Don't Accept Me as I Am: Helping ""Retarded"" People to Excel

The changing definition of what constitutes intelligence and the trend away from conventional IQ testing find dynamic expression in this ground-breaking report by Israeli psychologists Feuerstein and Rand and University of Minnesota professor Rynders. The authors, viewing intelligence as a plastic that can be molded, argue that retardation can be modified. Mediated learning and other intervention techniques are described in this optimistic look at Down's syndrome and other developmental problems. From case studies drawn from the authors' clinical experiences, the double deficits of low-functioning childrenlearning disability and low self-confidenceare considered in the evaluative and educative process. Parents and teachers are cautioned that they need to be convinced that children's potentialities are modifiable. One of the more controversial experiments cited is reconstructive surgery to improve articulation and appearance. ( October )