A defectologist is a teacher who teaches children with special needs of psychophysical development. He conducts a comprehensive examination of the child’s personality, helps him develop communication skills, form correct pronunciation, and adapt to the society of peers and adults. Classes are aimed at developing sensory perception, attention, thinking, imagination, ability to concentrate, and control emotions. In addition, the defectologist advises parents on issues of special education of the child and communication with him. The lesson program is always compiled individually, taking into account the level of psychological and mental development of the child.
Counting to one hundred
A second-grade student with mental retardation began attending group classes with a special education teacher twice a week. She walked without desire, did not know how to count to one hundred, but hid it, claiming that she could count well.
Already in the fourth lesson, she learned to count to 100. Success increased motivation to learn: the child went to the next lessons with pleasure.
To successfully learn to count to one hundred, in addition to hearing, vision and speech, touch and movement were also involved.
A special education teacher does not teach children mathematics or the Russian language (although classes in these subjects are carried out in the correctional process). The impact is aimed at the cause of the difficulty that has arisen, which makes it possible to overcome or weaken deficiencies in mental and physical development.
When should you contact a speech pathologist?
Signs of violations sometimes appear individually, sometimes in combination. In the first case, parents can attribute these phenomena to an age crisis, since many pathologies make themselves felt just at the age of 2.5-3 years. Therefore, parents of three-year-olds should be especially vigilant. We recommend urgently showing the child to a defectologist if:
- speech development lags behind the age norm, the child does not speak at all or has an extremely poor vocabulary, prefers gestures, facial expressions, “his own language”;
- the baby does not understand the speech of an adult (with normal hearing), cannot fulfill simple requests;
- the child seems to be “in his own world”, he avoids communication with peers and adults;
- does not like to communicate with other children, often plays alone, and the game consists of them and the same repeated actions;
- has difficulty coordinating movements, cannot perform actions that require precise movements;
- does not obey, throws tantrums for no apparent reason;
- poorly assimilates information, cannot establish cause-and-effect relationships, and thinks slowly.
It is extremely important not to waste time and contact a defectologist as soon as you notice at least one of the listed signs.
Lag, not retardation
A student of the second correctional class of type 7 (ZPR) did not know how to read, write, count, got tired quickly, was lethargic and indifferent to almost everything, and experienced difficulties in communication.
Previously, children with mental retardation were considered mentally retarded. But even now, many teachers who do not have special pedagogical education find it difficult to distinguish mental retardation from retardation and developmental delays.
This child’s developmental problems had a cause not of an organic, but of a neuropsychological nature. In other words, the brain is functional, but some parts of it are slowly maturing.
I worked with my child twice a week. Among several areas of correctional work, I would like to mention neuropsychological exercises aimed at developing interhemispheric interaction. Children like them. Neural connections between the right and left hemispheres can be stimulated by drawing with both hands at the same time. Another simple and fun ear-nose exercise: with your right hand, take the tip of your nose, and with your left hand, take the lobe of your right ear. Then at the same time we change hands: the right hand takes the left earlobe, and the left hand takes the tip of the nose. We repeat the procedure several times. Try it, it's not as simple as it might seem at first glance.
I also gave recommendations to the class teacher, physical education teacher and music teacher on ways to support the child during the lesson that are appropriate for him. In particular, such a child needs to be carefully instructed: what other children grasp on the fly may not be clear to him without additional explanation.
It is extremely important to contact the student with this form of developmental disability more often with questions in class. Usually teachers tend to ignore such children because they are still unable to give the correct answer. This is a wrong strategy: the point is not that the child will not be able to answer at the moment, but that the teacher’s questions stimulate brain activity, due to which the maturation of neurons and connections between them is accelerated.
Nick Vujicic
I also gave recommendations to parents for studying at home. It is important for parents not to “spare” the child and involve them in household chores as much as possible: washing, cleaning, cooking. Famous Australian writer and speaker Nick Vujicic was born with tetra-amelia syndrome, that is, without arms and legs. But as a child, his parents tasked him with, for example, vacuuming the house. He clamped the handle of the vacuum cleaner between his head and shoulder and coped with this task quite well. This “ruthless” approach to children with disabilities allows them to maximize their potential.
Also among the general recommendations for parents, it is worth noting the development of spatial concepts: closer, further, in front, behind, in front of, behind, left, right, left, left, right, above, below, above, below, etc. This can be done casually: “Take the mug to your right and place it in front of the plate”, “Get the salt from the bottom shelf”, etc.
It is important that the parents of this child sought medical help and completed the entire course of treatment prescribed by the neurologist. Very often, parents are afraid or too lazy to consult a doctor. Without medical assistance, the effectiveness of the correction process is greatly reduced.
As a result of the coordinated work of all participants in the educational process, tremendous progress has occurred in the development of the child. In the fourth grade, the student’s level of social concepts and mental actions corresponded to the age norm. Primary school program material has been mastered in full.
