The present study comprised an analysis and comparison of the language performance of educable mentally retarded and normal children at mental age levels six through 10 years. Both syntactic and functional performance variables were investigated. The results indicate language performance differences between the two groups with the primary discriminators being hesitation phenomena (false starts, filled pauses, and repeats) and clausal constructions (relative and subordinate clauses), resulting in a higher sentence elaboration level for normal children.

A revised version of Berko’s test of morphology was presented to 30 educable mentally retarded public school children, six each from the Mental Age (MA) groups 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10. Samples of free speech were also elicited from these children. The features tested were compared to the same features in the free speech to see if the test could predict the occurrence or the nonoccurrence of errors in the free speech. Correlational analysis suggested that this was not the case. The conclusion was drawn that the paradigm itself, whether it used nonsense syllables or real words as eliciting stimuli, was not useful in testing development of bound morphemes in educable mentally retarded children.

Several states and the United States have laws that exempt persons who have mental retardation from the death penalty and other severe sentences. Two recent murder cases in Indiana, which has such a law, illustrate some of the problems in applying it. The characteristics of the two defendants were quite similar, but one defendant was found to have mental retardation and was exempted from the death penalty and the other was not. The disparity was attributed to differences in the assessment of adaptive behavior and to general stereotypes of people who have mental retardation. Equal application of sentencing limitation laws requires greater involvement of professionals with specialized training and experience in mental retardation.

A survey of experts in mental retardation was conducted to assess the forthcoming Taxonomy of Community Living Skills, a guide for curriculum developers and administrators. Items in five domains (personal maintenance and development, homemaking and community life, vocational, leisure, and travel) were rated. Responses were generally favorable. Comments and suggestions made by the experts provided a basis for a revision of the taxonomy and its theoretical exposition.

Berko's test of morphology was administered to two groups of educable mentally retarded public school boys who were matched on chronological age and mental age respectively to groups of normal public school boys. Results were analysed using teachers' responses as criteria for " correctness ". In general, neither group of EMRs performed as well as the normal boys. Criticisms of the test on the basis of the obtained results as well as suggestions for modifications and further research needs are presented.