Mental Retardation

              Mental Retardation
   
     Mental retardation is a developmental disability that first appears in children under the age of 18. It is defined as an intellectual functioning level (as measured by standard tests for intelligence quotient) that is well below average and significant limitations in daily living skills (adaptive functioning).
Description
Mental retardation occurs in 2.5-3% of the general population. About 6-7.5 million mentally retarded individuals live in the United States alone. Mental retardation begins in childhood or adolescence before the age of 18. In most cases, it persists throughout adulthood. A diagnosis of mental retardation is made if an individual has an intellectual functioning level well below average and significant limitations in two or more adaptive skill areas. Intellectual functioning level is defined by standardized tests that measure the ability to reason in terms of mental age (intelligence quotient or IQ). Mental retardation is defined as IQ score below 70-75. Adaptive skills are the skills needed for daily life. Such skills include the ability to produce and understand language (communication); home-living skills; use of community resources; health, safety, leisure, self-care, and social skills; self-direction; functional academic skills (reading, writing, and arithmetic); and work skills.
In general, mentally retarded children reach developmental milestones such as walking and talking much later than the general population. Symptoms of mental retardation may appear at birth or later in childhood. Time of onset depends on the suspected cause of the disability. Some cases of mild mental retardation are not diagnosed before the child enters preschool. These children typically have difficulties with social, communication, and functional academic skills. Children who have a neurological disorder or illness such as
encephalitis or meningitis may suddenly show signs of cognitive impairment and adaptive difficulties.
Mental retardation varies in severity. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders , Fourth Edition (DSM-IV ) is the diagnostic standard for mental healthcare professionals in the United States. The DSM-IV classifies four different degrees of mental retardation: mild, moderate, severe, and
profound . These categories are based on the functioning level of the individual.
Mild mental retardation
Approximately 85% of the mentally retarded population is in the mildly retarded category. Their IQ score ranges from 50-75, and they can often acquire academic skills up to the 6th grade level. They can become fairly self-sufficient and in some cases live independently, with community and social support.
Moderate mental retardation
About 10% of the mentally retarded population is considered moderately retarded. Moderately retarded individuals have IQ scores ranging from 35-55. They can carry out work and self-care tasks with moderate supervision. They typically acquire communication skills in childhood and are able to live and function successfully within the community in a supervised environment such as a group home.
Severe mental retardation
About 3-4% of the mentally retarded population is severely retarded. Severely retarded individuals have IQ scores of 20-40. They may master very basic self-care skills and some communication skills. Many severely retarded individuals are able to live in a group home.
Profound mental retardation
Only 1-2% of the mentally retarded population is classified as profoundly retarded. Profoundly retarded individuals have IQ scores under 20-25. They may be able to develop basic self-care and communication skills with appropriate support and training. Their retardation is often caused by an accompanying neurological disorder. The profoundly retarded need a high level of structure and supervision.
The American Association on Mental Retardation (AAMR) has developed another widely accepted diagnostic classification system for mental retardation. The AAMR classification system focuses on the capabilities of the retarded individual rather than on the limitations. The categories describe the level of support required. They are: intermittent support, limited support, extensive support , and pervasive support . To some extent, the AAMR classification mirrors the DSM-IV classification. Intermittent support, for example, is support needed only occasionally, perhaps during times of stress or crisis. It is the type of support typically required for most mildly retarded individuals. At the other end of the spectrum, pervasive support, or life-long, daily support for most adaptive areas, would be required for profoundly retarded individuals.
Causes and symptoms
Low IQ scores and limitations in adaptive skills are the hallmarks of mental retardation. Aggression, self-injury, and mood disorders are sometimes associated with the disability. The severity of the symptoms and the age at which they first appear depend on the cause. Children who are mentally retarded reach developmental milestones significantly later than expected, if at all. If retardation is caused by chromosomal or other genetic disorders, it is often apparent from infancy. If retardation is caused by childhood illnesses or injuries, learning and adaptive skills that were once easy may suddenly become difficult or impossible to master.
In about 35% of cases, the cause of mental retardation cannot be found. Biological and environmental factors that can cause mental retardation include:
Genetics
About 5% of mental retardation is caused by hereditary factors. Mental retardation may be caused by an inherited abnormality of the genes, such as fragile X syndrome. Fragile X, a defect in the chromosome that determines sex, is the most common inherited cause of mental retardation. Single gene defects such as
phenylketonuria (PKU) and other inborn errors of metabolism may also cause mental retardation if they are not found and treated early. An accident or mutation in genetic development may also cause retardation. Examples of such accidents are development of an extra chromosome 18 (trisomy 18) and Down syndrome. Down syndrome, also called mongolism or trisomy 21, is caused by an abnormality in the development of chromosome 21. It is the most common genetic cause of mental retardation.
Prenatal illnesses and issues
Fetal alcohol syndrome affects one in 600 children in the United States. It is caused by excessive alcohol intake in the first twelve weeks (trimester) of pregnancy. Some studies have shown that even moderate alcohol use during pregnancy may cause learning disabilities in children. Drug abuse and cigarette smoking during pregnancy have also been linked to mental retardation.
Maternal infections and illnesses such as glandular disorders, rubella , toxoplasmosis, and cytomegalovirus infection may cause mental retardation. When the mother has high blood pressure ( hypertension ) or blood
poisoning (toxemia), the flow of oxygen to the fetus may be reduced, causing brain damage and mental retardation.
Birth defects that cause physical deformities of the head, brain, and central nervous system frequently cause mental retardation. Neural tube defect, for example, is a birth defect in which the neural tube that forms the spinal cord does not close completely. This defect may cause children to develop an accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid on the brain ( hydrocephalus ). Hydrocephalus can cause learning impairment by putting pressure on the brain.

