highly intelligent, etc. He is failing out of college and can't pull himself out of the spiral. He was tested as having slow processing speed and doesn't know where to get help or what to do. What you talk about above is how he describes his struggle. Where can we get help to make him a productive citizen and move forward with his life?
