Special education
In the United States and in many other parts of the world as well, the public education system is designed to provide the very best education possible to as many children as possible. In most cases, the plan works.
But most plans don't work in every case, no matter the plan. Every school system contains a few students who have some special needs. These special needs generate the need for learning programs outside the norm. These special students need special education programs.
The term itself, special education, quickly conjures up the image of children with learning impairments or physical handicaps that make a regular classroom a place of exceptional challenge. In many cases, these students struggle to keep pace with the average student and the learning process can become frustrating, if not completely impossible.
On the other end of the educational spectrum, however, are students who are exceptionally gifted intellectually or academically. These students, too, benefit best when a program of special education is in place that allows these students to learn and function naturally for them, even when that pace of learning is faster than it is for other students their age.
The academic nature of a special education program designed for the gifted student is, undoubtedly, quite different from a similar program designed for the student who struggles. Special education programs at either end of the spectrum have two main goals in common, however - providing the optimum learning environment as dictated by student need and doing so in an environment that promotes social skills and interpersonal relationships with peers.
An effective special education program must include socialization skills as well as academics because students with special needs face inherent issues of isolation and feelings of being disconnected from the mainstream student body. The vast majority of any student body is comprised of individuals who fall into the average, or normal, range of academic, intellectual, and social skills, where forming ties with peers is relatively easy.
In the smaller subgroups of students benefited by special education programs, however, it may be more difficult to relate to the general student body. Feelings of being an outsider can lead to issues of self-esteem and may even hinder efforts at effective learning as a gifted student tries to "play dumb" to fit in. In extreme cases, students can even become seriously depressed and have a difficult time learning how to manage interpersonal relationships with people their own age.
Many larger school districts offer special education programs for gifted and talented students but the smaller ones often do not. In the US, government legislature has mandated special education programs in public school systems for students who are struggling but similar programs for those who naturally excel are often sadly limited.