Pillay, Rajam Prs. (1995). Effect of Individualized Training Programme on Communication Skills, and certain associated variables in the Mentally Retarded. Unpublished. Ph.D., Special Education. University of Kerala.

The objectives of the study were: (1) To measure the level of Communication Skills in the Mentally Retarded and to compare the levels of Communication Skills between relevant sub-samples. (2) To measure the level of Motor and Socio-emotional Skills in the Mentally Retarded and to compare the levels of Motor and Socio-emotional Skills between relevant sub-samples.  (3) To measure the effect of the planned Individualized Training Programme on level of Communication Skills and on Motor and Socio-emotional Skills in the Mentally Retarded and for sub-samples classified on the basis of degree of Retardation and Time of intervention.

Relevant groups were compared by the application of appropriate statistical procedures to determine the effect of the Individualized Training Progamme.

The major findings of the study were: (1) The educable Mentally Retarded Group had significantly higher scores than the trainable Mentally Retarded Children for Oral, Reading, and Writing Skills and Motor and Socio-emotional Skills. (2) The Experimental Groups had significantly higher scores than the Control Groups in post Tests and Measurement, within the subgroups – educable Mentally Retarded, early intervention, and late intervention groups – in Oral, Reading, Writing Skills and Motor and Socio-emotional Skills. (3) The effect of Individualized Training Programme in early intervention group was higher than the late intervention group in Oral, Reading, Writing Skills, Motor and Socio-emotional skills.

Keyword(s): Individualized Training Programme , Mentally Retarded