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Contents of Part Two 


Reprint of the First Yearbook 


III <0 os inna 4 4.000000'e one sneenese eee aenenseaaee 
DE. ccc dv onedbdenddsesseoseesnentsdneeuneeeseeeneee 


CHAPTER I.—THE ART OF VISITATION 


VISITATION AS A MEANS OF DIAGNOSIS.......cccccccccccesecs . 
GeorcE Rucs, Principal of the Quinsigamond School, Worcester, 
Massachusetts 


How To MAKE Visits PROFITABLE TO TEACHERS........e+eee0: 
LEONARD Power, Principal, Franklin School, Port Arthur, Texas 


THE RATING OF TEMPORARY TEACHERS AFTER A SINGLE SUPER- 
RT go ckvadaduewaccwcaceansbes cue eee 
Rose A. CarriGAN, Principal of the Shurtleff School District, 

Boston, Massachusetts 


CHAPTER II.—THE MEASUREMENT OF EFFICIENCY 
THE MEASUREMENT OF TEACHING EFFICIENCY BY MEANS OF 


STANDARDIZED INTELLIGENCE AND EDUCATIONAL TESTS....... 
ALBION U. JENKINS, Principal of School No. 2, Paterson, New 
Jersey 


THE ACCOMPLISHMENT QUOTIENT AS AN AID SUPERVISION... 
Rena C. STEBBINS, City Normal School, Rochester, N. Y. 


CHAPTER III—FOLLOWING UP THE INTELLIGENCE TEST 
THE INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT AS A MEANS OF CLASSIFICATION 


359 


367 


373 


382 


SF WON RU THR. i 0 ccc ecacnoceccsscvanenes rs 
Cora CAMPBELL, Principal of the Bancroft School, Kansas City, 
Missouri 
Uae tae ReSwGeS OF “TS OGMIG, 660s ciccicavcesxnssannstans 397 
JessicA MARSHALL, Principal of the Newton School, Toledo, Ohio 
INTELLIGENCE TESTS AS A BASIS FOR RE-CLASSIFICATION..... an 28 


BENJAMIN B. GREENBERG, Principal of the William T. Harris 
School, P. S. No. 11, Manhattan, New York 


CHAPTER IV.—THE PROBLEM OF THE INDIVIDUAL CASE 


THE INDIVIDUAL CasE—AN ADMINISTRATIVE PROBLEM.......... 
CHARLES C. KraAuskoprF, Principal of the Lawson School, Chicago, 

Illinois 
FINDING THE INDIVIDUAL—THE SUTHERLAND MeEtuHop oF INDI- 


CE: INE nd ook odc ke ctcanennrvdndntaadaneabense 
MarcareT H. SmirtH, Principal of the 61st Street School, Los 
Angeles, California 


15 [ 353 ] 


407 


412 











CHAPTER V.—PROVISION FOR THE GIFTED CHILD 


AN EXPERIMENT IN THE EDUCATION OF GIFTED CHILDREN IN THE 
EE EEE eee SILL SY IEE ee Pa ee 
Georce C. Kyte, Principal of the University Elementary School, 

Berkeley, California 
ee. ND Wi GS CN, 6a cic rcecccccvcnccvecccsccuce 
H. W. Zirk e, Principal of the Whittier School, Denver, Colorado 


CHAPTER VI.—DIAGNOSIS BY MEANS OF THE INFORMAL OR 
UNSTANDARDIZED TEST 


INFORMAL TEsTs AS A MEANS FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF IN- 
SEE 6 AS ORE HE HKESCHERSCHREEOEESOOKSE CH HOO C OEE EDE 
CurForD Woopy, Director of the Bureau of Educational Refer- 
ence and Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 

Michigan 


"BURR VARME GH TIOUMAGAE. TOIT co.cc cccccccercccccscccccecs 
Wituiam F. Butter, Principal of the Belmont Street School, 
Worcester, Massachusetts 


SAMPLES OF INFORMAL TESTS THAT HAvE BEEN FouNp HELPFUL 
ee aww area eons 


CHAPTER VII.—THE FOLLOW-UP WORK OF THE PRINCIPAL 


A COoLLeEcTION oF SuPERVISORY DEVICES FOR THE IMPROVEMENT 
I a nb debe eae 6G s 


{ 354] 


419 


429 


435 


442 


443 











419 


429 


435 


442 


+43 


159 














CHAPTER I 
THE ART OF VISITATION 


VISITATION AS A MEANS OF DIAGNOSIS 


GEORGE RUGG, PRINCIPAL OF QUINSIGAMOND SCHOOL, WORCESTER, 
MASSACHUSETTS 


’ | VHE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPAL cannot hope for 
long to guide successfully the activities of his school unless he keeps 
in constant and close touch with his plant and personnel. And this 

implies that he is not primarily an office man, but rather an alert, observ- 

ing, frequent visitor in all parts of his special field. He must see things 
at first hand in order to judge competently of motives, results, or needs. 

Perhaps his first and greatest concern is with his teachers. Their 
strength and weakness will not be properly revealed to him unless he meets 
them often in the midst of their classroom work under varying conditions. 

Furthermore, his presence in a room at any time of the day should seem to 

the teacher as part of the natural order of things, reassuring rather than 

disquieting. A certain successful principal of a large New England gram- 
mar school once remarked to me: ‘‘ When I approach a classroom, I always 
give an extra stamp of the foot to announce my coming. I am not a spy.” 

By just such an open, free, disarming attitude, and without any sacrifice of 

dignity, a principal can best diagnose a teacher’s capacity for service, and 

thus be in an assured position to advise and help whenever need arises. 
Take the matter of the teacher’s personality, that sum total of the quali- 
ties which give her power over children. Has she vitality that remains 

unquenched through the day? Has she poise, confidence, a ready smile, a 

bright, steady eye, a clear, modulated voice that carries easily to all parts 

of the room? Is she accurate of statement? Does she give evidence of 
some familiarity with current literature and the general progress of 
thought? Does she know her subject-matter? Has she imagination? 

Does she love childhood in general and children in particular? Does she 

control her school largely through force of character? 

Where will a principal secure adequate knowledge of such aspects of a 
teacher’s personal fitness save by direct observation in the schoolroom? 

And how about the quality of instruction in various basic subjects of the 
curriculum? Take, for instance, the matter of reading. Fortunately, our 
primary children nowadays are usually very well taught in phonics and the 
mechanical pronunciation of words and short phrases. The subject-matter 
in primary readers is often delightfully simple, appealing, and well-ar- 
ranged. The children’s minds are pliable, interest is fresh, story-telling 
and dramatization abound. A certain glibness in oral reading is perhaps 
secured and all seems well. But somewhere in the third grade, let us say, 
the situation hardens. Children are losing some of their spontaneity. But 


[ 355] 





356 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





the acquisition of thought from the printed page, always a fundamental 
thing, now becomes imperative. Meanwhile other subjects of study are 
“ crowding in” upon the reading time. The young pupil, it is evident, must 
be taught from this time on how to read by himself in silence and with 
gathering comprehension. More and more must sentence and paragraph, | 
whether printed or in script, convey correct messages to his mind. And 
when he does read aloud to his fellows he must be taught how to stress the 
right words, a veritable task. Our principal, then, is looking all through 
the grades for teachers who discuss reading content with their classes, who 
exemplify correct and convincing expression by reading aloud in their best 
manner, and who, in short, act as interpreters of thought. Of what avail | 
is it for a class to drone aloud in concert a Memory Gem, if stresses are 
continually laid on wrong words and the general content and fine finish 
of the poem are either misconceived or not conceived at all? Verily such 
efforts are as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. This whole reading 
problem touches closely every academic subject of the elementary course, 
and a principal may well take time to “ sit in” with all his reading classes, 
to determine wherein his teachers fail to train children to uncover thought 
and pass it on. 

And this leads us to consider the matter of instruction in the proper use 
of the mother tongue. For one thing, the principal will aim to discover 
and check such solecisms on a teacher’s part as “ He don’t know.” “ Every- 
body take their pencils.” His classroom visits will tell him whether the ' 
children, young or older, are given ample opportunity for original expres- 
sion on topics within their ken. He will want to know how, for instance, 
a sixth-grade teacher accepts the challenge of a written paragraph like this: 

Birds of a feather floc together. 


In trees the birds have rests all the time the young ones follow there mother 
wherever she because the little do not like to stay home alone. 


A long chapter could be written on the type errors in this broken, futile 
effort of the child. Note the lack of sentence sense, the absence of punctua- ; 
tion, the omissions and transfers of letters and connecting words. 

And what a revelation for a principal who finds an eighth-grade boy 
writing on the “ topic sentence ” as follows: 

There rain fell in torents last night. As I was coming home from a nickel 
show when a man said its a going to pour and I said to myself “that fellow thinks 
he is a wether profit, it would rain tonight for any money. ) 

Could any evidence be more complete of inconclusive, drifting, confused 
thought, lack of word visualization, and so on? No textbook in grammar, 
however up-to-date or handsomely typed, will cure this condition. The 
call is for straight thinking and straight teaching. What an opportunity, 
then, for teachers all along the line to reconstruct, preferably at the black- 
board, the maimed words and the sentences that run up blind alleys; to ; 
call equally close attention to successful attempts in language expression 
by their pupils, and to strive unceasingly to inculcate “ sentence sense,” the 











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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 357 





“ follow through ” of a thought. Will the principal see to it that they do 
these things? 

And then there is the cultural side of English training, a vital thing in- 
deed. Appreciation, judgment, the choice of the better way, are qualities 
to be cultivated, as well as accuracy. Such things are a part of life in the 
living. 

What of the simple appeal and uplift of that dainty little poem, 
“ Daisies ”’? 

At evening when I go to bed, 
I see the stars shine overhead; 


They are the little daisies white 
That dot the meadows of the night. 


What of the charm of Tennyson’s “ Brook ” ? 


I chatter, chatter, as I flow 
To join the brimming river. 


And what of the summons to courage in Sill’s splendid poem, ‘“ Oppor- 
tunity,” wherein the King’s son, wounded, weaponless, and sore bestead, 
seized the craven’s broken sword 


And saved a great cause that heroic day. 


Can teachers tune their intelligence and imagination to such a pitch that 
through their interpretations some of the rhythm, grace, and elan of classic 
phrase will lead their pupil’s minds to higher things? Happy the principal 
who finds such a quality of mind and heart prevalent in his teaching staff! 

Coming to the subject of arithmetic or number, what difficulties will a 
principal encounter in his rounds of the classrooms? Here is one: The 
work on essential number combinations, the adding of columns of figures, 
the manipulation of the multiplication table—in short, the whole attack on 
those fundamental concepts of abstract number, which only constant drill 
will perfect, is usually not speeded up sufficiently as the child works through 
the grades. For, be it remembered, that up to a certain point speed and 
accuracy go hand in hand. The principal has a right to expect that a drill 
test, which takes a fourth-grade pupil ten minutes to finish, will be handled 
in half the time by the eighth-grade child and with even greater accuracy. 

Another point of perplexity, and ofttimes of partial failure, is the arith- 
metic problem. The difficulty lies chiefly in the inability or unwillingness 
of pupils to unravel thought, to consider two, three, or four conditions in 
one connection, to see the goal from the beginning. Unless the teacher can 
rise to something better than unit analysis and can train her children, in 
fair measure, to sort the given material of a clearly-stated problem, and 
then run through the needed steps to the final requirement, she has missed 
her opportunity to help fit for life in one of its most practical aspects. A 
principal will hardly let such a condition remain static, even if he has 
occasionally to teach a class himself. 











358 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





We come now to the two so-called fact subjects, geography and history. 
These are especially adapted to pupil participation, or what is commonly 
known as the socialized or “ stunt ” recitation. The desirable form of train- 
ing by no means excludes the teacher from her preéminent place as in- 
structor and leader, but it does presuppose a higher and finer type of teach- 
ing. When a pupil will go to a wall-map, and, pointer in hand, will give 
a five-minute, carefully prepared talk on Brazil; or another pupil devotes 
an equal time to a discussion of the Monroe Doctrine, the substantial basis 
of our foreign policy—either child is sure of rapt attention from his fellows. 
Comment and criticism from these same classmates will just as surely fol- 
low the conclusion of such an effort, and the end of that lesson is better 
than the beginning. 

To particularize, then: a principal has a right to expect in his geography 
classes much inspection of maps, and a growing power to associate the big 
natural features of a country, such as mountain, river, bay, or climate, with 
the development of life and human society. By the same token, he will 
look to find in history classes a zest for research in the story of the past, a 
habit of willing participation in the thought of the hour, and an increasing 
recognition of those great issues which, like the negro problem, run their 
course through a nation’s life structure, like the warp threads of a fabric. 

If unhappily he does not find these characteristics prevalent in some 
schoolroom, he will know all too well that the teacher is not studious, not 
professional, is a teacher of one book, and that her chief interests are else- 
where. A dead teacher, of course, means a dead school. 

