Disabled children's integration in school: From social representation to subjectivity

The study of disabled children's integration in school was not often carried out by objective tests. As a consequence, many authors were concerned with social representation of the disabled child better than with his/her comfort and cognitive needs. The aim of this study was to evaluate integration in school of 14 disabled children during a peculiar experience: a stage for memory improvement was carried out during class time. The subjects were divided into three working groups, one group for children aged 8.6 - 13.11 years: mean 10.8 (7 participants), one group for children aged 7.7 - 9.10 years, mean 8.9 (3 participants) and one group for children aged 7.6 - 8.7 years, mean 8.1 (4 participants). They all attended primary school except one child who attended Italian middle school. All the children accepted willingly the stage and actively took part into the proposed work; at the end of the stage (3 months for total 60 hours) visual memory and verbal memory were improved (p<0.005 and <0.001 respectively). Children, behaviour according to integration in school, was studied by a well experienced questionnaire (SEDS): similar values were obtained before and after the stage. These results suggest that selectioned subjects may work outside general class during some hours a week without detriment of their capacity to socialize and to integrate in school.