Until relatively recently—for reasons financial, social, and medical—retarded children in Taiwan have not received adequate attention from either educators or society in general. But today, the early trial-by-error approaches to educating the retarded have been replaced by much greater sophistication. A special educational support system is now taking form, and soon all disadvantaged children on the island will have the education and training needed to improve their daily lives.
Optimism about the futures of these children rests upon more than two decades of work and testing by dedicated educators, who have approached this challenge with the highest standards of professionalism and ethics.
Experts estimate that if it costs one dollar to educate a child of normal intelligence, it costs five to educate one who is mentally disabled. As a result, questions of national educational priorities, especially in funding, are often raised when evaluating special education programs for retarded children. Competing interests, including special programs for gifted children, would appear to have greater importance.
This point of view is bolstered by statistics. While one primary school teacher can handle a class of regular pupils, two are needed for a much smaller class of retarded children. The same is true in junior high, where one teacher is responsible for about 50 students, while an instructor of the mentally retarded handles only five or six.
But there is a solid counterargument to this position based on ethical considerations, according to Dr. Chen Jung-hua, dean of the College of Education at National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU). "These children didn't choose to be born mentally retarded," he says. "Many were actually victims of the industrialization that benefits so many of us. Their defects derived from environmental pollution, drug poisoning, or mothers being prescribed the wrong medication during pregnancy. We are all powerless before nature in the final analysis, so isn't it better that we all stand together and cooperate for our mutual welfare? This is a duty that derives from conscience and humanity, not mere economic gain."
Ethical considerations are further enforced by computations of the social costs from neglecting the mentally handicapped. "If mentally retarded people can be trained to take care of their own basic needs, their families need not suffer as much stress and fatigue from dealing with them," Chen says. "Parents can concentrate more on their jobs, and the handicapped themselves will be less likely to commit socially disruptive acts. Special education for retarded individuals is not a waste of money in the long run. In fact, the costs of ignoring it are substantial."
For educational purposes, the Ministry of Education divides these disadvantaged children into two groups, those with "mild" and "medium" retardation. The former group has an I.Q. ranging from 55 to 77, the latter from 36 to 54. "Mildly retarded children can learn to read, write, and calculate, but they are slower than ordinary children," Chen explains. "Medium retardation means an individual can function at about the level of a six-or seven-year-old child. Such people obviously cannot go to school or even cross a road alone. They need help throughout their lives. At least basic training in self-care makes medium-level retardation much less of a social burden."
Among the first formal attempts locally to address the problems of the mentally handicapped came in March 1962, when the Chungshan Primary School in Taipei began a series of special classes for retarded children. The program was in part the result of a trip Lin Cheng-chou, then principal of Chungshan, had taken to Japan a few years earlier. Lin had toured Japan in order to study its educational system, and during the visit he discovered a special program the Japanese called "weak-mentality education." Classes in the program were designed to help mentally retarded children gain a measure of independence in life, and even learn some basic academic skills.
At this time, doctors at the Children's Mental Health Center of National Taiwan University Hospital were conducting research on children suffering from mental disorders. Because Taiwan had not yet initiated special programs for the mentally retarded, the researchers were especially interested in Lin's findings. By July 1961, the National Taiwan University Hospital, the Taiwan Provincial Institute of Elementary School Teachers In-service Education, and Chungshan Primary School began joint preparation of a classroom program for retarded children. Classes were at first experimental and subject to intensive review. Unfortunately, the staff had virtually no experience in the field; they had to learn as they worked.
Lin Mei-nu was one of the original teachers in these experimental classes. Now in her mid-fifties, she remains an energetic instructor at Chungshan. Since this initial exposure to these students, Lin has dedicated her professional life to mentally retarded children.
Long-term devotion—Lin Mei-nu, one of Taiwan's first teachers of retarded children, at work in her classroom.
