Attitude to the special education student with reference to social integration in early adulthood--studies in a rural district

This paper deals with cognition of attitudes to pupils from a special school for mentally retarded children in a rural district on the base of using polarity profiles. Although children from Secondary Schools and adults have little understanding of the retarded children's handicaps, they do not appear to hold one-sided stereotyped opinions and in the areas of social behavior and ways of working positive attributes of the personality are emphasized. In comparison with this results recorded self-assessments of former pupils of special schools, together with the assessments of others, in real working situations show a satisfactory level of integration, although after initial difficulties. Opportunities for advice and care are considered necessary, even after pupils have left school.