Curative Education For Backward Children

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30234, 12 September 1963, Page 17

Curative Education For Backward Children

Intellectually - handicapped children differed in two common respects from other children—they could not reason and they would not be able to compete in this competitive world, said Dr. Maria Gias, medical adviser to New Zealand’s three homes for curative education, addressing a public meeting in Christchurch.

The meeting was convened by the Canterbury committee of the New Zealand Trust Board for Home Schools for Curative Education of Intel-W.ually-handicapped Children.

Dr. Gias said the first of the two differences would be of greater importance during schooling, and the second difference would be more apparent in later life. There were many adults who could not reason very well, but they could still compete. 'The main thing is that whatever the disability of the intellectually - handicapped child, we have the conviction that he is a human being,” said Dr. Gias. “His life cons sts of integrating his spiritual and mental being into his bodily being which is given to him by his parents, and is very much a product of his environment.’’ This environment included the pre-natal period and also the way in which he was treated as a very young child. If the reasoning power of the child was absent something must be found that could be appealed to, said Dr. Gias. The reason was appealed to too early in ordinary education, and children should not be sent to school before they were six years and a half to sevdn years of age. If the reason was called upon before this time the

physical development might be affected. The Rudolph Steiner system used in the curative education schools called for the children to go through an adjustment period of three years. They were led gradually out of the fairy story age into an age where they used their intellect. “They work from the heart to the head,” said Dr. Gias. Even where there were the best relations with parents it was not always easy for a handicapped child to live in a family where all the other members were normal, said Dr. Gias. Radio or television was not always good for them, as they found it hard to adjust to changes, but the rest of the family should be able to live a normal life, so the home type of school was favoured.

Persons with a physical handicap could by their own determination overcome 90 per cent of their disability, but intellectually-handicapped persons needed 90 per cent encouragement from others, and the determination must be in the people who looked after them, said Dr. Gias. Dr. Gias showed a film of work being done in the three schools operating at present in the Napier district.

The secretary of the Canterbury committee (Mr C. E. van Asch), said that the Trust Board had been so well supported that it had. been decided to set up these schools throughout New Zealand, and Christchurch would probably have the first one in the South Island.