People with Down Syndrome show a specific developmental profile
with strengths in social understanding and visual learning and
memory, and more difficulties with motor processes, speech and
language, and auditory-vocal short-term memory. It is important
that parents, practitioners and teachers know this and adapt
interventions and educational approaches to take account of this
particular profile.
This is the only book to date that explains the developmental
profile of people with Down Syndrome from its many different
angles. It covers a range of perspectives, including the biology,
psychology, speech and language, health care, and social competence
of both children and adults with Down Syndrome. All the information
is gathered and placed in the context of the neuro-genetic science
that is developing around this area.
Table of Content
List of contributors.
Foreword.
1 Specifi city in Down Syndrome: A New Therapeutic Criterion
(J. Perera).
2 Down Syndrome: From Pathology to Pathogenesis (Krystyna E.
Wisniewski, Elizabeth Kida, Adam A. Golabek, Mariusz Walus, Ausma
Rabe, Sonia Palminiello, Giorgio Albertini).
3 Ageing and Susceptibility to Alzheimer’s Disease in Down
Syndrome (David Patterson).
4 Down Syndrome Specifi city in Health Issues (Alberto Rasore
Quartino).
5 Neuropsychological Aspects of Down Syndrome (Lynn
Nadel).
6 The Contribution of Memory to the Behavioural Phenotype of
Down Syndrome (Darlynne A. Devenny).
7 Specifi c Language Profi les in Down Syndrome and other
Genetic Syndromes of Mental Retardation (Jean-Adolphe
Rondal).
8 Total versus Partial Specifi city in the Behaviour of Persons
with Down Syndrome (Robert M. Hodapp).
9 The Emergence of a Syndrome-specifi c Personality Profi le in
Young Children with Down Syndrome (Deborah J. Fidler).
10 Learning Diffi culties in Down Syndrome (Giovanni Maria
Guazzo).
11 Off to a Good Start: Early Intervention for Infants and Young
Children with Down Syndrome and their Families (Donna
Spiker).
12 Family Setting in Down Syndrome (Salvatore Soresi, Laura
Nota, Lea Ferrari).
Conclusions.
Index.
About the author
Prof. Jean A. Rondal, University of Liège,
Belgium
Prof. Rondal has studied the education of mentally retarded people
for over 40 years. He has won multiple awards for his outstanding
scientific research at international conferences, and taught at
several universities in Europe and North America. He co-founded the
European Down Syndrome Association and was president from 1997 to
2000. He is currently a member of the Directorial Board of Down
Syndrome International.
Dr. Juan Perera, University of the Balearic Islands,
Spain
Dr. Perera has attained worldwide recognition for his conferences,
research and publications. A guest lecturer at several European and
American universities, he has dedicated himself to isolating,
studying and describing specific aspects of Down syndrome. He was
president of the World Down Syndrome Congress held in Madrid in
1997. He has also been a member of the Scientific Committee for the
last four world congresses and has organised six international
symposiums on the different aspects of Down syndrome in
Majorca.