"Before I came to Chungshan, I was an ordinary teacher at Sungshan Primary School in Taipei," she recalls. "We were always dissatisfied with the performance of our weaker students, despite hours of after-class counseling. I was desperate to find more effective teaching methods for slow students. Then I heard about the program for the mentally retarded at Chungshan, and decided I might learn something if I joined it. Unfortunately, I discovered most of the other staff members there were just as inexperienced as I was."
Inexperience was offset by enthusiasm. Lin and her colleagues often worked until late in the evening sorting data and formulating teaching strategies. "We recorded everything the teachers said in classes and how the students responded," she says. "The organizations supporting the program sent experts to meet with us every week to discuss our progress. The meetings brought together doctors, psychologists, social workers, and teachers—everyone reviewing the issues based on their own special background. We not only learned more about education, we learned how to take volumes of accurate notes!"
Lin soon discovered that low intelligence was not the only problem she had to face in class. Mental retardation was frequently compounded by other difficulties. Some children had epilepsy, with seizures occurring as often as eight times in one morning. Others suffered from autism, language problems, emotional disorders, or aggressive personalities. Lin had to deal with wholly unexpected challenges, which sometimes combined to overwhelm her own emotions.
"It was heartbreaking not to be able to nurse some of those children back to normal health," she recalls. "There was one child with cerebral palsy I wanted to help walk, but after several days of trying I couldn't help him a bit. It turned out, of course, that he needed long-term therapy. Eventually, I realized that a teacher has limited powers, just like a doctor, and that all the educational techniques in the world still only cover a small part of the need."
In 1967, Lin was selected to accompany a government-sponsored study tour of Japan to observe its educational system. The tour provided her with little immediate information on teaching methods, but she did bring back home a useful assortment of reference works. She soon had an opportunity to apply the techniques described in the books at a special class at Chungshan School. Most of the students were retarded, with added conditions such as stuttering, drooling, autism, and inability to concentrate. After comparing her students with the textbook cases, she concluded that most language problems in the students were caused not so much by mental retardation as by oral muscle disorders.
"Since it was useless to ask them to twist or stretch their tongues, I could only train them through special planned exercises and games," she says. "I had them play games where they exhaled and felt the air as they breathed, which in turn taught them to adjust their oral muscles properly. In one case of stuttering, the main cause was psychological stress from the pressure of school work. He was an only child, so his mother saddled him with tremendous expectations. As soon as I advised her to stop assigning him extra homework after school and cooperate with my program, he began to gain confidence. I often gave him some teaching aids to take home, which he came to regard as a reward for good behavior. His stuttering ended after one year. All these successes were derived from the information in the reference books I brought home from Japan."
Lin offers another example of the techniques she has developed over the years: "Some students cannot put puzzles together. My way of teaching them is to give small hints and patiently guide them, repeating the procedure over and over again until they can do it themselves. The training is of course supplemented by rewards. But mere knowledge of teaching techniques is not enough for success in this field. There are thousands of small, unexpected things that must be learned by experience. Special education demands creativity, which is why many consider it an art as well as a science."
Chungshan School has developed a model environment in which retarded children can develop greater confidence and ability. Attention is given to physiological, psychological, social, and environmental factors in assisting each child's potential for achieving a more normal life. Greatest educational emphasis is placed on basic reading, writing, and arithmetic. While mildly retarded pupils can go directly into this stage, medium level students need "living education" first.
"How can mentally retarded children learn to read or write if they can't even eat, dress, or clean themselves?" Lin asks. "For medium or severely handicapped children we have basic survival classes. These pupils may never learn to read, but they can at least distinguish between the words 'noodles with soup' and 'fried noodles' when they are asked what they want to eat. And at least we can teach them how to avoid being hit by a car on the streets."
Parental attitudes toward their retarded children can present a whole universe of problems. Lin generally communicates well with the parents of her students, but a few remain stubborn. "Some of them respond to the mental handicap by spoiling their children, while others feel they have lost face by giving birth to a retarded child, and try to act as if the child doesn't even exist," she explains. "In many cases the families simply don't have the financial means to support a mentally deficient child. For the Chinese, who are especially concerned about how they appear to other people, a retarded child means a 'loss of face.' They have long dreamed of their children becoming doctors or rich merchants, so reality is sometimes almost impossible to acknowledge."
