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154
Annual Report of the London County Council, 1911.
Substituted speech—24 cases—mostly found in the infants' departments; easy sounds being
used for more difficult ones, for instance in 11 cases R was replaced by W or L, in 4 cases voiced and
voiceless consonants were not distinguished but used interchangeably as B and P or T and D.
In the worst cases, commonly called idioglossia, these rules are present, but sometimes there is no
clue to the speech at all. These cases are usually inattentive, but gradually improve. Such bad cases
are:—
S. McH.—Girl, aged 5½. Speech fluent, but quite unintelligible. Considerable irritability at not being understood,
hears well and understands all paid to her. Marked lack of attention when attempts are made to teach her
sounds. Vowels pronounced perfectly, but B=P, soft C=TH., d=Kee or ee. K=tee. W=Ki-oo. Z=eth. Eight
months later, after careful individual teaching, she read, recited well, and was intelligible, but still altered certain
consonants, replacing s. by t., labial b by voiceless p, and so on.
E. V.—Boy, aged 8. Quite unintelligible at present, said to be improving. Is very inattentive ; can produce
sounds correctly, but introduces T or D for many consonants and quite irregularly , also interchanging b and d, fat=
tat, bad=bab, very=derry, blink=derlink, bring=dring ; voioed and voiceless gutturals are also replaced by dental,
and aspirants omitted ; y is transposed to 1.
The unclassified defects are illustrated by—
J. M.,a boy, aged 5½. Been 2 years in the schools, will not talk unless cajoled or threatened, cannot read the
smallest words, never talks unless spoken to and then speaks with great distinctness. All his sounds are perfect. Intelligence
apparently normal.
S. P., a boy 6½, of Polish extraction, 14 months in school, for six months never uttered a word, sits motionless
and inattentive. Can produce all the sounds perfectly and knows alphabet. If addressed, appears etonedeaf, taking
no notice of questions or directions, now talks a little to the teacher, but never to other children. He is said to talk
at home. Hearing and understanding would appear to be perfect, and he seems otherwise normal, but there is apparently
complete lack of desire for speech.
J. M., girl, aged 12. At 4 years of age had an attack of encephalitis during which she lost the use of her limbs
and speech. She could not speak till eight years of age ; now is bad at reading and speaking, having attained the
standard of a six year old. There is no lack of intelligence in other respects, but her home surroundings are bad.
Some few of these developmental defects which ultimately come right would well repay careful
daily study and throw light on educational methods. They belong to the class of cases which require
to be studied in a residential observational school, for which London has probably greater need than
any other place, from the amount of material to be handled and classified here.
The stammerers exceed in number those mentally defective for whom a comparatively expensive
education is provided. They are, however, more valuable members of the community. They all require
encouragement and suggestion by direct assertion, sympathy and patience till they overcome their
difficulties. Their general health must be kept at the highest level. They could in the majority of
case be cured of their defect in a few weeks, or perhaps months' time, and yet there is no provision for
the treatment of such cases within reach of the elementary school children in London.
The SemiBlind.
The treatment of children too blind for ordinary schooling is included under the Education (Blind
and Deaf Children) Act of 1893. It has usually been taken as including them in the ordinary blind teaching
with Braille type and so on. This is educationally unsound, if it be taken that they are to be educated
as if the eyes are of no use to them. The smallest amount of vision even if it only be the perception
of direction of light is of some use in life. There is, however, a considerable amount of blindness of
such a nature that ordinary schooling is largely lost, whilst education by the usual blind methods is
still of less value for the purposes of later life, vision remaining of considerable use even in work. With
the increased care of children these cases may be expected to diminish in number. Ten years ago a
census of the causes of blindness was made in the blind schools. It has been regularly repeated since.
Ophthalmia neonatorum accounted for 30 to 40 per cent. It is impossible yet to assert that this has
materially diminished, as the proportion of semi-blind admitted has increased as a result of more careful
examination. The 25 years' agitation of ophthalmologists has at last resulted in the Local Government
Board making the disease notifiable, and it may be expected that blindness from this cause will drop
to one-twentieth of its present amount in the next decennium. Cases of semi-blindness, too common
at present from the same cause, will also diminish. The common cases of corneal scarring, due to
phlyctenula, the results of ill-nutrition and want of houseroom and playground space, whilst they
result in diminished wage earning power, seldom bring children into the category of blind.
High myopia except in the purely congenital non-progressive cases which are too exceptional to
base general treatment on, has been recognised as requiring special educational means. Any child
coming into school with noticeable myopia requires most careful consideration, and a child who in the
earlier years of school life presents several dioptres of myopia, should be taken out of the ordinary
school. In any case the condition of the eyes may be expected to get worse, the myopia will increase
during the whole period of growth. The most that can be done is to retard deterioration. The dangers
pictured by German writers, and so often adopted by English writers and applied to myopia generally
may be said to apply only to this special class. Whilst the so-called school myopia may be dismissed
as a danger to vision, the danger of school or any near eye work for these juvenile myopes is considerable.
The eyes appear weak in structure, " slack set up " as a Yorkshire weaver described them. Deterioration
in such eyes to the extent of blindness is more common than in any other class. In my own
experience it has occurred from haemorrhage or from detachment of the retina before full growth was
accomplished.
High Myopia
classes.
The High Myopia School, described in previous reports, was started experimentally. Two
others are about to be opened. The experience has merely confirmed our knowledge, and now the
experience acquired of its success makes provision for this class of child an urgent necessity.