The recent and insistent demand for strong teaching in the upper gram- 
mar grades in elementary civics and economics is a good sign indeed, and a 
principal will surely not neglect to strengthen this work by every means at 
his command. Thus he will no doubt emphasize some adequate considera- 
tion of our Constitution and Declaration of Independence, 2 memorizing 
of the Gettysburg Address and the American’s Creed, and a clear concep- 
tion of certain essential political and civil rights of the citizen. 

I was pleased the other day to find in the note-book of an eighth-grade 
child this paragraph: ‘‘ Some of the principal duties of a citizen are (1) to 
obey the law; (2) to earn an honest living; (3) to defend my country; 
(4) to study public questions; (5) to take part in the Government.” 

With such principles of action inscribed in millions of school note-books, 
the coming generation of Americans may safely be trusted to “ carry on.” 
The elementary teaching process must serve from time to time to plant 
certain fundamentals beyond forgetting in the child’s mind. No course 
of study is such a tyrant that it may not be curtailed in a measure to gain 
the higher purpose. The things that the child brings with conscious assur- 
ance into manhood’s “ fling at Fate” are the high lights and positive suc- 
cesses of schoolroom days. To be master of a few things is to gain a chance 
to be ruler over many. 

Here is a most interesting professional problem for the supervising prin- 
cipal—how to check the all too-prevalent habit of guessing at answers, of 

















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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 359 








approximating, of remaining mediocre through lack of concentration. We 
all know the child who habitually spells correctly only seven or eight words 
out of ten, or four out of five; and the one who gives memoriter a para- 
graph from the history page, but fails completely to grasp its essential 
thought. Fortunate that school where teachers and principals combine 
their skill and will to minimize these failures; to train children to ration- 
alize, to compare, to make rapid, sure decisions between right and left, 
right and wrong, fair and fine. 

And happy that principal who encounters on his visits a generous meas- 
use of good-will. This is something which cannot be bought for a price. 
It is based upon a general recognition by the children of superiority, relia- 
bility, kindness with decision, and a certain high-minded sense of justice in 
the characters of their teachers and principal. When confidence abounds, 
then order, regularity, neatness, enthusiasm, all such desirable ends, may 
in the large be secured and held. The watchful principal will guard this 
condition as the apple of his eye. He will search out the occasional recal- 
citrant or restless child and give of his best to cure. The faithful pupil he 
will commend, and the brilliant one will likewise meet his word of praise. 
For, after all, he is not more a diagnostician than a director and friend. 





HOW TO MAKE VISITS PROFITABLE TO TEACHERS 


LEONARD POWER, PRINCIPAL OF THE FRANKLIN SCHOOL, 
PORT ARTHUR, TEXAS 


The chief function of the principal is to improve instruction. This 
assumes that he knows present methods in his school. This assumes that 
he visits the classrooms. 

He must have definite standards well in mind else he cannot distinguish 
differences in degree of efficiency. This assumes that his visits are care- 
fully planned. He may wish to visit the work by grades or by subjects; 
he may wish to see the work of a certain subject in just one or two grades, 
but his plan will prevent him from aimless drifting from room to room. 
Before making his visits he carefully reviews books on special methods, if 
he be studying the work in a given subject; he carefully reviews the course 
of study if he be studying the work in a given grade. In either case I have 
found it best to tell the teachers just what I wanted to study. Then, when 
visiting arithmetic classes, I was confident of seeing a high quality of teach- 
ing. Then, when visiting the fourth-grade teachers, I was pretty sure 
they were doing a little better planning than if they did not know my 
plan. 

The carefully planned visits encourage the teachers to do their best and 
are in themselves an expression of confidence in the teacher’s plans and 
purposes. I always have a waiting list of invitations to visit classes in grades 
or subjects that are not upon my schedule. It does not unbalance my plan, 
therefore, when Miss A tells me in the morning that she would prefer 








360 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





I defer my visit a day or so. She has been ill, or perhaps, has had worries 
unknown to me and feels that my visit at that time would be unfair to her. 
I have had teachers tell me that they were in the midst of a plan which 
was proving to be of doubtful value, and on that account have deferred 
my visit. I have had teachers request me to come a day or so before my 
scheduled visit to see the beginning of a fresh project or the successful 
completion of an old one. In all of my planning I make allowance for 
the human factor. These teachers are the choicest of this city’s womanhood 
and manhood. They need sympathy and they need constructive criticism. 
We all need both. To operate on any other basis is unthinkable to me. 
The tyrannical principal cannot fail to develop tyrannical teachers. ‘Teach- 
ers will have faith in themselves in the same degree that the principal has 
faith in them. 

I always assume that each teacher is fully conscious, that I believe she 
is doing her work as best she can, that I think her work in the school is 
very important, that I expect her to find herself in her work, and that | 
am here only to be of assistance. She knows my visits cannot be very 
frequent and she has no fear of “ surprises.” 

I have said it is good to visit by subjects. The technic now needs to 
be explained. First, I make a schedule showing the exact time that a 
subject is taught to each class with the teacher’s name and the number of 
the room in which the subject is taught. This is my Building-subject 
Schedule. In the two highest grades the work is departmentalized and 
each subject has one teacher for each grade. Second, I plan to visit each 
teacher twice on a given subject before calling the conference of teachers. 
This usually means a two weeks’ schedule for me if I follow a subject 
through two or three grades. Third, I pay careful attention to what the 
teacher does while I am in the room but, as a rule, make no written 
notes. Fourth, I go from the teacher’s room to my office where I dictate 
her a letter which is written while I am visiting the next teacher. I 
formerly wrote these letters myself and that necessitated my mastery of 
the typewriter, because I wanted two or three copies of each letter. Fifth, 
I generally confer with the teacher about the suggestions offered—this is 
usually after school hours. Sixth, I always stay throughout the entire 
period to hear the assignment and to get the opening of the next lesson. 
Seventh, I always consult the teacher’s plan book. A carefully planned 
lesson is always assumed. 

As noted already, my plan includes a carefully prepared report of each 
visit which is forwarded to the teacher in the form of a letter. When 
possible I offer helpful suggestions. When I cannot offer any helpful 
suggestions I report on the method only. I find that every time I visit 
the teachers during their arithmetic class time certain errors in method 
recur often enough to become typical. In any subject that is true. The 
best means for showing this is to reproduce here some letters covering typical 
errors. The following three letters on arithmetic show an attempt to cor- 
rect the same teaching error. It was finally necessary to call all of the 
teachers of this subject together to witness a demonstration lesson in which 











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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 361 





the element of measuring the accomplishments of the individuals was con- 
trolled. 


Arithmetic 1—Method: The children were learning how to multiply 
and divide small fractions. They were using cancellation. They did not 
write the figure (1) as a quotient when cancelling. 

The class was divided into two parts and about half of the class was sent 
to the board at a time. The first half of the class worked ten problems 
and the last half worked three problems. 


Suggestions: Why give all children the same example? If each child 
were given a different example or different examples, there would be no 
chance for copying, you could help the slow child while the bright child 
works ahead, and you could measure the progress of each member of the 
class. The children at their seats could also be working. Why not write 
the quotient (1) just as other quotients are written when canceling? 

I suggest that you write a row of fractions across the front board, thus: 


(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10) 
1/8 2/3 3/8 4/5 1/2 3/5 5/6 5/8 2/5 4/9 


Then, on a little card you could have brief instructions, as: 

Card 1. Multiply each of these fractions by 2/5. 

Card 2. Multiply each of the first three fractions by all that follow. 

Card 3. Multiply 1 by 3, then multiply 2 by 4, and continue until you 
have completed multiplying by every other one. 

The directions could increase the difficulty of the task and you could give 
most difficult tasks to brightest children. It may be worth while to give 
the plan a try out. If you use it call me in some day to see it work. 


Arithmetic 2—Method: Eight children lined up at front of room for 
oral drill in fractions. Questions were as follows: “ What is 1/4 of 12?” 
“What is 3/4 of 12?” 

After a few minutes of this oral drill eight other children passed to the 
boards where they had a drill in column addition. They were taught to 
prove their sums by a method new to me. They added the digits in each 
number. If the sum of these digits equaled the sum of the digits in the 
sum of the numbers the work was proved. 


235 10 I plus O equals 1 
148 13 1 plus 3 equals 4 
267 15 1 plus 5 equals 6 
134. 8 o plus 8 equals 8 


784 46 19 
7 plus 8 plus 4 equals 19; therefore, the problem is correct. 


Suggestions: Not more than half of the class did any work during the 
entire period. Provision of supplemental assignment for those at their 














362 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





seats should be made unless the lesson is a development lesson. While 
your plan of proving the addition is correct I think the method of casting 
out the nine is simpler. I am of the opinion that these children would 
better prove by simply adding from top to bottom and then from bottom to 
top. They may even write partial sums or column sums as follows. 


235 I also suggest that you have many problems prepared for the 
148 children to add. If these are on cards and the cards handed 
267 to the children, each will be forced to do his own work. You 
134 could have a key card with correct sums and could rapidly 
sa check all work. Then you could give your time to the slow 

24 children and you would also have a means of knowing how 
16 many problems each child can work in a given time. This will 
6 help prepare for the Courtis Test No. 1. 


—— I liked the rapid oral drill in fractions but think the same 
784 drill could have been given to all and all asked to write the 
results. Any plan that will keep all of the class thinking will 

be appreciated by me. 


Arithmetic 3—Method: Problems in long division were used. The 
teacher gave a problem to the entire class after 15 children had been sent 
to the board. After waiting some time, the teacher asked all of those who 
had the quotient to hold up their hands. Then another problem was given 
to the entire class and the same question. This method continued to the 
close of the period. 

Suggestions: This is a very old method. In drill of this kind we need 
to make provision for putting every child on his own responsibility. Then 
we can tell how much an individual is doing and how much the class is 
doing in exact terms. 

I suggest that you prepare about 300 examples in long division. Group 
these examples by tens. Put these problems on a card and give each child 
a card. Have the quotients on a key card that you can quickly use to 
check the work of a child. 

Then you can give your time to those who need it most. The cards 
can be graded in degree of difficulty. Your present method loses time for 
the bright child and encourages the dull child to steal from his neighbor. 

I am inviting all arithmetic teachers of fourth and fifth grades to a 
demonstration lesson on January 20, during period IX in room 206. 
Please permit me to use your children at that time. 


Every principal knows these are common teaching types. Just one thing 
is lacking—a plan which measures the results and keeps every child on his 
own work. 

The letters marked “ History I” and “ History II” show the regular 
textbook type of history lesson. No discrimination was used. Topic by 
topic the lesson was recited. All was a dull monotonous grind for the 
children, but I did not say so in so many words. 




















Thile 
ting 
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the 
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You 
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Ow 
vill 


me 
the 
vill 


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ho 
en 


he 


we Vs 

















REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 363 





History I—Method: The teacher called upon individuals to read a para- 
graph at a time. ‘here was no discussion and no audience situation. 

Suggestions: I suggest that at least a part of the class be made into an 
audience in any oral reading lesson. This is done by having them close 
their books and get the meaning out of what is read. This will cause the 
reader to feel that he needs to read well. If all of the children have 
books the reader has no motive for reading other than to get to sit down 
again. 

I also suggest that as this is rich material there be some discussion of 
those parts that are within the comprehension of the children. 

I notice that you had every paragraph read. Some of the topics were 
discussed in the text in a manner that is beyond the children. It is not 
necessary to follow a book down to the paragraph or to the page. It is 
better to choose a few topics in history and develop them carefully than 
to cover so many at one recitation. 

I should like to talk to you about your plans for this class and I realize 
the disadvantage at which you are placed by the class being held in the 
auditorium. 

The discipline of the class was very good throughout. 

One of the purposes of history, and I think it is a vital one, is to fill the 
hearts of these Texans with a patriotism that comes by relieving the con- 
ditions presented in the book. That is why I should insist on more dis- 


cussion. 


History II—Method: The topics which had been studied in the textbook 
were discussed by the class with very little supplemental suggestions from 
the teacher and no special reports from any of the children. This was a 
very good textbook lesson. 

Suggestions: When was this lesson studied? I wish you would under- 
take a type study with one of your classes or one of your grades. I have 
in my office a type study of “ The Development of the Constitution,” and 
if you have not already read it I shall be glad to lend you a copy. 

As a history teacher you have a splendid opportunity to work out some- 
thing which will have the stamp of originality and of your own mind. If 
the work of some one half year was carefully planned for a period of, say 
two weeks, you can in a few years, find that your plans are much more 
helpful than the old textbook type of lesson. I commend your lesson of 
today. 

I am including two letters on Reading to show how the principal may 
refer to mimeographed bulletins he has issued and to books on method 
which he has recently read. The plan includes careful preparation on his 
part before visiting the classrooms. 

In reading we find need for creating an audience situation. One typical 
error in method is the one which calls the children to the front of the room 
to read something already familiar to all. 














364 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





Copies of all these letters are sent to the teachers at the close of the 
day. I frequently have stencils made of these letters in order that discussion 
may be intelligently directed at the teachers’ meeting which follows each 
study of a subject. 

Here follow the letters on reading and also two letters each on English 
and spelling. 


Reading No. I—Method: ‘The teacher called upon the children in ir- 
regular order and each child came to the front and read two or three 
paragraphs. When the child encountered a difficult word, the teacher 
prompted the child. No comment was made by the class or by the teacher 
on the contents of the lesson. 