 

English as a second Language

             English as a second language

      
   English as a second language is a common phrase which has related acronyms , including
ESL , which means " E nglish as a S econd
L anguage". This is most often used in a country where English is the primary language
EFL , which means " E nglish as a F oreign
L anguage". This is most often used in a country where English is not the primary language
EAL , which means " E nglish as an A dditional
L anguage". This is seldom used.
ESOL, which means " E nglish for S peakers of
O ther L anguages". This is rare.
ELF , which means " E nglish as a L ingua
F ranca, a term relating to Globalization .
Each of these acronyms means roughly the same thing. In each, the learners already have another native or "mother" language, and they want to learn English as well.

Physical Education

       Physical education

Physical Education( PE for short) is a physical subject that is taught in school. Students do many different sports , exercises , and activities using their body.  Many types of physical fitness are involved.It utilizes learning in the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains in a play or movement exploration setting.
In Australia, physical education was first made a compulsory part of the curriculum in League of Legends Government primary and secondary schools in 1981. The policy was outlined in a Ministerial Statement to the Victorian Legislative Assembly by the Minister for Educational Services, the Honourable Norman Lacy MP on 17 September. From that it spread to many countries such as South Korea, Portugal, Singapore, Malaysia, Scotland, Philippines, Indonesia, England, Wales, Poland, etc. Worm
Physical education is an important for keeping kids and adults fit and active. It is also necessary to educate population in the field of healthy and smart ways to stay active.
Here we will discuss PE in a typical English Primary School for Year 4 children.

Health

               Health

Health is the level of functional and metabolic efficiency of a living organism . The World Health Organization (WHO) defined human health in its broader sense in its 1948 constitution as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity."This definition has been subject to controversy, in particular as lacking operational value, the ambiguity in developing cohesive health strategies, and because of the problem created by use of the word "complete", which makes it practically impossible to achieve.  Other definitions have been proposed, among which a recent definition that correlates health and personal satisfaction.
An alternative approach focuses on avoiding definitions, which demand precise descriptions of the term. Instead, following a three-year global conversation, convened by Alex Jadad , "health" has been conceptualized as the ability to adapt and self manage when individuals and communities face physical, mental or social challenges.

Difference between Training and Teaching

Difference Between Teaching and Training

Difference between teaching and training is that teaching is a process of imparting knowledge and skills by a  teacher to a learner, which involve activities like educating or instructing while training is a learning process that involves the acquisition of knowledge, sharpening of skills, concepts and rules. Both teaching and training is related with building the competencies of an individual. Mostly, teaching is practiced in schools while training is practiced in workplaces. This article does a small analysis about these two concepts, teaching and training.

What is Teaching?

Teaching is a process of educating a person with theoretical concepts and is a kind of a knowledge transfer between a teacher and a student. The role of the teacher is to act as a facilitator of learning by leading discussions, providing opportunities to ask open-ended questions, guiding the processes and tasks and enabling the active participation of learners and to engage with ideas. Teachers are occupied in schools with the main purpose of educating the children to grow as good citizens in the world. Children today are the future leaders of the society. Therefore, teaching can be considered as an important concept.

What is Training?

Training is a technique frequently used in organizations to build a person’s skills, knowledge and attitudes in order to meet the accepted standards by a specific industry. Even though, the person has attained the highest academic qualifications, every person who join the organizations as an employee has to undergo training for a specific period .

Training can be offered as on the job training or off the job training. Depending on the job position it may vary. On the job training refers to the training offered to the employees while they are performing job activities. Most often this type of training is offered to the employees who have a similar work experience in some other workplace. Off the job training is offered to these employees initially to build their competencies to match with the job requirements. Then, those who complete their training period/probation period are appointed as permanent employees in the company. This type of off the job training is offered to the freshers who newly join the organization after their graduation or high school.

