Section 5.—Estimates as to Numbers of Mental Defectives.

In the absence of a complete system of notification, which the Committee consider is urgently necessary, any estimate as to the number of feeble-minded to be dealt with must be largely a matter of conjecture.

From the annual report of the Education Department, however, interesting information is available showing the ages of the pupils in the several classes of the primary schools. The following table is considered worthy of reprinting in this report, for from the figures it supplies some idea may be formed of the number of backward and feeble-minded children attending primary schools. Children of extremely low-grade mentality do not attend school as a rule, while feeble-minded children higher in the scale, discouraged by the unsuitable course of instruction and lack of sympathetic treatment, tend to leave school early. Hence the number of feeble-minded children in any community must be considerably larger than the school records indicate.

The following table shows the ages of pupils in the several classes of the primary schools. The numbers between the heavy horizontal lines represent those that, beginning school under six years of age spend an average of two years in the preparatory classes and one year in each of the standards. The numbers above the upper heavy lines have progressed at a greater rate than that indicated, and those below the lower lines have either begun school later or have progressed more slowly.

The most arresting feature in the table ([p. 13]) is the large number of children in classes lower than should be expected at their age. Thus the preparatory classes had 12,693 pupils over the age of eight years. This number is certainly a considerable reduction on the total for the previous year, but it still represents no less than 18 per cent. of the total roll of those classes. Particular attention is being directed to the problem of retardation, and in some of the larger centres special classes for retardates have been established.

It will also be seen that the actual number of children retarded three years or more, including the preparatory classes and up to Standard III—beyond which the higher grades of the feeble-minded do not progress as a rule—is 4,917 out of a total of 212,709 children attending school, or a trifle over 2 per cent. In some countries three years' retardation is regarded as primâ facie evidence of mental deficiency. Probably New Zealand has much the same proportion of mental defectives as other countries. This is stated by Goddard to be between 2 and 3 per cent. of the population.

A recent survey made by the Education Department of the children attending the primary schools in a typical area disclosed the fact that out of a total school population of 16,499 no fewer than 950 pupils, constituting 5.7 per cent. of the total school enrolment, are retarded two years or more. Some of these may be classed as dull normal; some may be suffering from remediable physical defects; others may be merely the victims of unfavourable circumstances, while others again may be what Burt calls "late bloomers"—i.e., cases of slow development. Many of them, however, will ultimately prove to be mental defectives. Deficiency sometimes does not reveal itself definitely until the pre-adolescent period or early adolescence.

Of the total number on the school registers 266, or 1.6 per cent., are retarded three years or more. It is interesting to note from information supplied by Mr. N. R. McKenzie, Inspector of Schools, that this is exactly the percentage of defectives discovered in the schools of a section of the city of Toronto as the result of a psychological survey. It also corresponds with the number in the Vancouver city schools, where nineteen special classes are operating with a school population of 19,000—i.e., one class per 1,000 pupils.

For the purpose of this report a preliminary survey from information supplied by social workers, school-teachers, police, Hospital Boards, &c., has been made by the Education Department of what may be regarded as the obviously feeble-minded and epileptic cases known to exist outside institutions in the Dominion.

The following figures show the number of such cases reported, but these figures are incomplete—the actual number must be greater:—

	At 24th June, 1924.
	Feeble-minded.		Epileptic.
Age.	Male.	Female.	Male.	Female.
Under sixteen years	524	285	41	43
Over sixteen years	305	203	35	31
	829	488	76	74

Recapitulation.
Males	905
Females	562
	1,467

Table showing Ages of Pupils in the several Classes of the Primary Schools.