Suggestions: I suggest that you read my bulletin on the teaching of read- 
ing; also bulletin on the motivation of reading. 

The children in the class were quiet while the reading was going on. 
Different individuals were reading further over in their book, but there 
was no motive for a clear distinct reading except to you. I shall be glad 
to talk about creating an audience, and I believe that for at least a part 
of each reading lesson there should be an audience or that at least a part 
of the class should be an audience in every reading lesson. 


Reading No. II—Method: The children came to the front and read. 
Each child read two or three short paragraphs or one long paragraph. 
During the time of the class each child read twice. The selection was 
from the story of “ Pandora’s Box.” 

Suggestions: Here again we are confronted with the question of how to 
adapt the reading lesson to the child who reads. This lesson was well 
within the reading ability of the average child of your class, but there were 
some children who read haltingly because the vocabulary of the story was 
beyond them. I think that we should provide different material for these 
children or we should work this material over with them to such an extent 
that they can read it fluently. The former plan seems to me to be best. 

I wish to commend your plan of having the children come to the front 
to read and your plan of selecting the children whom you wish to do the 
reading. There was absolutely no confusion at any time, and each child knew 
when his turn had come. I have just completed reading Mr. Klapper’s 
book called, Teaching Children to Read, and I find in chapter 9 some 
splendid suggestions, particularly on pages 129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 
and 135. On page 141 I find some splendid suggestions under topic 
headed, Suggestions for Procedure in Oral Reading, and on pages 143-5, 
How to Judge Oral Reading. The whole chapter, in fact, is fine and if 
you have not read it recently, a review of this chapter would help you. 
I wish to commend the very good order of your class during the recitation. 


English No. I—Method: The class period was taken up with hearing 
the letters read. The children had as their subject, My First Day in 
School. After reading the letter, the teacher would inquire if they thought 




















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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 365 





that was a good letter and would get criticism from the class on the con- 
tents of the letter. 


Suggestions: I suggest that during your English period you have your 
class write some real letters and send them to their friends. The children 
may have the privilege of not letting others read the letters, but may come 
to you for corrections before putting the letters in the postoffice and those 
who do not care to come to you may send their letters without corrections. 
Many of the children would not care to have their letters read except by 
the one the letter was intended for. Your criticism of the letters was 
based on what you heard and so were the criticisms of the class, but most 
of the errors were probably in the form or the punctuation. How do you 
find out what they are? 


English No. II—Method: After a development lesson of adverbs the 
teacher was having the children pick out the adverbs from selected passages 
that were printed in the text. The teacher called on volunteers and each 
time the correct answer was given she had the child state why the word 
was an adverb. 


Suggestions: These sentences are too complicated for the children to 
handle at present. Your method of calling on the volunteers who know 
is all right when 90 per cent of the class are volunteers. When a child 
who volunteers gives the wrong answer, take time to have him learn why 
his answer is incorrect. 


Spelling I—Method: The method used was similar to one outlined by 
me at my demonstration lesson. The method provides for testing the 
ability of each child to spell a word before he studies the word. The close 
of the period was used to work the words into sentences. 


Suggestions: I am of the opinion that where we have a spelling book for 
all of the children we may give out the words for the lesson and then instead 
of writing them on the blackboard we may tell the children to look in the 
spelling book, mark the words that they have missed, and then study from 
the spelling book. This would leave the teacher free to help some of 
the weaker children while they are studying. I think that a little oral 
work in sentence building should precede the written work in sentence 
building. 

I commend your spelling period in that it is a period during which the 
children spend their time studying words. So frequently the spelling period 
is a period for just silent, undirected study. 


Spelling II—Method: Two rows of children sent to the blackboard to 
write words as dictated by the teacher; children seated ; teacher passed on 
each child’s work and with the help of the children who had remained 
seated made all corrections. The remainder of the children were sent to 
the board to write while the children who had first gone to the board 
studied the words they had missed. 











366 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





Assignment for the next day made by pronouncing words in unison and 
using them in a sentence. 

Suggestions: Is the blackboard work a part of your daily exercise? | 
suggest that the children who are at their seats be writing at the same time 
the children at the board are writing. 

I suggest that when a correction is made of a child’s work at the board, 
he make that correction at once on paper. 

Do you keep a record of the work of the individual and the class? | 
suggest that the ability of each to spell be less openly presented to the 
other children. This would mean an elimination of the blackboard work. 
I should like to discuss this with you. 


It is possible by tactful direction to influence teachers to study their 
problems. I am of the opinion that the teacher should do her additional 
professional reading, because she sees her need for it. ‘The second and 
third years that my teachers work with me find fewer suggestions coming 
from me and more questions coming from them. They ask me where to 
go for help. The group meetings lead to questions of content, subject- 
matter, and the course of study, as well as to questions of method. The 
meetings are organized and the chairman usually makes special assignments 
for further report. Last year this led to the complete revision of the course 
of study for the elementary work. In all of these studies | lead because 
I expect the teachers to Jead their children. Neither children nor teachers 
are cattle to be driven. This leadership costs much. It means many weary 
hours of reading and careful preparation, but it pays. The teachers who 
fear projects are lacking in knowledge and afraid to face the hours of special 
effort necessary to acquire it. 

In conclusion I wish to state that the carefully planned visits to class- 
rooms where entire recitations are studied will be most helpful if, while 
in the room, the principal: (1) Expresses confidence in the teacher’s plans 
and purposes; (2) gives constructive suggestions; (3) leaves written sum- 
maries with teachers; (4) suggests experiments or general changes in 
method ; and (5) suggests devices for saving time and effort. 

As follow-up devices after the visit the principal may: (1) Hold de- 
tailed conferences with individual teachers; (2) hold group conferences by 
subjects or grades; (3) write bulletins of suggestions to teachers; (4) sug- 
gest special references in books and periodicals; (5) provide bibliographies 
on special problems ; (6) teach demonstration lessons; (7) send the teacher 
to visit other classrooms; and (8) reclassify pupils and reorganize classes 
when necessary. 








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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 367 





THE RATING OF TEMPORARY TEACHERS AFTER A 
SINGLE SUPERVISORY VISIT’ 


ROSE A. CARRIGAN, PRINCIPAL OF SHURTLEFF SCHOOL DISTRICT, 
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 


A statement of the problem—lIn a certain large city of over seven hun- 
dred thousand inhabitants there are employed in the public-school system 
more than three thousand five hundred permanently appointed teachers. 
Changes in conditions of the school population and the teacher service 
bring about the annual appointment of at least from fifty to eighty new 
teachers. A large majority of these appointees are drawn from an eligible 
list of teachers who, before permanent appointment, are employed by the 
city temporarily as substitute teachers or teachers of overflow classes. It 
is obvious that the judicious selection for permanent appointment of the 
ablest among these is a matter of grave importance as it is a major factor 
in determining the growing efficiency of the entire corps. An annual re- 
rating of all who are on the eligible list determines absolutely the order of 
permanent appointments during the ensuing year. It will readily be seen 
that the factors which determine what credits a candidate shall receive 
for position on the merit list warrant the most careful consideration. The 
credits for service are derived from two sources—namely, marks assigned 
by principals of schools in which the candidates teach and marks given by 
the visiting supervisors. The principal of the school records monthly 
ratings, and monthly ratings are also given by the supervisors who are 
Assistant Directors in the Department of Practice and Training. These 
last are usually five in number. 

The Assistant Directors visit in turn all the candidates in whatever grade 
from the first to the twelfth they may happen to be. Most of the candi- 
dates are graduates of the City Normal School; all the men and a few 
of the women are graduates of a college as well. Each Director remains 
with the teacher from three quarters of an hour to an hour and is required 
to pass judgment upon any lesson which is on the daily program at the 
time of the visit. The final estimate is always made known to the candi- 
date though this is often delayed until after a conference which is arranged 
by appointment whenever constructive help seems desirable and welcome. 
Teachers who wish to grow educationally always welcome this constructive 
criticism as also do those who are merely ambitious for a high place on the 
merit list. Four candidates are visited daily by each supervisor whenever 
the distances make this number of supervisory visits possible. The substi- 
tute teacher is rated at every visit except when unusual conditions prevail. 
These ratings are all factors in the annual re-rating mentioned above. 

The present study suggested itself to one of the former Assistant Di- 
rectors as a means of obtaining a consensus of opinion from judicious sources 
regarding the qualities which should receive credits and the proper appor- 
tionment of these credits to the respective qualities chosen on the basis of 





1 Printed in the Journal of Educational Method 2: 48-55; October, 1922. 











368 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 








a total of 1000 points. The resultant score card is offered as suggestive 
for a common basis for marking which may be used by principals and 
other members of the supervisory staff who wish to estimate observed 
teaching. 

Method of investigation—An explanatory sheet and a score card on which 
estimates of the qualities thereon mentioned were omitted (see below, fac- 
simile including the estimates determined by the present study) were sub- 
mitted to a class in supervision at Teachers College, Columbia University, 
at the summer session of 1919. The class, taught by Dr. James Fleming 
Hosic, was composed chiefly of supervisors and principals of schools who 
came from various sections of the country. ‘The merits of the items named 
on the card in its first draft were open to discussion by this group. Sug- 
gestions for omissions or additions were encouraged. A few recommenda- 
tions for minor changes, almost negligible in their character and number, 
were made. ‘These were introduced in a recast of the score card which 
is shown below and was again submitted to the same class for evaluation 
of the separate qualities. It was also submitted to five other classes in 
supervision in the same college. ‘The personnel of these classes was made 
up of principals, supervisors, and teachers who recorded in the final sheet, 
home addresses scattered throughout the United States in city, town, and 
rural districts from the Atlantic to the Pacific and from the Canadian 
line to the Gulf of Mexico. Each person was given the sheets to carry 
away in order that the rating might be the result of careful and deliberate 
thought. Many of the blanks were retained three weeks before they were 
returned. Presumably, the values entered against each quality were the 
result of more or less mature deliberation. ‘The following is a copy of 
the explanatory sheet which was sent out with the score card: 


A special problem in supervision—Problem: In a large city system, to 
rate at a single visit the work of a tempora,y teacher who is a candidate 
for permanent appointment from an eligible list which is newly graded 
each year, and from which appointments are made in exact order of the 
occurrence of the names thereon printed. 

Conditions: 1. These candidates for permanent appointment are visited, 
while in temporary positions, by five general supervisors whose ratings, 
with monthly estimates from the principal of the school, are the sole factors 
in an annual re-rating. It is probable that the supervisors’ ratings are 
weighted in the cumulative final estimate. 

2. Candidates are visited by each of the five supervisors about twice in 
the school year. 

3. The period of a supervisor’s visit varies in length from three quarters 
of an hour to an hour. 

4. Some of the candidates are responsible for a year’s work in one class; 
others have successive short-term assignments in several different sections 
of the city. The grades in which the teaching is done vary from I through 
VIII, although a few assignments are made above grade VIII. 





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Reprint oF THe First YEARBOOK 369 





5. The supervisor visits in a day four candidates who are often located 
at considerable distances from each other, an immediate conference being 
for this reason impossible. 

6. Individual conferences with the supervisor are conducted at the 
central office by appointment after the close of the afternoon session. 

7. No supervisor compares judgment with any other supervisor who 
rates the candidates, as it seems just and desirable to take precautions against 
influences which might cause a duplication of the same judgment. 

8. Each supervisor tries to give an unbiased estimate of work actually 
seen, and so discourages discussion of the candidate with the principal of 
the school or teachers who are in the same building. 

9. The candidates here under consideration are substitutes, or special 
assistants who have graduated from the City Normal School and have 
been certificated to teach in the city but who are not yet permanently 
appointed there. A few who have secured permanent appointments in 
neighboring cities or towns, but who wish to maintain their positions on the 
merit list of their own city, upon request, receive supervisory visits, on the 
same basis as the others. 

10. Candidates are required to keep on the desk at all times, for the 
inspection of supervisors or principal, a daily plan of work, written in 
sufficient detail to indicate unmistakably the main topics they intend to 
treat in each lesson. A complete plan for the entire day must be written 
before the opening of the morning session if full credit is desired. 

The score card follows. The estimates given below are the median 
judgments of the supervisors who participated in the study. Slight adjust- 
ments were made to keep the final total at 1000 points. 