Chungshan teachers hold regular meetings or discussions with parents to overcome such attitudes. "We give them articles to read on the subject, and encourage them by pointing out that happiness in life is more important than status or knowledge," she says. "We also have the parents meet with other parents in similar situations for a mutually supportive exchange of ideas. Once parents can open their minds, they begin to cooperate and we can more easily carry out our programs."
Educational programs integrate stimulation, intensive instruction, and building confidence.
While Chungshan School was one of the first institutions to offer programs for the mentally handicapped, other schools were also doing their best to provide services for these children. In the 1960s, numerous schools added special classes for mildly retarded pupils whose I.Q. levels fell between 55 and 77. These children were classified as "teachable," and received training in basic reading, writing, and arithmetic. They also took art classes and general instruction in daily living.
By 1986, there were 269 primary schools and 79 junior high schools with special classes for mentally handicapped students. In addition, two schools in the south were exclusively set up for retarded children. Although programs thus far have concentrated overwhelmingly on mildly handicapped pupils, there are signs of including more severely retarded categories in the near future.
Professor Chen explains that optimism is possible in this respect because more sophisticated educational methods have been developed to help integrate retarded children into the regular school system. "The concept of 'mainstreaming' was first explored in 1968 by psychologists and educators in the United States," he says. "People came to realize that mildly retarded pupils could enter regular classes and receive education, which brought them into the mainstream of the educational system. It was a technique to prevent the retarded from being isolated from society, and it gave them a chance to live as ordinary children."
The concept of mainstreaming helped open school doors in Taiwan to both mildly and medium retarded children. The process was further speeded by the growing number of parents who began demanding better services from the government for their retarded children. Many of these concerned parents had already dealt with second-rate private organizations offering care, while others were distraught because they could not afford to pay for any sort of special services. The promulgation of the "National Education Law" in 1979, and the "Statute of Compulsory Attendance" in 1983 gave these parents a stronger legal status as well. These laws guaranteed the right of education to all children aged 6 to 15, and many parents saw no reason why their mentally handicapped children should not be included.
The educational system to accommodate all of Taiwan's retarded children is not yet in place, although progress is being made. Nevertheless, there is room for greater optimism about the future of these children in the work place. Chen says that all sorts of employment possibilities exist for mildly retarded individuals after they finish their schooling. Only the specific arrangements need to be worked out. This type of employment consists of monotonous jobs most people are unwilling to do, such as assembly line work.
"Somebody must fill these vacancies, and the mentally handicapped are a perfect choice," he says. "But there is a small problem. These students are about 15 years old when they graduate, so if they go to work they are classified as child labor. An appropriate solution is to follow the Japanese model, where vocational centers train retarded children for three more years so they can begin work at the age of 18."
But this form of special education requires trained professional teachers, and such manpower is still limited. Chen estimates that from 1989 to 1993, Taiwan will require approximately 2,400 special education teachers. Today, there are only four departments in local universities that grant degrees in this area, and each department can handle no more than 30 students—graduating only 120 teachers per year, far too few to meet demand. The government has therefore drawn on students in other teaching fields, who are certified to teach special education courses after taking 20 credits in the field. Once on the job, these teachers supplement their knowledge with short-term training courses sponsored by the government. Professionals in the field also attend in order to update their know-how.
"I welcome the government policy, even though it is a stop-gap measure," Chen says. "But I hope those who have this education really make use of it. I fear many will earn the diploma, but never go anywhere near a retarded child. What we need are teachers with a truly professional attitude, and the dedication to help those who need help." Dedication is in fact needed from all members of society. Providing for these children, who through no fault of their own are so disadvantaged, is a measure not only of economic wealth, but also of ethical responsibility.