Evening star., 1953-04-14
Survey Urges
Special Glasses
For Retarded
Would Give Training
To Children Refused
Any Schooling Now

a COIumlCCee OF SCHOOL OucldlS
today recommended that the
District public school system
organize special classes for ex-
tremely mentally retarded chill
dren, to whom its doors now are
shut.
School Supt. Hobart M. Cor
ming appointed the committee to
study provision of facilities for
children of school age who are
mentally unable to profit from
present instruction, and excused
from attendance.
Figures in the report showed
that from 1947 through 1851
there were 199 such children
excused temporarily and 1874
permanently.
Recommendations Made.
iAfter reviewing the situation
here and investigating practices
elsewhere. the committee in
cluded these recommendations:
Special classes should be or
ganized on an experimental
basis for children between the
ages of Z and Is and at least 3
years of age by mental standards
who cannot learn from regular
instruction but could profit from
q special program.
The children should be claSsi-
fed as "trainable" with respect
to very simple psychomotor func-
tionS, although "non-educable"
academically.
The classes should be grouped
by maturity levels and limited to
10. They should be located in
school buildings where such
children would be welcomed and
accepted by the staff" and under
the supervision of the directors
of special education.
Parent Program Involved.
Parents Of the on-educable"
children would have to comply
with present Board of Education
rules permitting the school to
place the children. The parents
would have to get them to and
from class. A parent-education
program would be part of the
project.
Teachers should be specially
trained without cost, and would
have to possess the necessary
sympathy and understanding.
A So-called mon -educable"
child reaching degree of ma
turity enabling him to move on
to a class for less-retarded chill
dren could be transferred.
While directing it's attention
to a group of handicapped chill
dren now excluded from the pub
lie schools, the committee agreed
that more adequate facilities for
all types of special education
should be provided.
"Only through a public school
organization that is permitted
and encouraged to serve the
needs of all but the most ex-
treme can the District .
contribute as it should to an
expanding horizon for all it's citi-
zenry." the report said.
Preliminary estimates based
on the school enrollments of
1872 and the expected fire.
quency of severely mentally re-
tarded children of compulsory
school age would indicate a max
imum of 326 none -educable but
trainable" children of school age.
On the basis of 10 to a class,
33 classes would be needed, or
% classes of Is, if all these chill
dren were accepted.
If, however, the program
started out more modestly with
only the children from to 9, to
expand later, the figure would
be reduced to 125 children, with
8 or 13 classes needed.
4NCCA 10 OAIlGCu Ops
A supplemental commentary
by the co-chairmen of the COM
mittee, DR.. Richard R. Foster
and DR.. Irene C. Hypps, associ-
ate Superintendents in charge of
educational research, pointed to
the need for care in placing ex-
tremely retarded children with
other pupils.
The District school system now
includes some provisions for
children with hearing. visual,
orthopedic. cardiac and speech
defects and for many with cere-
bral palsy.
Pupils who are "dull-normal"
in ability or above borderline in
telligence may be cared for
through special adjustments,
transfer to opportunity classes
or occasionally through individ-
ual help in remedial reading
clinics.
Statistics on Glasses.
Statistics indicate that in
January, 1852, the elementary
schools had 400 white and 298
Negro pupils in "atypical classes
for subnormal." while the white
junior high schools had 263
white pupils in such classes.
There are no special classes for
the mentally handicapped in the
colored secondary schools, the
committee noted, although a re-
cent survey disclosed 295 men
tally retarded and $50 slow
learners in those schools.
Committee members included
the late DR.. Villa c. Burch, Mrs.
Bessie w. Cramer, Miss Edith A.
Lyons, the late Miss Bertha
Taylor, DR.. S. Harry Baker, jr.,
and James I, Minor.