SCORE CARD 
No. of points. 
i. Fhe back-ground of Workshops <. ic cicccccscccsscscensar nus: einaet ane 
A. Was the atmosphere of the room conducive to learning? .... x10 
1. Were the hygienic conditions, so far as they were 
within the control of the teacher, at their best, 
é. g., ventilation, seating of pupils, cleanliness 


OE OUR HOES (Sits ctrigs ten vacetcnsaciesabvrs 30 
2. Was the room neat and orderly?.............+00. 20 
3. Were there attempts to beautify it in any simple 

RE OROINE- SION ca bncdadscelnanaaswiwscaanen 15 


4. Were there visible evidences of proper incentives 
to study, such as display of best work, graphs 
of achievement, appropriate rewards for effort, 
material to supply voluntary work to quick 


DONE, MBE sacctaccccsecuesnseredue menaanes 25 
5. Were the necessary mechanical tools in good con- 
dition and ready at hand for quick distribution? 20 
B. Were there evidences present of sufficient preparation 
Om Che Gart OF Che tHAGREl? . oo cicciccescesspaces sabe 8 ee 
1. Had she put in writing a clear-cut definite plan 
PG 2 GAPS: WOE icc vcsacaseensaeeas aa 25 


16 








370 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





2. Did her written plan for the day indicate in proper 
proportion work which aimed at automatic re- f 
action to a stimulus and work which aimed at 
the development of reflective thinking?........ 25 
3. Did her accumulated written plans evidence in 
any degree mastery of subject matter and wis- 








I: Se IE ES eo ok dass consncassewesdcncrs 25 
4. Did her book of plans indicate reasonable class 
DUGOUT a caciancsccnvs desks Ceaeeixekenecen.s 25 
5. Had she provided or caused the children to pro- 
vide such material for the day’s work as would 
be likely to arouse enthusiasm in the learning?.. 40 
ee WN nos cnccenceckekescenckedensesaeimetneresance ww as } 
A. Was the subject matter, so far as it was under the con- 
trol of the teacher, worthwhile?.................. ose 50 
B. Was the specific aim apparent, definite, and of sufficient 
SEE, -amasuie mas ew k eam aries RA Rae R ee eRe pile 50 
| ee ere 50 
D. Was all the time profitably employed, thus indicating 
that the teacher had a proper sense of values?...... Biras 40 
E. Did the proportion of individual response in the class 
prove that the teaching was successful?............ wena 50 
F. Was the work wholly coéperative or merely a guessing 
game in which the children tried to find out what 
answers the teacher wanted?................. 45 ° 
G. Was there a checking up of results?................ Salih 40 
H. Was there suggested any vital connection with a future 
GEE Sat edb rneeiwekueadwhuecsaamcennasei ies ae 50 
i EE is acon ode clea we eke Reade shesedtes Kas vce s nan anke Me 
A. Did the child have a conscious objective in mind at the 
SE 8 re rere ees 95 
B. Was the task set within the power of the individuals 
provided they MAGE EMOTE? .... .occcccesesicscesese rr 90 
C. Was there a satisfactory proportion of individual 
children who, throughout the entire period, were ab- 
sorbingly interested in the work and making effort? .... 100 
D. Did each child experience the satisfaction of a measure 
of success, through effort expended?.............. beets 90 
Ee OD WE Is oid ide ok boca ec cceceneeesecniaesdan mee acca Se 


The following table indicates on the basis of 1000 points, the range of 
points which ought to be equivalent to the descriptive estimates given at $ 
the left, in the judgment of those making the returns. 








Descriptive Estimates } 
i cccnhvacawekwaaren 950 to 1000 
I ee ewe g00 to 950 
Mt MEE acwatneecaeesens 850 to 900 ? 
Neer eer 750 to 850 
PME sas ct- ne weedwarke 700 to 750 
UE atigre-eanaanie tien bce 650 to 700 " 
Pere eer ee 600 to 650 


Unsatisfactory ........... .. 500 to 600 











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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 371 





A defense of the score card in answer to some objections—Agreement 
with the following theses will, the writer believes, iron out many of the 
objections which might be raised. 

1. No quality can be given credit which is not revealed to a visitor at 
a single visit. This dismisses as impossible of observation such qualities as 
health conditions of the teacher, personal characteristics of disposition, 
coéperativeness in the school, moral efficiency, moral influence on the chil- 
dren, and all other qualities which remain invisible to the visiting super- 
visor. 

2. The habit of faithful preparation for each day’s work is essential for - 
a teacher, especially at the beginning of her career. Experience has shown - 
that there is need of a driving force within to ensure this habitual prepara- 
tion of the day’s work from the start. A requirement of visible evidence 
of such preparation is a safeguard which protects both teacher and children. 
The form of the written lesson plan need not be dictated. 

3. It sometimes happens that a teacher is working along towards effec- 
tiveness in teaching, but has not yet arrived, that is, the pupil reaction may 
not yet be so superlatively good as is indicated by qualities mentioned in 
the score card under III. Undoubtedly, such a teacher should have credit 
for efforts rightly directed. An experienced supervisor can readily detect 
such efforts in the qualities indicated on the score card under II. 

4. Discipline may be omitted from the score card since it becomes a 
negligible quantity when the child is absorbingly interested in his work. 
This matter of absorbing interest appears in III C. 

5. It is probable that the initiative of the child need not be mentioned 
on a score card which contains a place for absorbing interest; initiative 
is likely to be an outgrowth of such interest. 


Recommendations—It is the belief of the writer that the score card 
resulting from this study must be tested out before it can merit the con- 
fidence of the profession. To prove its value it should be used in many 
places in connection with the work of teachers of known ability. If, when 
tried on the work of an eminently successful teacher, it scores her low, un- 
doubtedly it is lacking in some essential characteristics and should be revised 
through a wholly new study. Modifications brought about by renewed 
study of the investigation type will, in all probability, be necessary before 
a fairly satisfactory score card can be evolved. This work should begin at 
once. 

If the present study has accomplished no more than to point emphatically 
to the need for principals and supervisors to unite on some standards by 
which teaching can be judged in definite situations, it will not have been 
attempted in vain. 





Editor’s Note: Complete data, showing frequencies of judgments in the returns, quantity 
ranges, and the like, were submitted by Miss Carrigan. Considerations of space, however 
made it necessary to eliminate all figures save the summaries as expressed by the median values 
indicated on the score card itself. 











HE USE OF STANDARD TESTS 

enables the principal to substitute mea- 
surable and standardized results for personal 
opinion, and provides him with a series of 
clear and incontestable records of the achieve- 
ment of the pupils and teachers in his school. 
So important is this new method in education 
that a principal can no longer be considered 
prepared for his work unless he is familiar 
with the use of the standard tests and measures 
and with simple statistical procedures.— 
Elwood P. Cubberley, The Principal and His 
School, p. 485-86. 


[ 372 ] 














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CHAPTER II 
THE MEASUREMENT OF EFFICIENCY * 


THE MEASUREMENT OF TEACHING EFFICIENCY BY 
MEANS OF STANDARDIZED TESTS 


ALBION U. JENKINS, PRINCIPAL OF SCHOOL NO. 2, PATERSON, NEW JERSEY 


INCE BY EFFICIENCY we mean the power to achieve, to ac- 
complish, to do, then efficiency in management and instruction will 
imply the getting of results in keeping with the expenditure of time, 

money, and energy. Before we can know whether every part of the school 
machinery in any particular school or school system is giving an educa- 
tional account of itself, it will be necessary that certain definite accepted 
standards of achievement be set up, so that we can compare our own achieve- 
ments with those that have been accepted as satisfactory. A measure of 
efficiency will indicate the degree to which results have approached or 
exceeded these established standards of achievement. 

From this point of view the measurement of teaching efficiency will be 
possible to the extent that units of measure and standards of achievement 
for the various school activities have been established. The teacher can- 
not be certain of the soundness of her methods of work, unless there is 
some measure of the results of her instruction, which will indicate whether 
sufficient progress has been made from month to month, term to term, and 
grade to grade. 

There have always been attempts to measure the formal results of 
teaching. Among those used, the chief means have been opinion and the 
old-fashioned written examination. Standardized tests are rapidly super- 
seding or at least supplementing these inaccurate, unreliable measures of 
efficiency. Such tests are now available in citizenship, drawing, language, 
composition, spelling, handwriting, foreign languages, history, home eco- 
nomics, journalism, intelligence, mathematics, music, physical training, 
reading, science, and vocational subjects. 

Achievement tests inadequate as a measure of teaching efficiency—Stand- 
ard achievement tests and scales have been used a number of years in the 
public schools with great success. It hz; been estimated that more than 
two millions of these tests were given to pupils during the year in reading, 
writing, arithmetic, spelling, history, and geography. Their usefulness in 
improving the efficiency of teaching is now generally accepted in leading 
school systems throughout the country, and progressive teachers and super- 
visors are everywhere using them to supplement the regular school pro- 
cedure. The time has come when the efficiency of teaching and the progress 
of children in school subjects can be more clearly stated in terms of stand- 
ardized tests than in any other way. They offer standards of attainment 
in school subjects for the several grades, based upon the performance of 





1The reader is advised to supplement this chapter by referring to recent texts by Kelley, 
Courtis, McCall, Dickson, Trabue and ‘see 1929 Yearbook. 
373 ] 











374 ELEMENTARY ScHooit PRINCIPALS 


a large number of children to whom the tests have been given, with which 
the relative performance of any pupil or grade can be compared. 

Table I shows the improvement in efliciency that may come as the result 
of standardized testing. “‘Vhe Monroe Standardized Silent Reading ‘Tests, 
Revised, Forms 1 and 2, were used. 


Taste I—Median scores in rate and comprehension showing improvement in silent 
reading from November 14, 1021, to January 17, 1922, in third, fourth, and 
fifth grades 














Cred Standard Scores November 14, 1921 January 17, 1922 
Trace EN RNCENSNRSESCeD 
Rate Comp. Rate Comp. Rate Comp. 

| ee as 142 9.8 107 6.1 135 9 
ee 142 9.8 85 3.8 98 6 
TES 122 7.7 90 3.3 118 8 
arr 122 7.7 78 2.6 105 7 
4B.. ame 122 7.7 63 1.6 99 ae 
3A' i 82 3.8 82 ao 
ae 82 3.8 73 ag 
Rae 82 3.8 68 3 























* Not tested November 14. 


The results of November 14 show that the average 5A grade pupil 
reads silently with less than fourth-grade ability, while the 5B grade and 
the fourth grades compare none too favorably with the standards for the 
third grade. 

These scores proved very unsatisfactory and led the principal and the 
teachers of this school, a school with an Italian population in the most 
congested part of the city, to put ferth considerable effort to correct these 
conditions. Upon analysis it was found that the problem in these classes 
was one of increasing both rate and comprehension in reading. Special 
effort was then put forward to correct the defects that had become apparent. 
The limits of this paper will not permit full presentation of the work 
done in this direction. Suffice it to say that the work in silent reading 
was more carefully motivated, daily drills for increasing rate were given, 
and emphasis was placed upon thought-getting. The causes of slow rate 
such as over-emphasis on oral reading, belief that slow reading is good 
reading, and the failure of teachers to recognize the fact that rate of read- 
ing is important, were carefully discussed by teachers and principal. 

It is interesting to note that the test destroyed the smug complacency 
of the teachers based upon opinion only that the silent reading in this 
school was very good. After four years of careful work in silent reading, 
it was discovered that plans, discussion, and time spent, had after all failed 
to produce satisfactory results. But once the fact became known that 
results were not what they should be, and standards of achievement became 
available, teachers rapidly increased their efficiency, as is shown by the 
splendid record of January 17, 1922, two months later. What effect un- 











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Reprint or ‘Tie Firsr YEARBOOK 375 


familiarity with the plan and the failure of pupils to understand directions 
may have had in the first test is of course unknown. 

A careful study of the scores will show that Grade 5B failed to make 
as much progress as the other grades. Most of the grades made excellent 
relative progress, and there was no reason apparently why the 5B grade 
should not have done as well. ‘he teacher is a strong, energetic, intelli- 
gent young woman, capable of doing high-grade work, yet she failed to 
make any startling improvement with this particular class. ‘Vhis is a con- 
dition that frequently faces principals and teachers. In accounting for 
the failure of this class to make adequate progress, the principal and teacher 
and other interested teachers, after a careful examination of the cumulative 
record cards, came to the conclusion that this class was below the average 
mentally. ‘This however was only an opinion and counted for but little 
in scientific education. 

It is at this point that the weakness of the standardized achievement 
tests as a measure of teaching efficiency becomes apparent. One cannot 
account definitely for poor results, and it becomes necessary to guess at 
the causes. ‘Vo judge the teacher of this class on the basis of achievement 
alone would have been an injustice. ‘The results indicate how much the 
individual pupils accomplished in this test, but they do not indicate how 
much each child should have accomplished. ‘The standard of achievement 
is a grade standard, representing the achievement of the average pupil of 
thousands of children in the same grade. No one knows how much each 
child should have accomplished, and it is evident that this capacity cannot 
be measured by the achievement test. 

A more complete study of this 5B grade will be presented in Part III 
of this paper. 

Intelligence tests fundamental in any scheme of measurement—While in- 
telligence tests have not been used so widely and as group tests have not 
been in use so long as the achievement tests, their importance as a measure 
of the capacities of pupils for learning is rapidly gaining ground. ‘he 
scores of an achievement test may show that one class is inferior to 
another class, but it is no longer good practice to assume that the instruc- 
tion has been inferior. An intelligence test may show that the children 
in such a class are low in capacity to learn and consequently should not be 
expected to make so much progress as the pupils of the superior class. It 
is now generally conceded that a pupil may succeed in school work because 
of either high intelligence or superior teaching; or that he may fail because 
of either low intelligence or inferior teaching. Strict accountability for 
the success or failure of the work in a class or a school is possible only when 
the capacities of pupils for school subjects are known. 

