Learning problems in the classroom—Prevention and remediation

252

Journal of School Psychology

papers report procedures which rely on principles consistent with the organization development approach to consultation, the editors fail to point this out. Although this sort of weakness is not fatal to the book, it could have made a more profound contribution if more attention had been devoted to showing how a conceptual framework helps to integrate these papers. Joel Meyers Temple University Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19122

Frostig, M., & Maslow, P. Learning problems in the classroom-Prevention and Remediation. New York: Grune & Stratton, 1973. Pp vii + 353, $11.50 cloth. This is a book that, with respect to its preventive features, is very much needed by school people who continue to question the need for sensori-motor and perceptual skills training for children other than those with clearly established learning disabilities. Within these covers the training of such skills, conceptualized as basic psychological abilities training, has been given a broader and more positive context than the average school person has previously experienced. Frostig and Maslow have written this volume for teachers, with the hope that it will serve both as a textbook and as a practical handbook to prevent, as well as to remediate, learning problems. This reviewer would strongly recommend the volume to school psychologists, especially those psychologists whose training or clinical experience has not included extensive or intensive exposure to children with learning problems. Broad and wide-ranging materials are presented here to the reader in 19 chapters divided into five parts. Part I speaks to the causes of learning disabilities; to the application of neurophysiological research findings to the classroom indicating that learning results from interaction of environmental stimuli of all kinds, on-going states of the brain, and the internal/external activities of the individual; and to teaching children who are economically deprived and/or culturally different. Part II comprises an explication of four psychological approaches to instruction; these are the behavioristic, psychoanalytic, humanistic, and cognitive developmental. Ps~t III presents a child development point of view for the teacher together with a view of teacher evaluation of, and programming for, the learner. Part IV discusses the training of basic psychological abilities such as psychomotor coordination, visual perception, auditory perception, language and psycholinguistics, and the higher cognitive functions of thought processes. Part V essentially sets forth methods of teaching reading, writing, and arithmetic that train basic psychological abilities concurrently with academic learning. These chapters are presented in a style easy to read and at an introductory level of difficulty. Many potentially troublesome terms are clearly defined. Summaries and helpful charts are included. As a whole this is a helpful compendium or resource manual for the teacher, curriculum specialist, administrator, and school psychologist as qualified above, especially for four reasons. First, it conceptualizes "basic psychological abilities training" and presents excellent content coverage toward this end. The basic abilities are comprehensive ranging from psychomotor to higher thought processes, including abilities that are too frequently ignored, such as auditory perception. Second, it offers a treasure of techniques to which school people can turn for assistance in training basic abilities after detailed educational diagnosis. Third, many potentially productive methods are suggested for training basic abilities within the context of academic subject learning. Fourth, it stresses systematic preventive ability training within the framework of the regular curriculum as well as individualized remedial ability training. Some sacrifice of depth obviously was made to present this wide range of materials, much of which comes from clinical practice and not from hard research.

Reviews o f S c h o o l Psychological Materials

25 3

This book should have a positive influence upon earlier works of the senior author, encouraging a more appropriate use of these. It gives the classroom teacher (its intended primary audience) a larger conceptual frame within which to fit meaningfully the Frostig exercises for visual perception development; these exercises have been long and sadly misused and abused by many who employ them. The authors have veered sharply away from the notion of testing pupils to diagnose specific learning deficits, which is followed by specific and fragmented exercises in response to the deficit. Neurophysiological research, they assert, supports the "necessity of considerin~ the functioning of the total child when amelioration is attempted." They argue strongly for consideration of the total environment-interpersonal and socioemotional factors-interacting with the total learner. An asset of the book worth mentioning because it responds to an oft-voiced criticism of basic psychological abilities training by school people is the consideration given transfer of training to academic subject areas. This is treated both generally and with concrete examples relevant to the teaching of reading and mathematics. For this reviewer there are some major shortcomings in the volume, shortcomings of omission and commission: 1. Very early the authors set forth their explication of the implications for instruction of four psychological theories. As indicated above, these were the behavioristic, psychoanalytic, humanistic, and cognitive developmental. Nevertheless, there is not a substantial follow through in the remainder of the text: (a) no real unified theory of instruction, which is hinted at by the authors, evolves out of these four theories; and (b) no demonstration eventuates as to how evaluation, programming, instruction in basic abilities associated with the different academic subjects, etc., would be conducted differentially under each of the four theoretical approaches. A more substantial effort here in one direction or another would have improved the organizational structure of the book. 2. At a time when the idea of "the clinical team in the school" or "the school team" is taking vigorous hold, it is regrettable that no effort was made by the authors to establish the network of professional relationships within which the teacher has to work. No mention is made of the school psychologist or other supportive personnel in the school setting. Lists of psychological tests are given without explanation as to who is responsible for them. No effort was made to establish where the school psychologist is expected to end and further educational diagnosis by the educational specialist or teacher is to begin as they attempt to effectuate a relationship between diagnosis and intervention or instruction. 3. Today there is a strong tendency by many to label all pupil difficulties as learning disabilities or learning problems. Frostig and Maslow do not help us to discriminate either as they fail to delineate clearly and distinguish learning problems from other types of problems. The book's strengths outweigh its shortcomings; it should prove helpful to audiences indicated above. These authors know their field well, especially as projected in Parts IV and V, which really constitute the heart of the book. John H. Jackson Milwaukee Public Schools Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53208

HaUahan, D. P., & Cruickshank, W. M., Psychoeducational foundations of learning disabilities. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1973. Pp. xiv + 317, $9.95 cloth. The authors' purpose in developing this scholarly work would seem to be the professionalization of the concept of learning disabilities. As the authors state it, "This