It is conceivable that pedagogical retardation might exist without any
defect of intelligence. The physical effects of adenoids and tonsils
might produce a tendency to fatigue, an emotional instability and
consequent lack in attention, which would seriously influence the
quality of school work, even though the child were of normal or superior
intelligence. The relation of physical defects to intelligence has been
investigated experimentally by a method which will be employed to some
extent in the present investigation. In the two studies to which I refer
psychological tests, rather than school standings were used as a basis
for judging the intelligence. In each the effects of treatment were
measured, and in one, a control group makes possible a more accurate
interpretation of results.
The first of these investigations is described by Wallin.[13] It was "an
attempt to determine by controlled, objective, mental measures the
influence of hygiene and operative dental treatment upon the
intellectual efficiency and working capacity of a squad of twenty-seven
public school children in Marion School, Cleveland, Ohio (ten boys and
seventeen girls), all of whom were handicapped to a considerable degree
with diseased dentures or gums, and an insanitary oral cavity." The
experiment extended over one year, from May, 1910, to May, 1911. The
treatment included corrective work upon the teeth and mouth, and also
instruction in oral hygiene, and follow-up work by an employed nurse.
Five series of psychological tests were given at stated intervals during
the course of the experiment. They included tests of immediate recall,
spontaneous and controlled association (opposites), adding, and
attention-perception (cancellation). There were six sets of each test,
numbered from one to six, of equal difficulty, and given under uniform
conditions. Tests 1 and 2 were given before the treatment began, and the
average was taken as the "initial efficiency." The last four, or the
last two, were averaged to represent the pupils' "terminal efficiency."
[13]: Wallin: "Mental Health of the School Child." 1914.
The results show the following influence of dental treatment upon the
working efficiency of the pupils.
1. The indices of improvement are about the same for boys and girls.
2. Improvement was about the same for older and younger pupils.
3. There were great individual differences in initial proficiency and in
improvement.
4. Improvement in one test does not presuppose improvement in another.
5. There is a decided gain in every test, "and not only are the gains
decidedly more frequent than the losses but the largest gains are
invariably emphatically larger than the largest losses."
6. The average gains in the tests were:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account