A teacher of any class may be regarded as efficient only when provision 
has been made for all the pupils in her class to work up to the maximum 
of their capacity. Supervisors are apt to underrate the difficulties involved 
in putting this principle into practice. The teacher has been trying to vary 
the assignments so as to meet the needs of children of different capacities to 
learn, but the realization of what it means for a teacher to assign all the 











376 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





lessons in all the subjects with this aim in mind probably never occurs to 
the supervisor unfamiliar with the results of an intelligence test. 

Before the teacher can be expected to maintain her work at the highest 
possible efficiency, it remains for the administrator to classify her pupils 
more carefully. What has been done in this direction has been largely 
of an arbitrary nature, based mainly on achievement scores or age. The 
sins that have been committed by classifying pupils on such a basis will 
never be known. A superintendent in a large city discovered recently 
that a number of schools were promoting to high-schools classes whose 
average mental age was but twelve years. In the same classes were pupils 
whose mental age was as low as eight years, six months. Assuming that 
fourteen years or fourteen years and six months is an average age of pupils 
for promotion to high school, it may be seen how little chance hundreds 
of these pupils had of succeeding in their high-school studies and also 
what a problem the teachers had in trying to teach algebra and foreign 
languages to pupils not able mentally to do the work of the early grammar 
grades. Mental measurements, wherever made, are revealing similar con- 
ditions. The classification of pupils can be carried out intelligently only 
when the mental ages and capacities of pupils for the various school sub- 
jects are known. 

Something has been done, particularly in the cities, to reduce the teacher’s 
burden by eliminating the incapable from the regular classes and placing 
them in special classes under teachers with special training for the work. 
But even from this standpoint, the surface of the problem has been barely 
scratched. Dr. Corson reports that in Newark, New Jersey, there are 
477 pupils enrolled in the Binet centers and special classes, but that there 
are 500 mentally deficient boys and girls still in regular classes who are 
candidates for these classes. In addition to these there are 516 congenital 
illiterates, pupils who are repeaters in the primary grades and absolute 
failures in the grammar grades. These are children who seem unable to 
cope successfully with academic subjects and finally drop out with practically 
nothing to show for their years of school attendance. Commenting on 
these pupils, Dr. Corson says: “ Many of these are pupils in grades below 
the fourth, who cannot be taught to read and spell, and others have so 
little power that they are seriously handicapped. They must be taught each 
day what they were taught the day before.” 

Here is but one instance of the conditions which exist in school systems 
the country over. With classes clogged by a large number of pupils who 
are deficient, backward, or slow because of poor inheritance, illness, irregu- 
lar attendance, and the like, how can we expect maximum efficiency from 
the classroom teacher? 

Dr. Bliss, of Montclair, New Jersey, has supplied a graph, Figure 1, 
showing the teaching load in a certain class before provision has been made 
for the exceptionally bright children and the abnormally slow. The pupils 
in this class were measured by the Pressey group test. Doubtful cases were 
checked by use of Binet and Stanford Revision individual tests. The 
results show that there are five, if not eleven pupils, who belong in special 














pi OE  , A | 


we 














REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 377 





classes, children with I. Q.’s below 80 being rated as very inferior. In 
addition there are three superior pupils with I. Q.’s of 110 to 119 who 
ought to be given an opportunity for rapid advancement. 


Figure I—The teaching load in a class of 42 pupils before provision was made 
for the exceptionally bright and the abnormally slow. 





























11 12 
| | pils [pupils 
6 P 6 
pupils ppliseer""" 
& 3 
pupils papils 
1 pupip 
I. Q.’s 
50-59 60-69 70-79 80-89 90-99 100-109 110-119 


Testing 132 kindergarten pupils with the Stanford Revision intelligence 
test, Dr. Bliss found them divided into groups as shown in Table II. 
Figures such as these present a strong argument for the measurement of 
intelligence and the careful grouping of pupils based on the results of the 
tests. 


TABLE IIl—132 kindergarten pupils grouped on the basis of their 
intelligence quotients 











Number of pupils I. Q. Rating Per cent 
14 Below 80 Very inferior 10.6 
23 80- 89 Inferior 17.4 
59 90-109 Average 44.6 
22 110-119 Superior 16.6 
14 120-140 Very superior 10.6 
1 








In measuring the intelligence of large numbers of children the group 
tests, such as Haggerty, National, or Otis, should be given first. ‘Those 
pupils who are classified by the group test as very bright or very slow, 
and those for whom the classification is at variance with the teacher’s esti- 
mate, should be checked with an individual test, such as Binet or the Ter- 











378 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





man Stanford Revision of Binet. Dr. Bliss finds that the teacher will agree 
with the test in about fifty per cent of all cases. 

In Montclair, intelligence tests have been used very widely. Of 482 
pupils tested recently, 40 were promoted to a higher grade, 17 were de- 
moted, 17 were assigned to special classes, and for 13 pupils schedules were 
adapted to their needs. A few comments, taken from one of Dr. Bliss’ 
reports, will be interesting. 

“Twenty pupils of high intelligence quotients were assigned to a special 
class in English. This class will try to accomplish the seventh and eighth 
grade English this year.” 

“ Six pupils were allowed to drop geography and take eighth-grade En- 
glish.” 

““A boy in the seventh grade was failing in all his work. Physical age, 
II years 10 months. Mental age, 13 years 5 months. I. Q., 113. It 
was found that his home conditions had been completely changed. His 
father was dead and he had been separated from his mother and placed 
in a home.” 

“A girl in the sixth grade, aged 11 years 2 months, tested 13 years 6 
months, I. Q., 128. She was sent to the Junior High School and was get- 
ting high marks at the second report.” 

“A boy in the sixth grade was estimated inferior by the teacher and 
mother. Physical age, 11 years 1 month; mental age, 12 years 9 months; 
I. Q., 115. He was not interested in school; called it ‘ grindy.’ The 
teacher remarked, ‘If he has that intelligence, it’s my business to make 
him use it.’ In a month she reported that she had given him a responsible 
task in a special day’s program and he had made good. She had won his 
interest. The mother is yet to be convinced.” 

As we study these results carefully we cannot help but conclude that 
a measurement of teaching efficiency will involve not only the use of 
achievement tests to test knowledge and skill but also intelligence tests to 
arrive at some idea of the child’s ability to do the work of the school as 
now organized. At present achievement standards are for the grade only; 
there are no standards for pupils younger or older than the grade average. 
A very bright pupil can make the grade average without exerting himself, 
while a slow pupil, who has worked diligently, may be regarded as a fail- 
ure because he has failed to reach the grade standard. It is evident that 
this is unfair to both pupils. 

To accept the results of any intelligence test as a final measure of in- 
telligence would be a dangerous practice and would not give children an 
opportunity to grow and advance. Many tests of intelligence should be 
given; seldom, if ever, should we rely on the results of a single test. Our 
man-made measures may be at fault after all. Results found through the 
use of tests should be carefully checked in practice the following term or 
year; it is worse than folly to go ahead and do things and not know 
whether we are right or wrong. 

The joint use of intelligence and achievement tests as a measure of teach- 
ing efficiency—Until quite recently there has been but little definite rela- 





———_— OT 








th 


e 
e 
e 


“- -—h oF 











Reprint oF THE First YEARBOOK 379 





tion between the intelligence and achievement tests and scales. The school 
product of cities and States has been surveyed through the use of achieve- 
ment tests alone, and within the last year or two the intelligence of the 
pupils of whole cities has been measured without any consideration of the 
achievements of the pupils tested. The results of intelligence testing have 
been used mainly for the purpose of classifying the pupils into groups— 
slow, average, bright, and the like, thus indicating the rate at which pupils 
might be expected to progress through school. The results of achievement 
tests have been used to evaluate the school product in terms of definite 
standards, thus determining somewhat roughly the efficiency of pupils and 
teachers. 

The absence of any relation between the two types of tests has been 
recognized and efforts are now being made by scientific workers in educa- 
tion to interpret achievement scores in terms of mental age, thereby get- 
ting another result which has been called the achievement age. The 
achievement ages are found by giving any achievement test to a group of 
pupils sufficiently large whose mental ages are known. The median score 
of say the twelve-year-olds is the achievement age of pupils with a mental 
age of twelve years. The value of the achievement age is shown in the 
following illustration. A pupil 13% years old in the fifth grade in a silent 
reading test may read at a rate of 148 words per minute, which would ordi- 
narily be considered satisfactory, the median being 148. But in connection 
with a test in which the achievement ages are given, we find that 148 is 
the achievement score of a pupil 11 years old. A 13'%-year-old pupil 
should read at a rate of 174 words per minute. This pupil has therefore 
apparently not worked up to his capacity. An intelligence test however 
shows that this pupil’s mental age is only 11 years, I. Q. 82. He is there- 
fore achieving as much as he should. 

When we have measured a pupil in respect to his achievement in a school 
subject and his capacity for that subject, the quotient of achievement di- 
vided by capacity is an important measure of accomplishment. This 
achievement quotient is an index of his efficiency. If a pupil with a capac- 
ity of 80 makes a score of 80 in arithmetic, the result is very different 
from a score of 80 by a capacity of 110. In the first place the achieve- 
ment quotient is 100, in the second it is only 73. The first pupil is working 
at full capacity, the second at but 73 per cent of his normal ability. If 
the standard median in such a test is 80, it is apparent that there is no 
standard of achievement for a pupil with a capacity of 110. The pupil 
of capacity 110 should be required to do enough more than the average to 
bring his score up to 110, so that his A. Q. (achievement quotient) would 
also be at least 100. On this basis when pupils’ capacities for different 
subjects are known, every pupil will be required to maintain his A. Q.’s at 
or near 100. Unfortunately it is not a simple matter to arrive at achieve- 
ment ages and achievement quotients ; we must therefore depend upon the 
tables that have been prepared by those who have tried to correlate the two 
kinds of tests. 

It is possible to use to advantage the results of any intelligence test and 











380 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





any well-standardized achievement test. By arranging the standard mental 
ages and the standard achievement scores according to grades a graph may 
be drawn showing roughly the achievement ages of any pupil. For example, 
Angelina Delvecchio is a normal girl in fifth grade, 11 years of age, mental 
age 11 years, I. Q. 100, who entered public school in 1B grade, left in 2B, 
attended a parochial school where Italian and religion are emphasized, 
returned in 4A, and is now a member of a very slow class, whose median 
mental age is 8 years 8 months, or 2 years below standard. Her work in 
reading, writing, spelling, and composition is decidedly superior, reaching 
8th grade ability in comprehension and spelling. Her general ability in 
arithmetic is normal as shown by Monroe’s General Survey in Arithmetic, 
yet her work is of only third and fourth-grade ability as is shown by the 
Courtis Tests in Fundamentals. This is partly accounted for by the fact 
that the more difficult work in fundamentals was not emphasized because 
of the low mentality of the class. Secondly, the course of study no longer 
requires emphasis in the fifth grade on examples as difficult as those which 
make up the Courtis tests. The low scores in States and cities may be 
accounted for in the same way. The girl is temperamentally a good 
student. 

Such a record card for every pupil in the school would be of great value. 
At a glance the pupil’s standing in all subjects may be known. By com- 
parison with the year of the pupil’s mental age, one can see whether the 
pupil is working at full capacity. Furthermore, one can state roughly the 
pupil’s achievement age in any subject. In reading it is about 13 years 
6 months; in writing, 13 years 6 months; in spelling, 14 years; and so on. 
With special instruction in arithmetic for a few weeks, this girl could 
probably skip a year. Her I. Q., however, if correct, would indicate that 
she is in about the right grade for her age. Several mental tests, par- 
ticularly an individual test, might show a much higher I. Q. By arranging 
the achievement ages for each pupil horizontally a summary record sheet for 
a whole class may be easily prepared. 

One of the best tests now available in which the intelligence and achieve- 
ment scores of pupils have been closely correlated is the Illinois Examina- 
tion. This Examination, Form II, was used to discover the difficulties 
involved in teaching the 5B grade mentioned in Part I. The examination 
was given to 41 pupils on the 26th of January, 1922, with results as shown 


in Table III. 


Tasie IlI—Class record of 5B grade showing mental ages and intelligence quo- 


tients ; also achievement ages and achievement quotients in arithmetic and 
silent reading 









































Mental Age | Arith, A. A, | Silent Reading A.A. LO Arith. |Silent Reading. A.Q. 

Yrs. | Mos.} Yrs. | Mos. | Ave. Comp.| Rate A.Q. | Aver. |Comp.| Rate 

Median..| 8 | 8 | 9 | 6/| 7-9| 8-0| 7-6] 74] 117] 94] 100| 89 

Standard.| 10 | 8 10 11 |11-2 |11-6 |10-10 99 | 102 | 105 | 108 | 102 
' ! 























tal 


ay 
le, 
tal 


cr he sl 


~—— 























REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 381 





Table III is to be interpreted as follows: The average mental age of 
the class is 8 years 8 months, as compared with the standard age for a fifth- 
grade class of 10 years 8 months. The average arithmetic achievement age 
of the class is 9 years 6 months, as compared with the standard of 10 years 
11 months. The average I. Q. of the class is 74, while the standard is 99. 
The median A. Q. of the class in arithmetic is 117 as compared with the 
standard A. Q. of 102. The median achievement quotient in compre- 
hension is 100 as compared with standard A. Q. of 108. All other figures 
are to be compared in similar manner. 

