Learning barrier in classrooms
Learning barrier in classrooms
RITH BASU
CLASS ACT: Participants of the study on learning disorder among schoolchildren. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya
Characters like Ishan Awasthi of Taare Zameen Par are not difficult to find in city schools, a study by the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) has revealed.
Over 30 per cent of the 25 Class V students who took part in the study, conducted last year in association with St Mary’s Orphanage and Day School, had some sort of learning disorder. The performances of the students in a programme called Fast ForWord were monitored over three months.
“Auditory or visual disorders, caused by both hemispheres of the brain not developing simultaneously, is a common deterrent to academic proficiency. The problem of every child with this disorder may not be as acute as Ishan’s, but it comes in the way of him doing well in class,” said D. Dutta Roy of ISI’s Psychology Research Unit.
He stressed the importance of detecting these problems early. “We used a web-based learning tool developed by neurologists from the University of California and Rurgers-Newark University. Problems were presented to the kids in the form of animation clips and the computer changed the difficulty level according to a child’s capacity. The computers were linked to a server in California, which processed data real time,” Dutta Roy added.
One of the participants, 11-year-old Saptarshi Ghosh (name changed) had an attention problem, which was traced to dyslexia. “He used to sit and watch what others were doing instead of concentrating on his own monitor and headphones. After treatment, his grades have improved significantly,” said Anjan K. Basu of Step One Foundation for Child and Youth Welfare, which did the fieldwork for ISI.
The heads of most city schools feel that a few students in every class suffer from learning disorders. Most of the top schools have counsellors taking care of these children.
“Five to six students in every class of about 40 could have learning disorders. There is a girl who used to move around the room while a class was on and throw away things kept on the teacher’s desk. After counselling, she won an academic award last year,” said Malini Bhagat, the principal of Mahadevi Birla Girls’ High School.
Dutta Roy of ISI said talks were on to organise a seminar next month at the institute to present the findings of the study before principals and parents.
RITH BASU
CLASS ACT: Participants of the study on learning disorder among schoolchildren. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya
Characters like Ishan Awasthi of Taare Zameen Par are not difficult to find in city schools, a study by the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) has revealed.
Over 30 per cent of the 25 Class V students who took part in the study, conducted last year in association with St Mary’s Orphanage and Day School, had some sort of learning disorder. The performances of the students in a programme called Fast ForWord were monitored over three months.
“Auditory or visual disorders, caused by both hemispheres of the brain not developing simultaneously, is a common deterrent to academic proficiency. The problem of every child with this disorder may not be as acute as Ishan’s, but it comes in the way of him doing well in class,” said D. Dutta Roy of ISI’s Psychology Research Unit.
He stressed the importance of detecting these problems early. “We used a web-based learning tool developed by neurologists from the University of California and Rurgers-Newark University. Problems were presented to the kids in the form of animation clips and the computer changed the difficulty level according to a child’s capacity. The computers were linked to a server in California, which processed data real time,” Dutta Roy added.
One of the participants, 11-year-old Saptarshi Ghosh (name changed) had an attention problem, which was traced to dyslexia. “He used to sit and watch what others were doing instead of concentrating on his own monitor and headphones. After treatment, his grades have improved significantly,” said Anjan K. Basu of Step One Foundation for Child and Youth Welfare, which did the fieldwork for ISI.
The heads of most city schools feel that a few students in every class suffer from learning disorders. Most of the top schools have counsellors taking care of these children.
“Five to six students in every class of about 40 could have learning disorders. There is a girl who used to move around the room while a class was on and throw away things kept on the teacher’s desk. After counselling, she won an academic award last year,” said Malini Bhagat, the principal of Mahadevi Birla Girls’ High School.
Dutta Roy of ISI said talks were on to organise a seminar next month at the institute to present the findings of the study before principals and parents.
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