Gifted At-Risk
Gifted students are outstanding learners who are not usually considered at risk of academic failure or problems. However, gifted students can still underachieve. There are risks related to the student's giftedness. This concept was formally set forth in 1972 in the U.S. in the Marland Report: Gifted and talented children are, in fact, deprived and can suffer psychological damage and permanent impairment of their abilities to function well which is equal to or greater than the similar deprivation suffered by any other population with special needs served by the Office of Education. Specific risks. However, the  following risks are listed in "The Social and Emotional Development of Gifted Children": There is a cause-and-effect relationship between the unmet learning needs of gifted students and the above risks. “Research indicates that many of the emotional and social difficulties gifted students experience disappear when their educational climates are adapted to their level and pace of learning.” Linda Kreger Silverman enumerates these additional risks: Further, there exists anecdotal evidence of truancy problems with gifted children, who sometimes miss school because of disengagement, and worse, fear of bullying. In 1999, legislation was introduced in Colorado to recognize gifted students  as at-risk, with truancy as a factor, but the bill did not become law. Lastly, meta-analysis from the paper "Gifted Students Who Drop Out—Who and Why: A Meta-Analytical Review of the Literature" shows two key points. First, 4.5% of high school dropouts are gifted, and they leave school in part because of school-related issues. One would expect a very few gifted children to drop out, given the ease with which they can excel in school. According to the "Achievement Trap", this problem is even more pronounced among economically disadvantaged children.