The range in physical age for this class is 9 to 14 years, with a median 
age of 11 years 6 months. When the median physical age is compared 
with the median mental age of 8 years 8 months, it shows under what 
difficulties the teacher has been struggling. The median intelligence 
quotient of 74 also shows the inferior mentality of this class. Yet the 
achievement quotients of 117, 94, 100, and 89 compare favorably with the 
standards of 102, 105, 108, and 102. 

Grouping these pupils according to their mental ages the composition of 


the class is as follows: 
No. Pupils i. ©, 


POON oo acid ci cant acaccncnenesian 7 Below 60 
EME hiarsa ca vip Ricinus Teh wesed abate’ 14 60-74 
DM Sere cdcnn cr awan cacae ene aeesRameeneee 10 75-84 
RP PO er eT ee he ee 10 85-114 


In order to reduce the teaching load, the class has now been reclassified 
and 13 with the lowest ratings have been assigned to an opportunity class 
where they will be given every advantage to gain the next grade. This 
however is probably impossible, as the mental ages of most of these pupils 
are the ages of pupils of a strong third-grade class. A number of them 
will later be placed in special classes which are maintained for those men- 
tally deficient. Those rated as feeble-minded have been given the indi- 
vidual Stanford Revision test without any change in classification. 

Achievement quotients are valuable measures of teaching efficiency. A 
quotient of less than 100 indicates less than average efficiency. A quotient 
greater than 100 indicates superior efficiency. In the distribution shown in 
Table IV the median score in reading indicates average teaching efficiency ; 
in arithmetic, superior teaching efficiency. 


TasLe 1V—Distribution of 5B pupils on basis of achievement quotients 





| Number of pupils 





Quality of pupil achievement 





| Reading Arithmetic 

Very superior, 165 and above.............. — 2 
slice hie A resi big ace ashe asan's a ereset a 4 
Superior, ee |) SPE oe reas or 5 15 
Average, NIN hg cs enatdcciaie wie Vintners 28 20 
Poor, Rr ere 8 aii 
Failure, I ik eich A uae — ee 
, ee ner ere — ae 




















382 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





A study of this class has been presented to show the necessity for making 
use of mental ages in interpreting measures of achievement. A rating of 
a teacher on the basis of the achievement scores given in ‘lable | would be 
unjust. It is only through the joint use of intelligence and achievement 
tests that the true success of the teacher can be estimated. A reliable measure 
of teaching efficiency in any school system means a similar study of the 
work of every teacher. 

Summary—1. A measure of efficiency is a measure of results achieved. 

2. Achievement results alone are not a safe measure of the efficiency of 
a teacher, a school, or a pupil. 

3. The mental ages of pupils are valuable for purposes of classification. 

4. Mental ages are of further value in estimating the efficiency of teach- 
ing by indicating the capacities of pupils to do the work of the school. 

5. If pupils are to be kept working at the maximum of their capacity 
to learn, provision must be made for the conversion of achievement scores 
into achievement ages. 

6. Achievement quotients, or A. Q.’s are indices of teaching efficiency. 
A. Q.’s above 100 indicate superior efficiency, those below 100, less than 
average efficiency. 

7. Scientific education requires that A. Q.’s be recorded year by year 
for each pupil in all subjects. 





ACCOMPLISHMENT QUOTIENTS AS AN AID IN 
DIAGNOSIS* 


RENA C. STEBBINS, CITY NORMAL SCHOOL, ROCHESTER, NEW YORK 


In connection with the City Normal School, we have an elementary 
school of about nine hundred children. These pupils are taught by skilful 
“critic” teachers, aided by normal school students who obtain their prac- 
tice in teaching in our grade school. The inexperience of the student teach- 
ers is, we believe, more than offset by the superior ability of the “ critic ” 
teachers and by the close supervision of all student teaching by the “‘ theory ” 
instructors. So the children in our school are probably better taught than 
is the average child. 

Need of educational tests—QOn the other hand, the pressure for time, the 
prominence given to special subjects, the importance attached to the “ de- 
velopment ”’ of subjects, the large number of visitors, all tend to increase 
the amount of informational and inspirational teaching, and to decrease the 
amount of drill in fundamental skills of education. There is a danger that 
the teacher in the City Normal Elementary School is giving her pupils an 
education that is extensive, but not intensive. 

Any teaching that neglects training in fundamental skills of education is 
weak. To be sure that our pupils are making normal progress in acquiring 
these skills, we have made constant use of educational tests. Only by com- 





1See the recent discussions of this topic as found in such books as Kelly’s /nterpretation 
of Educational Measurements, World Book Company, 1927, p. 22-25.—Editor, 1929 Yearbook. 








1g 




















REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 383 





paring the attainments of our children in reading, writing, arithmetic, and 
spelling, with some concrete standard or norm, can we be sure that we are 
giving them the necessary tools for acquiring more knowledge. Moreover, 
to measure the teacher’s efficiency in securing results in these skill subjects, 
educational tests to us are indispensable. 

Unfairness of educational tests—When the examiner has finished giving 
a battery of educational tests, he has two groups of data to offer to the 
principal—first, a record of our grade norms in comparison with standard 
norms, showing what grades have central tendencies above, equal to, or 
below standard; second, individual scores for each pupil. And as the ex- 
aminer gives this record to the principal, he is struck with the unfairness 
of it all—its unfairness to the teacher, because the records show only how 
her grade compares in measurable educational abilities with other grades 
in the country, without taking into account the pupil; material with which 
she worked; its unfairness to the pupil, because it gives to those above the 
norm a high rank ana praise, and to those below the norm a sense of failure 
and blame, without taking into account the native capacity or intelligence 
of these children. 

Those interested in educational testing have long realized that the valu- 
able and fair testing program will be one in which the results of educa- 
tional tests are compared not alone with the norm, but with the results of 
mental tests of these same children, in which we measure both teacher and 
pupil not merely by what the child has learned, but by what he has learned 
in relation to what he is capable of learning. In April, 1921, the City Nor- 
mal School began its study to find some method of combining intelligence 
and educational test results so as to measure fairly both its teachers and its 
pupils. This need for a fair combination has long been felt. The method 
has been the chief difficulty. Several different lines of approach to the 
problem have been taken in various parts of the country. In Rochester we 
have chosen the method which follows because of its simplicity, its fairness, 
and its possibilities for interpretation. 

The field of our experiment—Because of other testing projects in the 
first three grades, we limited our work to grades four through seven. Each 
year of work in our school is divided in two, and promotions are half 
yearly. The first half year in each grade is designated by B, the second 
half by A. Not only are there B and A grades for each year, but in every 
grade there are two parallel classes, one composed of brighter children, one 
of slower children, classified on the basis of teachers’ judgment. Thus 
there are in the fourth grade: 


4B,—First half of Fourth Grade, brighter pupils 
4B,—First half of Fourth Grade, slower pupils 
4A,—Second half of Fourth Grade, brighter pupils 
4A,—Second half of Fourth Grade, slower pupils 


In the four grades studied, there were in all sixteen classes, taught by 
fourteen well-trained teachers. 











384 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





Selection and administration of tests—Since the purpose of our study 
was to find a wider and fairer use of educational test results, rather than to 
find valuable new tests, we chose only well-known, widely-used tests, whose 
value had already been clearly demonstrated. We also chose tests only in 
fundamental skill subjects, since in our school the danger of under-teaching 
lies here. The tests chosen were: 


Mental 
National Intelligence Test, Scales A and B, Form 1 
Educational 
Reading—Thorndike-McCall 
Woody Addition Scale A 
Arithmetic processes—Woody Subtraction Scale B 
Woody Multiplication Scale A 
Woody Division Scale A 
Problems—Buckingham Problem Scale 
Spelling—Ayres (in lists) 
Monroe Timed-Sentence Spelling Test 


The group mental tests were given by Miss Leila Martin, Director of 
the Child Study Bureau of Rochester, under uniform and excellent condi- 
tions. The educational tests were all given by one trained examiner under 
uniform testing conditions, and all corrections, tabulations, and statistical 
work were done either by this examiner or under her personal supervision. 
Because of this great care in the administration of the tests, we feel that 
mechanical error has been reduced to a minimum, and that conditions war- 
rant a close comparison between grades. 

The scores—When the tests were given, we had scores in two groups of 
intelligence tests and in seven educational tests for each child. The typical 
record for each child follows: 


A. J.—Age 10 years 3 months 


Score 
National Intelligence Test—Scale A................ 94 
National Intelligence Test—Scale B................ 98 
Thorndike-McCall Reading Test................... 46 
EY SE IE Ihc 6.6 66.0. bbe scwenedicscccvasess 28 
Woody Subtraction Scale A.............02 cece eeees 23 
Woody Multiplication Scale A..............--2000- 27 
sv cbenedcensesbaersass 24 
Buckingham Problem Scale.............-secesceees 6.46 
eS i dia ahs aiken aie a de wknelaes 77 
Monroe Timed-Sentence Spelling Test.............. 42 


One glance at this record makes the difficulty apparent. When these 
scores are given to the teacher, they are valuable only in so far as she may 
compare them with scores of other children in her grade. This comparison 











I- 
Tr 


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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 385 





she had already made, however, long before we gave the tests. A more 
concrete comparison she cannot make. If these scores should ever be given 
to a parent, he would get almost no information from them, except the 
judgment that he, who used to be “ good in reading,” has a child who 
“stands 46.” Even the examiner himself cannot interpret or compare re- 
sults based upon such varying criteria without further work. Clearly, be- 
fore we can study the relation of the child’s educational achievement to his 
mental capacity, we must reduce these unrelated scores to some comparable 
unit. 

The method of composite scores and the method of composite ranks seem 
to yield results less capable of interpretation to the average teacher and 
parent than the method of the educational age. 

Mental and educational ages—In the field of intelligence tests, all efforts 
to substitute scores, percentiles, intelligence indices, and the like, for Binet’s 
and Terman’s contributions of the mental age (M. A.) and the intelligence 
quotient (I. Q.) have failed. The layman understands M. A. and he 
wishes the results of the intelligence test stated in terms which he can com- 
prehend. In the field of educational measures, if we could give both the 
teacher and parent in the case of the child mentioned above, instead of a 
group of scores, a statement like this, “ The child reads as well as the aver- 
age child of 11 years 6 months; in addition he does as well as the average 
child of 11 years 10 months; in subtraction, 11 years 6 months; in multi- 
plication, 12 years; in division, 11 years 10 months; in problems, 12 years; 
in list spelling, 12 years 4 months,” we would make test results immeasur- 
ably more valuable to teacher, pupil, and parent. This is what we have 
attempted to do with the scores obtained in our study. 

The transforming of National intelligence scores into mental ages was 
simple. Using the age norms given by the National Research Council, we 
interpolated for months, forming an age-score table as follows: 


TasLe I—Provisional Age Standards, National Intelligence Test—Scale A—Form I 





Yrs. Mos. | Score; Yrs. Mos. | Score} Yrs. Mos.| Score} Yrs. Mos.| Score 














8 0 65 9 0 78 10 0 91 11 0 103 

8 1 66.1 9 1 79.1) 10 1 92 11 1 103.8 
8 2 67.2 9 2 80.2 10 2 93 il 2 104.6 
8 3 68.3 9 3 81.3 | 10, 3 94 11 3 105.5 


























From these tables we read the mental ages which correspond to the scores 
on Scales A and B, and averaged them to find the child’s mental age. 
While no one experienced in the inaccuracies of group testing at its best 
would care to state that this is the child’s true mental age, at least it is the 
mental age which corresponds to his scores obtained on group tests given 
under the best possible conditions. 

17 








386 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





Our next task was to transform educational scores into what we have 
called an educational age. If we say that a child has a mental age of twelve 
years when he does as well on a mental test as the average child of that age, 
then we may say that a child has an “ educational age” of twelve years 
when he does as well on educational tests as the average child of that age. 
It is clear that, in order to transpose scores into educational ages, the same 
method of standardization is necessary that is used in finding age norms for 
mental tests. Large unselected groups of children at each age, taken re- 
gardless of the grade in which they are located, should be given the test, 
and age standards found from the median or mean performance of these 
children. This has been done in the case of the Thorndike-McCall Read- 
ing Scales. In a clear discussion of scale construction Dr. McCall * points 
out how he procured the educational age norms for his ten reading scales. 
The examiner, by using the table of reading age standard sent with the 
manual of directions, can find directly and accurately the “ reading age’’ for 
each child. This has been done with all our reading scores. 

Method of deriving educational ages—For the other tests in our study, 
only grade norms were furnished by the test originators. Our problem was 
to find some method by which we could use these grade norms given with 
the tests to find educational ages. We realize that the method we have 
used has its defects, that it is at best only a makeshift, that it is as accurate 
as it could now be made, and until test constructors furnish us with age 
norms, it is the best method for interpreting scores that we have yet found. 