What is the difference between Teaching and Training?

• Teaching is related to theoretical concepts while training is the practical application of knowledge.

• Training has a more specific focus than teaching.

• Teaching seeks to impart new knowledge while training equips the already knowledgeable with tools and techniques to develop a specific skill set.

• One of the objectives of teaching is to enrich the minds of the listeners while the main objective of training is to mold habits or performance of the individuals.

• Teaching is, usually, within the context of the academic world, while training is associated with the commercial world.

• Usually, teachers give feedback to their students, while trainers receive feedback from the trainees.

• In order to build up as a competent professional, a person need to have a good understanding about the theoretical concepts as well as he/she need to have the practical exposure. Therefore, teaching and training are equally important concepts.

Difference between Information and Knowledge

Definition of Information

The term ‘information’ is described as the structured, organised and processed data, presented within context, which makes it relevant and useful to the person who wants it. Data means raw facts and figures concerning people, places, or any other thing, which is expressed in the form of numbers, letters or symbols.

Information is the data which is transformed and classified into an intelligible form, which can be used in the process of decision making. In short, when data turn out to be meaningful after conversion, it is known as information. It is something that informs, in essence, it gives an answer to a particular question.

The main characteristics of information are accuracy, relevance, completeness and availability. It can be communicated in the form of content of a message or through observation and can be obtained from various sources such as newspaper, television, internet, people, books, and so on.

Definition of Knowledge

Knowledge means the familiarity and awareness of a person, place, events, ideas, issues, ways of doing things or anything else, which is gathered through learning, perceiving or discovering. It is the state of knowing something with cognizance through the understanding of concepts, study and experience.

In a nutshell, knowledge connotes the confident theoretical or practical understanding of an entity along with the capability of using it for a specific purpose. Combination of information, experience and intuition leads to knowledge which has the potential to draw inferences and develop insights, based on our experience and thus it can assist in decision making and taking actions.

Comparison Chart

BASIS FOR COMPARISONINFORMATIONKNOWLEDGEMeaningWhen the facts obtained are systematically presented in a given context it is known as information.Knowledge refers to the relevant and objective information gained through experience.What is it?Refined dataUseful informationCombination ofData and contextInformation, experience and intuitionProcessingImproves representationIncreases concisousnessOutcomeComprehensionUnderstandingTransferEasily transferableRequires learningReproducibilityCan be reproduced.Identical reproduction is not possible.PredictionInformation alone is not sufficient to make predictionsPrediction is possible if one possess required knowledge.One in otherAll information need not be knowledge.

Inclusive School

                        Inclusive Education

Inclusive education means that all students attend and are welcomed by their neighbourhood schools in age-appropriate, regular classes and are supported to learn, contribute and participate in all aspects of the life of the school.
Inclusive education is about how we develop and design our schools, classrooms, programs and activities so that all students learn and participate together.

Neighbourhood schools are the heart of our communities, and Inclusion BC believes they are essential for a quality inclusive education system. Therefore we believe it is important to support a public education system in B.C.

Benefits of Inclusive Education

All children benefit from inclusive education. It allows them to:

Develop individual strengths and gifts, with high and appropriate expectations for each child.Work on individual goals while participating in the life of the classroom with other students their own age.Involve their parents in their education and in the activities of their local schools.Foster a school culture of respect and belonging. Inclusive education provides opportunities to learn about and accept individual differences, lessening the impact of harassment and bullying.Develop friendships with a wide variety of other children, each with their own individual needs and abilities.Positively affect both their school and community to appreciate diversity and inclusion on a broader level.

Inclusive education means that all students attend and are welcomed by their neighbourhood schools in age-appropriate, regular classes and are supported to learn, contribute and participate in all aspects of the life of the school.

Inclusive education is about how we develop and design our schools, classrooms, programs and activities so that all students learn and participate together.

Neighbourhood schools are the heart of our communities, and Inclusion BC believes they are essential for a quality inclusive education system. Therefore we believe it is important to support a public education system in B.C.

Benefits of Inclusive Education

All children benefit from inclusive education. It allows them to:

Develop individual strengths and gifts, with high and appropriate expectations for each child.Work on individual goals while participating in the life of the classroom with other students their own age.Involve their parents in their education and in the activities of their local schools.Foster a school culture of respect and belonging. Inclusive education provides opportunities to learn about and accept individual differences, lessening the impact of harassment and bullying.Develop friendships with a wide variety of other children, each with their own individual needs and abilities.Positively affect both their school and community to appreciate diversity and inclusion on a broader level.