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Special Education

Notes 5. Low Intelligence: Low intelligence or lack of general intelligence is the primary cause of
backwardness. Burt has found that every three children out of five backward children have I.Q. less
than 70.
According to this findings 'in every big primary school out of very 8 children will be I.Q. less than
85'. Therefore it is very necessary to administer and analyze intelligence test to locate such students.
One of the basis of these tests lack of intellectual, perceptual and visual ability can be visualized.
They may help us in knowing the extent of their intelligence and to help us in perceiving the intellectual
causes. Burt has recorded that 75 percent backwardness is due to low intelligence.

Over protection and underproduction both may generate backwardness.

23.3 Problem of Backward Children

A checklist containing 69 behaviour symptoms arranged under five problem patterns was primarily
aimed at identifying specific problems of mild retardates who constitute a significant group of
backward children. A single problems provides a clue to analyse certain learning problems of child.
1. Cognitive Learning Problems: (1) The backward children learn at a slower rate and they face
difficulty in retaining what they have learned. (2) The backward children prefer concrete learning to
abstract learning, (3) Transfer of learning becomes impossible for backward children. (4) They lack
judgement and common sense and they are highly destructible. (5) They gain from direct teaching
and do not acquire skills incidentally and (6) A slow learning is an underachiever and has a very
short span of attention.
2. Language or Speech Problems: (1) Verbal expressions for slow learners are difficult. (2) Oral
reading is more difficult than silent reading. (3) Backward children face articulation problems. (4)
Proper expression of thoughts becomes difficult for them.
3. Auditory Perceptual Problems: (1) Backward children face trouble in writing from dictation. They
usually leave common prefixes and suffixes while writing. (2) backward children fail to understand
verbal direction. So they are unable to give proper reply, when a question is asked. (3) They prefer
visually presented materials to orally presented materials. (4) Identification of different sounds
becomes difficult for them. They also find difficulty in distinguishing between similar sounding
words. (e.g., Tap-Tap-Tap, Pen-Pin etc.). (5) Backward children usually given inappropriate answers
to verbal questions. They also fail to learn the art of counting by memory.
4. Visual-Motor Problems: (1) Backward children are easily distracted by visual stimuli. They have
awkward movements. (2) They find it difficulty to recall to memory the objects that they see. (3)
They have a very poor handwriting and face difficulties in motor work. Very often they complain
about physical problems. Recognition of common objects becomes a problems for them. (5) Backward
children prefer part learning to whole learning and find oral learning tasks easier.
5. Social and Emotional Problems: (1) Backward children do not have the stamina to sit in a class for
long periods. (2) They are lovers of solitude and are not gregarious. They fail to make friends and are
not at all sociable. (3) Backward children become aggressive towards their friends and peers on
trivial matters and they are afraid and self-conscious. They daydream in excess compared to normal
children. (4) Nail-biting is another interesting characteristics of backward children. Sometimes they
also engage themselves in anti-social activities. (5) Their mood changes frequently and their
achievements is below expectancy. (6) They prefer not to work in a group and have inappropriate
and excessive verbalisation.

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