Let us take for an example the Buckingham Problem Scale. Dr. Buck- 
ingham has found the following grade medians for the end of the term, 
based on large numbers of pupils tested: 


End of Score 
3B 3.66 
3A 3.84 
4B 4.36 
4A 4-74 


It is generally accepted by educators, and the 1918 school census reports 
support the facts, that the standard median ages for the above grades are: 


End of Age 

3B 9 years 

3A 9 years 6 months 
4B 10 years 

4A 10 years 6 months 


We have said, since the median performance in the problem scale for 3B 
grade is 3.66, and since the median age for 3B grade is 9 years, we shall 


4 





McCall, William A. ‘“ Uniform Method of Scale Construction.” Teachers College Record 
22:31-51; January, 1921. 





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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 387 





let 9 years be the “ problem age ” for all children making a score of 3.66 on 
the scale. Hence we derive the following table: 
Tasre Il.—Age Standards for Buckingham Problem Scale 


x 























Age Age Age 
Score Score Score 
Yrs. Mos. Yrs. |, Mos. ¥ra. Mos. 
3.66 9 ites 5.86 11 bbe 7.89 13 to 
3.84 9 6 6.13 11 6 8.15 13 6 
4.36 10 a 6.46 12 7 8.27 14 ee 
4.74 10 6 6.61 12 6 8.56 14 6 


























By interpolating for months, we found the complete table, and from this 
table we read our scores in terms of problem ages. This same method was 
used in finding age tables for each scale used. With the spelling scales, we 
were limited by the fact that the scales do not run continuously through the 
grades. In the Ayres’ list it was necessary to make a separate table for 
each column, using Ayres’ standard per cents for each grade. In Monroe’s 
timed-sentence test, we made a separate table for the test for grades 3 and 4, 
for grades 5 and 6, and for grades 7 and 8. 

When we had secured an educational age for each child in each subject 
tested, we wished to find the arithmetical mean of these ages to procure an 
average educational age. There were, however, four tests in arithmetic 
processes and two in spelling, as against one test in reading and one in prob- 
lems. We wished our mean to give equal value to skills in each subject. 
It was necessary, therefore, to weight the reading age by four as a multi- 
plier, the Woody ages by one, the problem age by four, and the spelling 
ages by two each, in order to equalize their value. This was done in every 
case except in the two spelling ages. Although we considered spelling 
ability as important as the other abilities, we felt that our spelling ages 
were not reliable enough to warrant equal weighting with the others, and 
we decided to weight each spelling age by one only, thus giving only half 
value to spelling. 

TABLE I1I—Chronological, Mental, and Educational Ages of Six 7A Pupils Selected 


for Showing Interpretative Value for the Child of the Several Measures 
Presented 








Prob 
S.Sp 
L.Sp 
Mean 
1.Q 
E.Q 
A.Q 


Pupil 
C.A 
M.A 
Read. 
Add 
Sub 
Mul 
Div. 














. .}13-8}11-2 |10-10)12—4)13-3 | 13-2) 13-11]}12-10)10-10}10-3)}12-0) 82) 88/108 
. .}12-8) 16-8 |13-11/11-8)12-7 | 11-5) 11-10) 14-11)13-9 |12-6)}13-6/132/107| 80 
. (13-9) 13-11)12-8 | 15-1/12—10) 13-5}13-5 |13—9 | 14-10) 14—2/13-6/101] 99) 97 
. .}16-9] 9-6 | 11-3 |11-0)11-9 |11-7/12-0 |12-11]10-10) 9-9)11-8) 57) 70/123 
. .|13-4/15-7 | 14-4 |14-5)14-0 |14-6/14-8 |13-9 [14-8 |13-5/14—2)117/106) 91 

.}10-4/ 16-0 | 15-6 |15-5}14—4 | 14-6) 14-4 |15-6 |15-2 |16—0) 15-3) 155/148) 95 


PROBA 
MmAzONeS 
























































388 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





Table 2 illustrates the record of the chronological, mental, and educa- 
tional ages which was made for each of the sixteen grades. A similar tabu- 
lation was made for the teacher of each grade for reference during promo- 
tion week, as summing up for her in an intelligible manner the results of 
the educational tests given to her pupils. Compared with the usual method 
of representing test results, we feel that this summary is far more valuable 
for diagnosis of individual differences than the usual “ scores in order” 
method. 

With our material now in terms of comparable units, we are able to 
combine the mental ages and educational ages in one measure, the Accom- 
plishment Quotient. The A. Q. is the ratio of a child’s educational age to 
his mental age; it is the summary of what a child accomplishes education- 
ally compared with what he is capable of accomplishing. In the case of a 
ten-year-old child who is twelve years mentally, but who does as well as 
the average eleven-year child in his work, his I. Q. is 12/10, or 120; his 
E. Q. is 11/10, or 110; but his A. Q. is 11/12, or 92. His I. Q. of 120 
shows him to be of superior intelligence. His E. Q. of 110 shows that he 
is doing better work than the average for his age, but it does not show that 
he is doing as well as he is capable of doing. His A. Q. tells the whole 
truth—he is accomplishing only 92 per cent as much as he would normally 
be expected to accomplish, considering his intelligence. We believe that 
his Accomplishment Quotient is the fairest and most valuable measure now 
known of the efficiency both of the pupil and of the teacher. 

The Accomplishment Quotient and the teacher—From the point of view 
of the teacher, the A. Q. is the only quotient which takes into account the 
material with which she is working: (1) For the teacher of slow pupils, 
the A. Q. interprets fairly the results of her work in relation to the capaci- 
ties of the children. Her low educational scores may appear high when we 
compare attainment with native capacity. 

(2) For the teacher of bright pupils, the A. Q. interprets the educa- 
tional results fairly. Her high scores may not be as high as they should be, 
when compared with the native ability of the children whom she teaches. 

(3) For every teacher and every supervisor who is supplied with the 
A. Q.’s at the beginning of the term, this measure is a protection against 
injustice. If the class has not been properly taught for two or three years, 
the A. Q. reveals to the teacher and to the supervisors the handicap under 
which the new teacher is working. If the class has been unusually well 
taught for two or three years, the A. Q. reveals the fact and prevents the 
new teacher from resting too complacently upon the past laurels of the class. 


TaBLe 1V—Median results of eight tests in the 642 grade expressed as per cent of 
room and results of the same tests expressed in terms of median 
accomplishment quotients 
City Normal School, Rochester, New York, Grade 6A-2 





























Read.| Add.| Sub. | Mul.} Div. |Prob. ssp| L.Sp.|Mean 
Per cent of norm.......... 84.4) 97.7| 94.8) 91.0) 97.3) 88.4) 82.0) 73.0) 88.4 
YT 8 rere 108. 0)115.0)115.0)117.0)116.0)117.0)103.0)100. 0111.0 









































——. > 











Reprint OF THE First YEARBOOK 389 





Taste V—Results of eight educational tests in sixteen grades in the City Normal 
School, expressed first in terms of mean per cent of standard; secondly 
in terms of mean accomplishment quotients for each grade 


| | 


7B, |7B, 6A,\6A. 6B, 6B, 








SA, 5Az 5B,/5B, $A,|4Ac(4B, 4B, 











Grade sn jt: | 
— ——n —— a 

» 7 | | | | | } 
Mea 2.100! 95]103; 90104) 88 106) 89/103) 88 99| 85/107) 79]116| 92 


ets BMrcrcceness ‘100 | 108 100 |109! 109,111 107 102|108 107 14)327 | 822) 12iet 126 
} | 

An illustration from one grade (6A,) will illustrate the unfairness of 
the “score” method of showing results and the fairness of our proposed 
Quotient method. If we represent the grade medians in each test as per 
cents of standard scores (see Table 4), the teacher of this grade faces dis- 
couraging results. In every test her grade is below the norm. In only 
three tests is her grade above 95 per cent of the norm. The teacher and 
the principal realize that the 6A, grade is a slow grade, but the record does 


Fic. I—Results of eight educational tests given to a 64-2 grade in the City Normal 
School, Rochester, N. Y., expressed first in terms of mean per cent of test norms; 
secondly in terms of median Accomplishment Quotients. 





not acknowledge that fact. If, however, we represent these results not as 
per cents of norms, but in terms of median accomplishment quotients in 
each test (i. e., the median of the educational ages in each test divided by 
the median mental age), notice how this grade shifts (see Figure 1). In 











390 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





every test this grade is doing as well as or better than might be expected 
from its mentality. This teacher should not be discouraged but encouraged 
by the excellent progress her children are making in skill subjects in the 
light of their mentality. . 

The facts of a grade are consistent for the entire school. Table V shows 
the average results of the eight educational tests in each grade, expressed 
first in terms of mean per cent of grade norms; secondly, in terms of the 
mean accomplishment quotients. Figures 2 shows these results graphically. 
In every case the duller section of the grade presents a discouraging show- 
ing as to educational test results alone. All but one of the brighter sections 
are above standard in the tests. But when we take into consideration the 
mentality of these grades, and represent the results in terms of average 
accomplishment quotients, as shown by the upper line in Figure 2, we find 
that the teachers who seemingly are doing the best work are those in charge 
of the slower groups. Two dull sections are achieving over 125 per cent 
of what might be expected from them. The 4A, and the 5B, grades, the 
two grades whose medians were lowest in the school, are accomplishing 121 


Fic. —Results of eight educational tests given to 359 pupils in sixteen grades in 
the City Normal School, Rochester, N. Y., expressed first in terms of mean per cent 
of test norms; secondly in terms of mean Accomplishment Quotients. 





per cent and 127 per cent, which is more than might be expected from their 
mental ability. This is the true measure of a grade’s achievement—not 
how much can it score, but how much can it achieve in relation to its 
ability ? 

















it 











Reprint OF THE First YEARBOOK 391 








Interesting facts revealed by Figure 2 are that the lower grades in our 
school seem to be more efficiently taught in these skill subjects than the 
upper grades, and that all grades in the school are accomplishing as much— 
if not more than might normally be expected from their mental abilities. 


TasLeE VI—Median I. Q., E. Q., and A. Q. for All Grades in Rank Order 











Rank 1.Q. E.Q. A.Q. 
1 7B,-103 4B,-107 5B,-127 
2 7A,-101 6A,-105 4B,-126 
3 6Ai— 98 7B,-103 4A,-122 
6 SB:- 97 5B,-102 4A,-121 
5 4B.- 96 4A,-102 5B.-114 
6 6Bi— 94 7A,-101 4B,-113 
7 SAi— 94 5A,-101 6A,-111 
8 6B.- 93 6B,-100 7B,-109 
9 5A:- 90 SA:— 95 6A;-109 

10 4A,-— 85 6B.- 94 7A2-108 
11 7A;— 84 5B,- 92 5A:-108 
12 7B.- 84 7A 90 6B,-107 
13 6A,- 81 7B.- 89 5A,-107 
14 4A,- 74 6A;,- 89 6B,-102 
15 4B,- 72 4A,- 89 7A:-100 














Table 6 represents a summary of the median I. Q.’s, E. Q.’s, and A. Q.’s 
of the sixteen grades in order of their rank. The brightest grades tend to 
have the highest educational age, but they tend, after all, to be laggards, for 
it is the duller grades that have relatively superior performance. It is this 
information yielded by the accomplishment quotients that makes the stand- 
ard testing in our school this past year a real and fair measure of the 
teachers’ work in these subjects tested. For the first time teachers and 
pupils in dull grades have received the credit due to them. For the first 
time the actual efficiency of the brighter grades can be compared with that 
of the slower grades. Principals, supervisors, and teachers find satisfaction 
in such results. 

While this year our Accomplishment Quotients are not an entirely just 
measure of the teacher’s efficiency in these eight phases, since they do not 
take into account with what quotients the grade came to her, they are val- 
uable in revealing the results of one year under her teaching, and in another 
year, we feel, a similar record will show very fairly the teaching efficiency 
of every teacher in these skill subjects. 

We have confined this paper to a discussion of accomplishment quotients 
in their relation to the teacher. It does not lie within the scope of this 
article to discuss the equally valuable use made of our data—namely, the 
individual diagnosis of pupil efficiency on the basis of A. Q.’s, and the re- 
classification of our pupils on the basis of our combination of educational 
and mental tests. Here, we feel, the A. Q. has been equally valuable and 
fair. 











392 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





In conclusion, then, may we state our faith? We believe (1) that stand- 
ard test results alone are not a fair measure of a teacher’s efficiency in the 
subjects tested; (2) that a fair measure must consider the results of her 
teaching in relation to the mentality of the pupils; and (3) that the Ac- 
complishment Quotient is the fairest measure of the teacher’s and pupil’s 
efficiency in the subjects tested, because it exacts from every pupil and every 
teacher results in proportion to the native capacity of the pupils. 
































