DESCRIPTORS IDENTIFIERS

A study was undertaken at the West Virginia School for the Deaf to test the assumption that the modes of thought of deaf children could be improved, and that improvement in concept formation would result in improvement in testable areas. Sixteen primary school children of approximately equal ability were selected and paired to form the contrcl and experimental groups and attend one-half hour daily labs. The control lab provided intensive language training in an informal situation, and attempted to motivate children through experience. The experimental or thinking lab, which was non-verbal, worked in the preoperational and concrete operational stages of development. The child's experiences were used as foundations of all logical thought and concept building with various thought games being employed (e.g. Concentration). Children in both groups were tested in September and May of the school year and will be retested. A careful comparison of test results should provide much information about deaf thinking, and hopefully, a new method of teaching. (GD