Severe multiple developmental disorders
The work of a teacher-defectologist is especially important when teaching children with severe multiple developmental disorders (SMDD). They often look unusual, behave inappropriately, and sometimes aggressively. We have to wait quite a long time for the results of their training and education.
The difficulty of the work is that the disorders and developmental characteristics of such children are so individual that it is not always possible to use the experience of colleagues. In order to get, “feel” the result, you have to combine various methods and techniques in your work, as well as invent your own.
In the recent past, some of these children were considered unteachable and were not accepted into school. The erroneous idea of learning disability is still widespread today.
Defectological specialties
The science of defectology includes several main areas:
- deaf pedagogy – teaching children with both obvious and minor deviations in the functioning of the hearing aid;
- oligophrenopedagogy – teaching the younger generation with mental disabilities;
- Typhlopedagogy – teaching children whose visual apparatus is impaired;
- Speech therapy is the training of children whose developmental indications are within normal limits, but there are speech disorders identified in pronunciation.
"It became easier"
A ten-year-old disabled child with SMDD was admitted to school. I had not visited child care institutions before. He has severe intellectual and other developmental disabilities. Initial communication skills have not been formed, does not speak, behavior is inadequate, does not understand instructions and drawings, and many elementary concepts have not been formed.
A school schedule convenient for the child was agreed with the parents. Classes were conducted individually with a high degree of involvement of the mother. Almost every lesson for a speech pathologist is open. The individual form of classes allows you to select effective approaches, take into account as much as possible the characteristics of students with SMDD, and create a situation of success for each child. This increases their motivation to learn and cognitive activity.
After six months of correctional and developmental classes and home exercises, positive development dynamics appeared. During the next examination, the neurologist remarked: “What’s wrong with the child? A meaningful look and normal behavior appeared.” A year later, the student began to speak, work with simple cards, and follow instructions.
Mom about the result of classes with a speech pathologist: “It has become easier at home and in public places, now you can go to the store with him.”
Among the children and adults around him at school, at the beginning, there was fear and misunderstanding. Now relations have changed to tolerant and friendly. They communicate with the child and shake hands.
There are no uneducable children. Any child can be helped to advance in development.
Is it true that more and more children do not want to start talking?
According to the specialist, such a problem exists and can be explained by various reasons.
“For example, mother and child are affected by unfavorable ecology even during the period of intrauterine development. This also includes the bad habits of parents,” noted I. Kunevich.
Another reason is heredity. If one of the parents or other relatives started speaking late or did not pronounce complex sounds, there is a high probability that their child will have the same problem. But remember that a child is a different person, and everything may be different for him.
— It is also worth noting that the presence of gadgets in children is a real scourge of the new generation. It’s easier for parents to calm and occupy their child for a while with a phone or tablet, says the specialist. — Many parents, being too busy at work, do not devote enough time to children who need it.
It is important to build a close and trusting relationship with your child, do not forget to talk to him more often, and read with him, says I. Kunevich. Instead of having fun with gadgets, it is better to offer a book.
Parents' fears
Sometimes parents do not contact a speech pathologist. They are afraid of being diagnosed with any specific mental or physical abnormalities. But the defectologist does not make a diagnosis, but only describes the child’s condition and evaluates certain skills. The diagnosis is made by a doctor.
It happens that behavioral disorders and academic failure are not at all a manifestation of deviations in physical or intellectual development. To overcome difficulties in learning and behavior, it is enough for parents and teachers to follow the recommendations of a defectologist teacher on issues of education and creating a favorable environment in the family and children's team.
For example, one day a teacher asked: “The child writes poorly. Maybe he has dysgraphia? Dysgraphia is a very serious defect. In this case, diagnostics showed normal development and no writing impairments. The child simply had poorly developed fine motor skills. Regular, simple exercises to develop fine motor skills soon allowed the student to meet school writing skill requirements.
Parents should feel free to contact a defectologist. There can be no harm from consultation. A consultation is just a conversation. And untimely examination, diagnosis and treatment of a child will not allow him to receive correctional and developmental assistance. This violates the student’s right to receive a quality education and a prosperous life.
One third grade student could not read. He was diagnosed with mental retardation. Only when the mother provided the conclusion of the psychological, medical and pedagogical commission, the school was able to conduct correctional and developmental classes. The child learned to read. Without a timely examination and the help of a speech pathologist, such a child will not develop, and the time to smooth out developmental disorders will be irretrievably lost.
The child has Down syndrome
The main goal of the classes is to prepare the child for social adaptation, teach important work skills, and form the correct forms of behavior in him. These results can only be achieved with an integrated approach and early diagnosis of the disorder:
- development of memory, thinking, speech, attention;
- encouraging the pursuit of knowledge;
- development of sensory perception;
- taking into account interests and zones of proximal development.
The classes use simple material that is accessible to the child, and it is repeated as many times as necessary to fully assimilate it.
The most important condition for successful correction of developmental disorders is early diagnosis . If your child is 2.5-3 years old, take a closer look at him. If you find any warning signs, contact a speech pathologist as soon as possible.
Publication date: 04/19/2021. Last modified: 04/19/2021.
