Who are the slow-learners?

                                       Who are the slow-learners?

Slow-learners are those who fail in school because of their low intellectual abilities. Their IQ ranges from 55 / 60 to 85 / 90. They have a wide range of abilities and a variety of characteristics depending on their background.

In the present system of education, students are identified as slow learners purely on the basis of their poor performance in the examination, which, in most cases deviates from what is taught. Consequently even talented students are sometimes misconstrued as dullards. So, a slow learner is one whose performance is very dismal in the examination. He is neither mentally retarded nor is on the lower rungs of intelligence scale.

The reasons for some students learning slowly are innumerable. One of the main reasons is the `no detention system' at the primary and upper primary level. Students are promoted to higher classes on the basis of attendance, even if they score low marks. The heterogeneous composition (mental age & physical age) of over crowded classes in all government run schools and private schools also produces slow learners. So the incapacity of the teacher to pay individual attention to a student over a long period makes a student a slow learner. A slow learner is thus a product of negligence of school at different stages of learning, inspite of his innate capacity to learn.

There are some problems very specific to the individual. Ill health, lack of concentration, less exposure to the subject taught and parental background are some causative factors for slow learning. Talents differ. A childs capacity to learn different subjects varies from student to student. For instance, learning mathematics is a knack. All students do not do well in mathematics just as they do in other subjects. While other subjects can be learnt at any stage, it is very difficult for students to learn mathematics without the basics. Students show interest in the subjects they like and neglect other subjects if not taken care of. An urban child learns languages like English well while a rural child cannot, however well the teacher tries to explain.