Down Syndrome: The Measure of Intelligence

by Vicki Vila from Thoroughly Modern Messy:
What is considered intelligent varies with culture. For example, when asked to sort, the Kpelle people (a tribal ethnic group in Liberia and southern Guinea ) take a functional approach. A Kpelle participant stated “the knife goes with the orange because it cuts it.” When asked how a fool would sort, they sorted linguistically, putting the knife with other implements and the orange with other foods, which is the style considered intelligent in other cultures.
            Credit: Wikipedia: Glick (1975) reported in Resnick, L. (1976). The Nature of Intelligence. Hillsdale, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 

Here’s what this has to do with my 4-year-old son with Down syndrome:

Because of his genetic anomaly, Trisomy 21, which means possessing three copies of the 21^st chromosome instead of two, my son and others like him have been deemed “intellectually disabled.” Or, a term that is thankfully falling out of favor even in medical circles, mentally retarded.

To come to this conclusion, researchers and psychologists have administered IQ tests that by and large are incapable of accurately determining the true abilities of people with Down syndrome. There are a number of reasons why they aren’t completely accurate, even though they may be the best tools available. But the most obvious is that they fail to take into account that people with Down syndrome cannot often easily express to others all that they know, either linguistically or through other means of communication. Their receptive language skills (the ability to receive and process information) are typically much stronger than their expressive language skills (their ability to give back).

 

Copyright © jaya vijayan, via Flickr

$2.96 million grant to fund research on genes that cause Down syndrome

from Deseret News:

A team of University of Utah investigators has received a $2.96 million grant to fund research on genes that cause Down syndrome and intellectual disability.

The team will study genes and brain structure, as well as the circuitry and chemical signals that lead to the development of Down syndrome.

"We'll be taking a revolutionary first look at how brain circuits are related to behavior, intelligence and brain function," said University of Utah USTAR professor Julie Korenberg. USTAR is a state-funded initiative to support technology and science research in Utah by recruiting top scientists to Utah institutions, as well as funding the construction of state-of-the-art science facilities for research.

Korenberg said this approach to studying Down syndrome is unprecedented and integrates genetics, neuroimaging and cognitive testing into the research. The U.'s team represents internationally recognized researchers from more than 10 different departments. Local families, coordinated through the Utah Down Syndrome Foundation, will participate in the study.

"Our state has an amazing network of support, which includes families, community members and professionals," said Ann Marie Christensen, UDSF board president.

The grant is co-funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke at the National Institutes of Health.

Down syndrome affects more than 400,000 individuals in the United States and is the most common cause of cognitive disability and Alzheimer's disease. There have been significant advances in the understanding of Down syndrome, however, most of those studies have been conducted on mice with an equivalent of the condition. The U.'s study will be looking at the condition in humans.

Team members will also include co-principal investigator and imaging expert Guido Gerig, associate professor of radiology E.K. Jeong, professor of cardiology Jeffrey Anderson, professor of pediatrics John Carey, and professor of pediatrics Nicola Longo.