Social skills have been widely recognized as important components of the schooling process, especially for students with mental deficiency. A review of the literature has shown scant research focusing on these students' inclusion in the regular school system. Considering this situation, the present study aimed: to evaluate social performance (social abilities and behavior problems) and academic achievements of students who were included in the regular school system, by comparing students with mental deficiency with their peers who had high and low academic achievement (HA and LA, respectively). Thirty teachers evaluated 120 students (40 with mental deficiency included in the regular system, 40 with high and 40 with low academic achievement) from preschool to the 8th grade elementary level using the Social Skills Rating System, originally produced in the United States (Social Skills Rating System, SSRS, by Gresham & Elliott, 1990) in its Brazilian version (SSRS-BR) adapted by Bandeira et al. (n.d.). After descriptive and inferential statistical analyses, the results showed that: concerning academic performance, the three groups showed significantly differences. The HA had the highest scores, followed LA and finally by MD; regarding social skills, HA scores were above the standard average, differing from LA and MD; these last two groups differed only as to the Assertiveness and Self-defense factors. Considering behavior problems, HA scores were below the standard average, differing from the two other groups which showed no difference between groups. Academic and interpersonal difficulties for both groups LA and MD suggest concomitance of these variables, pointing to similar educational needs for both groups, which reinforces the importance of promoting social skills for success in school and for an effective inclusion process.
social skills; mental deficiency and inclusion; special education