Ages.	Class P.		Standard I.		Standard II.		Standard III.		Standard IV.		Standard V.		Standard VI.		Standard VII.		Totals.
Ages.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.
5 and under 6	7,923	7,334	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	7,923	7,334
6 " 7	10,776	10,356	73	72	3	2	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	10,852	10,430
7 " 8	10,324	9,291	2,021	2,047	111	141	3	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	12,459	11,480
8 " 9	4,970	4,183	5,696	5,413	1,729	1,884	113	135	3	2	..	..	..	..	..	..	12,511	11,617
9 " 10	1,400	1,118	4,443	3,732	5,011	5,152	1,447	1,531	102	66	..	4	1	..	..	..	12,404	11,603
10 " 11	393	277	1,657	1,162	4,210	3,624	4,570	4,749	1,311	1,439	82	108	6	4	..	..	12,229	11,363
11 " 12	112	107	487	383	1,814	1,461	4,202	3,827	4,166	4,214	1,123	1,202	93	95	..	1	11,997	11,290
12 " 13	54	30	146	91	628	425	2,268	1,860	3,890	3,515	3,540	3,664	1,020	1,064	3	3	11,549	10,652
13 " 14	18	13	51	24	201	125	935	669	2,129	1,764	3,766	3,271	3,255	3,277	20	42	10,375	9,185
14 " 15	7	5	10	9	58	42	235	139	790	500	1,848	1,499	3,101	2,883	34	47	6,083	5,124
15 " 16	2	1	2	6	12	6	36	26	148	81	532	349	1,454	1,010	23	37	2,209	1,516
16 " 17	1	..	1	2	..	2	8	6	11	13	61	30	194	114	3	15	279	182
Over 17	..	..	..	1	..	..	1	..	..	3	8	8	25	13	1	3	35	28
Totals (1923)	35,980	32,715	14,587	12,942	13,777	12,864	13,818	12,943	12,550	11,597	10,960	10,135	9,149	8,460	84	148	110,905	101,804

Section 6.—Study of Feeble-minded and Delinquent Children.

Methods employed in other Countries.

In many parts of America and in some European countries the problem of the mentally backward and feeble-minded child receives close attention. The juvenile delinquent is also carefully studied. For children who fail to make good in school, or who are guilty of frequent misdemeanours, a system of intelligence testing and psychological analysis is carried out. A study is also made of family history and environmental influences. Children who are "maladjusted to their environment" are kept under survey with a view to finding what is the difficulty and how it can be overcome. To quote from the "Mental Hygiene Bulletin," published by the National Committee for Mental Hygiene for the United States of America: "Children showing definite problems are selected for more intensive study and treatment. The grossly mentally handicapped child, who is likely to become a social problem if not properly dealt with in childhood; the psychopathic and mentally maladjusted child, who later in life may develop mental disease; the child manifesting conduct disorders which may be the beginning of a delinquent or criminal career; the retarded child; the epileptic; the child with speech-defect or with some physical disability; the child with gross personality difficulties; the exceptionally brilliant child—all present problems that demand attention during the child's school life. Such children are given a thorough physical examination, a careful psychiatric study, and an individual psychological examination, including a variety of psychological tests, not only to determine the child's intelligence rating, but, in so far as possible, his special abilities and disabilities. A social study is made of the child's home, school, and other environments to determine what factors may have unfavourably influenced the development of the child, and what forces may be utilized in securing the child's adjustments. The results of all these studies are given to the school authorities with recommendations relative to the needed adjustments."

In New Zealand there is need of increased facilities for the study of the individual child, and the services of psychological experts should be available in order to group children according to their mental equipment and special requirements. Only those fully qualified to estimate accurately all the evidence available are fitted to decide the destiny of children.

Herein lies the danger of relying exclusively upon the use of mental tests.

Mental tests are of definite value in enabling the observer to arrive at a conclusion regarding the general mental development of the subject, or to investigate some particular psychological function. A too exclusive dependence upon the result of the application of these tests, especially by a layman, would invariably lead to error. A comprehensive survey is necessary, taking into consideration such factors as family history, environment, physical condition, behaviour, temperament, &c. The observation, possibly for a considerable period of time, of an expert psychiatrist or psychologist may be necessary in order to arrive at an accurate estimate of the mental ability of the subject.

In this regard we quote from Tredgold, "Mental Deficiency": "There are, however, very many exceptions, particularly when we are dealing with the milder grades of deficiency, so that if serial tests are depended upon for the diagnosis of these cases they may be, and often are, very fallacious. I may say here that although it would, of course, be extremely valuable if we could devise tests which would accurately measure mental capacity, particularly that capacity and those qualities which are needed for social adaptation and maintenance, we have not yet succeeded in doing so. The mental factors which may be involved in this capacity for social adaptation, and which render the individual in need of care, supervision, or control, are many and varied, and there is even some danger that too much reliance upon serial tests may distract from the adequate investigation of these qualities and defects and lead to totally erroneous conclusions."

There is no doubt, however, that in the hands of competent observers properly applied tests afford information of great value in assessing mental and moral capacity, but the observer must be competent.