[사건속으로] “My IQ is 71.” Do you know someone who is borderline intelligent?

◀ Anchor ▶

People whose IQ is on the border between disabled and non-disabled are also called ‘borderline intellectuals’ or slow learners.

Although they face many difficulties not only in school life but also in their daily lives, they are literally in the blind spot of welfare without any institutional support because they are literally on the edge.

<사건속으로> This is reporter Jaeyoung Cho.

◀ Report ▶

Jaehoon, a third grade elementary school student.

It took me longer than my peers to learn Korean, and I’m not good at making friends.

At the recommendation of my teacher, I took a test this year and was diagnosed with an IQ of 70, or “borderline intelligence.”

The result sheet says, “Special education intervention is necessary because it is difficult to keep up with public education,” but since he is not a disabled child, he cannot go to a special class, and the school does not do anything.

Grandma is worried.

[재훈(가명) 할머니(음성변조)]

″Still, you have to study… In (our) country, if you don’t really study, there’s nothing to do.″

Intelligence quotient (IQ) above 85 is classified as normal and below 70 as disabled.

Meanwhile, 71 to 84 correspond to ‘borderline intelligence’.

Our country doesn’t even have statistics yet, but considering the IQ distribution, it is estimated that this applies to about 13% of the total population, or about 6 million people.

There are about 200,000 people under 70, which means that there are probably far more people with borderline intelligence than registered disabled people.

Most people with borderline intelligence do not have any major problems with everyday conversations or communication, but they are poor at interpersonal relationships and their learning ability is significantly reduced.

Dong-Hoon has tried his hand at becoming an electrical engineer several times.

I couldn’t possibly pass the essay test.

[동훈(가명), 경계선 지능(음성변조)]

″Simulation work? It’s work. Wait a minute, it’s work… so… um… the words just don’t come to mind…

Cognitive abilities may improve if discovered at a young age and continue to receive education, but there is no such customized support in our country.

[박현숙/경계선지능연구소장]

″The difficulties of people with borderline intelligence are at the same level as those of people with intellectual disabilities, and may even be greater than that, but there are almost no solutions.″

So, some parents even say that it is better to have a child be diagnosed as disabled even if the IQ test is intentionally wrong.

<넷플릭스 드라마(정신병동에도 아침이 와요)>

″My mom told me back then, that’s how you get lower scores.″ ″Other times, when you take a test, she told you to answer everything even if you don’t know, but why are you doing that now?″

Although care and learning support are desperately needed, the desire to at least recognize their existence is the reason why families have taken to the streets.

[김소연/경계선지능 부모모임]

″I just cry. Mothers just hide it like this. About this borderline intelligent person. That’s because it’s difficult to register as a disabled person, and it’s also difficult to hang out with regular friends. What is it, our kids…”

This is Jo Jae-young from MBC News.

Video coverage: Lee Jun-ha, Lee Sang-yong, Kang Jong-soo / Video editing: Moon Myeong-bae