CHAPTER III 
FOLLOWING UP THE INTELLIGENCE TEST 


INTELLIGENCE TESTS AS A BASIS FOR 
CLASSIFICATION 


CORA CAMPBELL, PRINCIPAL OF THE BANCROFT SCHOOL, 
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI 


FEW YEARS AGO all of the elementary schools of Kansas City 
A were organized along traditional lines. Classes were promoted as 

wholes from grade to grade, little or no effort being made to secure 
homogeneous groups. On the contrary, each teacher was given her share of 
“ undesirable ” pupils. No teacher was willing to have a room full of slow 
pupils, because each teacher felt that she was expected to bring her class 
up to standard in every respect. “ Besides,” she said, using the old argu- 
ments, ‘“ the bright children are an inspiration to the dull ones; slow chil- 
dren gain great benefit from association with children who can think more 
quickly, and talk more interestingly than themselves.” The teacher looked 
upon her brighter pupils as the pace-setters for the class, and labored long 
and faithfully to speed up her slow ones, and brighten up her dull ones, 
so that her class might rank as high as the class of her fellow teacher. 

The exceptionally bright child’s right to special attention received no 
recognition. He would get along very well anyway, he would always make 
a creditable showing, why should the teacher worry about his progress? 
Occasionally, indeed, the teacher found a child of such active mind and 
body that she could not keep him busy; such a child she “ specially pro- 
moted ” to a higher class. This, however, frequently proved to be an un- 
satisfactory method of acceleration, because in the promotion, topics were 
“skipped ” which were necessary parts of the foundation for higher grade 
work. These special promotions, therefore, were not regarded with great 
favor and were not nearly so frequent as demotions. 

Gradually, the feeling grew in Kansas City, as elsewhere, that neither 
the very bright child nor the very slow child was being given a square 
deal. The bright child’s time was being wasted, he was bored or in mis- 
chief while waiting for slower children to comprehend points that he had 
grasped at once. Drill, repeated for the laggards, was deadly dull for 
him. Never did he have enough work to call forth his best effort, and bad 
habits of thinking and of working naturally resulted. 

The slow child, on the other hand, was hurried along, half compre- 
hending, until the work became too difficult for him even to attempt, then 
he became a failure and a repeater, or left school altogether. 

Attempts to remedy these evils resulted in reorganization of classes into 
more homogeneous groups. I shall describe the beginning made in one 
elementary school in Kansas City, the Bancroft. 


[ 393 ] 











394 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





It was not the desire of the faculty of this school suddenly to overturn 
the established organization of the school. Violent revolutions in school 
policy are apt to arouse so much suspicion and opposition that only disaster 
can result. It seemed wiser to proceed slowly and to be sure of each step 
than to attempt so much at one time that mistakes were inevitable and 
failure almost sure. Our readjustment, therefore, began at the bottom 
with the beginning pupils. 


Classification—On the first day of school in September, 1920, the first- 
grade children were divided into two groups. Group I consisted of children 
who had had a full year of kindergarten experience and who were con- 
sidered by the kindergarten teacher to be strong pupils. Group II was 
made up of all average or poor pupils who had attended kindergarten for 
a full year, and of all first-grade pupils entering Bancroft school for the 
first time. 

During the first two days of school, the kindergarten and first grade 
classes became so crowded that it was decided to form a third first grade 
group composed of (a) pupils who had attended kindergarten for half a 
year but were not yet six years old, and (b) the least mature children of 
Group II. No children are admitted to first grade under six unless a 
mental test shows their mental age to be six or more years. 

We had then in first grade these three groups: (1) A strong group of 
six-year-old children; (2) an average group of six-year-old children; and 
(3) a mixed group, most of whom were under six. 

During the first ten days, all of the children of Group III were individ- 
ually tested by the Terman revision of the Binet test. The testing was done 
by a kindergarten teacher who had made special preparation for the work, 
by study with Dr. Schwegler, of Kansas University, and with Dr. Dickson, 
of Berkeley, California. After the test, thirteen of the five-year-olds were 
returned to kindergarten for another half year. The other eleven, who were 
chronologically under six years, were considered mature enough to remain 
in first grade. 

Individual testing was continued with the other groups, and adjustments 
made as rapidly as wrong classifications were observed. By October, we 
had three fairly homogeneous groups of first-grade pupils: 

















Average Chron. Age | Average Mental Age 
Average I. Q. 
Yrs. Mos. Yrs. | Mos. 

Group I—43 pupils.......... 6 4% 7 | 3 114 
Group II—36 pupils......... 6 4 6 7 104 
Group III 

ag ee 5 9 6 7 1144 

i ee 6 3 6 2 96 























—_— 














rn 
01 











all —— _ 
— a 








Reprint OF THE First YEARBOOK 395 





The distribution of I. Q. in these three groups was as follows: 


TABLE I1—Distribution of groups by percentages according to intelligence quotients 








Group Below 100 100 to 110 111 to 120 Above 120 
ere 1.7 28.0 58.0 11.7 
Mh cata teuan 19.4 80.6 0.0 0:0 
(i ee 0.0 44.4 55,6 0.0 

Wiicsiscioeaa 91.0 9.0 0.0 0.0 

















1 One pupil chronologically eight years old. 


With few exceptions, this grouping was kept during the first half of 
the school year, new pupils being tested as they entered, and placed in the 
classes where they seemed best to fit. The teacher of Group III was able 
to give individual help not only to her own slowest pupils, but to a number 
of backward children in Group II. 

Progress of the groups—It was not expected that the three groups would 
accomplish the same amount of work. No definite changes had been made 
in the content of the course of study for any group; but adjustments to the 
needs of the children were left largely to the three first-grade teachers. 
These teachers were fortunately alive to the situation, deeply interested, 
and anxious to codperate with each other, with the principal, and with the 
primary supervisor. 

From the first, it was thought that Group I would do more work than 
either of the other groups, because they were mentally mature for first 
grade, and all had a background of kindergarten experience. No pupil 
of this group failed during the year. All except those transferred to other 
schools were promoted in June, 1921, to second grade—a strong, self- 
reliant, enthusiastic class, a class that had, all year, kept the teacher busy 
keeping them busy. These pupils did more reading, both oral and silent, 
more writing, more drawing, more dramatizing, more hand-work than 
either of the other groups. They wrote letters to absent classmates; they 
followed written directions for study and hand-work, they made booklets 
of free cut-outs and stories which they wrote about their pictures. The 
quality of all this work was above the average for first grade. Their 
health was good; there was very little absence. Parents were constant 
visitors, interested and eager to cooperate. 

Group II was a more irregular group. Some of the children had at- 
tended kindergarten in Kansas City or in other cities; but many of them 
were entering school for the first time, without kindergarten experience. 
All were six years of age or older. They were slightly inferior to Group I 
in mental ability; they were quite inferior in attitude toward school. 

This indifferent attitude was found also in the parents of these children; 
probably the parents’ lack of interest accounted for the children’s lack of 
response. Many of the children were frail, physically, and the attendance 











396 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





was not as good as in Group I. Six pupils failed during the first half 
year. The teacher gave the following reasons for failure: 


One pupil, I.Q. 99, irregular attendance 

One pupil, I. Q. 100, irregular attendance 

One pupil, I.Q. 96, poor health: Adenoids and bad tonsils 
One pupil, I. Q. 108, absence caused by illness 

One pupil, I. Q. 102, no English at home 

One pupil, I. Q. 101, lack of response, indifference 


All of these six repeated the first half-year’s work during the second 
semester, the remainder of the group completed first-grade work and were 
promoted in June to second grade. 

Group III contained two divisions: (a) Eleven children who had at- 
tended kindergarten only half a year and whose chronological ages ranged 
from 5 years 8 months to 5 years 11 months, but whose mental ages ranged 
from 6 years to 7 years 4 months, and (4) a slow group, all of whom 
needed special help and special care. The plan with Group III was to 
allow them to do all the work that they could do easily, but not to crowd 
them. Section (a) however, was so alert and eager that every one did a 
full year’s work with no apparent strain, and all were promoted in June 
to second grade. Of the slow section (d), five completed first grade, three 
left the city, two were absent much and hence completed only half a year’s 
work, one, who was chronologically 6 years 1 month old in September, 
but only 5 years 6 months mentally, failed all year. 

Thus, of the 102 tested in September, nine failed to do a full year’s 
work. Eight of these nine, however, did complete a half year’s work and 
were in June promoted to A class of first grade. Only one pupil failed 
both half-years; a child whose I. Q. is 90 and whose M. A. in Septem- 
ber, 1920, was 5 years 6 months, and who came from a very poor home. 
It must be admitted that this per cent of failure is very low for first 
grade. 

Attitude of teachers and parents—The teachers of these groups were and 
still continue to be enthusiastically in favor of grouping according to ability. 
The teacher in charge of the very slowest group exclaims, “ Why, see the 
way Rose developed! I never could have interested her if she had been 
with the children of Group I.” Rose’s I. Q. is 84. 

The children are happier in such classes, because the work is suited to 
their ability ; the slow ones do not experience failure every day, their work 
is not compared with that of children who far excel them. The bright 
ones are happy, because they are busy, which they cannot be in a class of 
“ average” or slow pupils. 

Parents, we find, are satisfied if their children are happy and interested. 
Not one complaint was heard from parents in regard to this first-grade 
classification. 

The further progress of these groups during the first half of their second 
year, which is just completed, fully justified our classification. 
































SS OPES CUDSlCMUDlc(i UCU 


al 














REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 397 





Group I is still a happy, eager class, growing in civic spirit and in un- 
selfishness as they grow in knowledge. They are very busy and always 
interested, they read and reason as well as ordinary third-grade classes do. 

The youngest children, those of Group III (a) are mastering second- 
grade work with as much zeal as they showed last year. 

The slowest children are plodding along at their own pace and forming 
habits of steady work, even if it is slow work. 

We intend, therefore, to continue such classification, by individual tests 
given during the kindergarten year and the first part of the first grade, 
and by group tests given from time to time as the children progress through 
the grades. These test results, combined with other factors, such as health, 
attendance, school attitude, and the like, should furnish us data for the 
classification of each child, so that he may work with the group with which 
he can work best. 





USING THE RESULTS OF TESTING 


JESSICA MARSHALL, PRINCIPAL OF THE NEWTON SCHOOL, TOLEDO, OHIO 


The combined use of intelligence and educational tests is of twofold 
benefit to principals: 

1. It has awakened us to the fact that the greatest problem in our work 
today is that of individual differences among the children of any school 
group. 

2. It provides us with a scientific means, from which the old hazard of 
opinion has been eliminated, for measuring the degree of success with which 
we are solving this problem by giving to every child the type of education 
best suited to his needs. 


Tests Applied to the Problem of Individual Differences 


In October, 1920, Newton School, Toledo, was selected by Dr. God- 
dard, of the Ohio State Bureau of Juvenile Research, as one of the schools 
to be used in making a survey of public education in this State. 

The examiner sent by the Bureau gave the pupils four tests, a non-lan- 
guage intelligence test with a corresponding educational test, each arranged 
by Dr. Rudolph Pintner, of the Psychological Department of the Ohio 
State University, an Army Alpha, and a literacy test. The two tests pre- 
pared by Dr. Pintner were those upon which the success or failure of our 
work was to be estimated, the others being used as a basis of comparison. 
These tests were given to about six hundred children in the second to 
eighth grades, inclusive. 

The intelligence and educational tests are designed to show (1) the re- 
lation between each pupil’s intelligence, or his capacity to learn, and (2) 
his knowledge, or what has actually been learned. The tests also show the 
great overlapping of abilities and attainments in each group. There has 
been no effort to measure such qualities as perseverance, honesty, or desire 











398 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





to codperate, which are also important factors in learning; “ but it is prob- 
able that the ability to form these desirable traits of character is itself 
largely dependent upon the degree of intelligence and capacity to change 
with which a child is endowed.” On the other hand, educational tests 
when used alone merely establish a comparison with other pupils of the 
class, or with the grade norms. There is really no other fair way to meas- 
ure the work of a child than that of estimating his achievement in terms of 
his capacity to learn. 

According to the score on the intelligence test each child is classified as 
very bright, normal, backward, or dull, while according to the score on 
the educational test he is rated as very good, average, poor, or very 
poor. The comparison of the two scores then shows whether the pupil is 
doing as much, more, or less than is to be expected of a child of his men- 
tality. 

The findings in the Newton survey showed that in the case of 53 per cent 
of the pupils the mentality and attainment were very closely correlated, 
while 14 per cent were doing less and 33 per cent more than the average 
child of the same mental level. 

The most reassuring fact brought to light was that most of the failures 
were in the lower grades, the number constantly decreasing up to the 
eighth, where there was but one whose educational rank was below that 
of his intelligence. On the whole, the report was very satisfactory, but 
the present study of individual differences is establishing new standards of 
success, and our aim now is to study the abilities and characteristics of each 
pupil and adapt the work to his particular needs. 

Fortunately, teachers are no longer forced to be solely responsible for 
an estimate of what each child’s particular needs may be, for a large num- 
ber of standardized tests can be brought to their aid in determining this 
question. 

The tests used at Newton School showed that our greatest need was for 
regrouping. The regular division of classes showed a scattering of abilities 
ranging over eight years of school work if expressed in terms of grade 
norms, and over ten years in mentality if expressed in terms of mental age. 
Pupils of the same mental age were likewise found to be in widely scattered 
groups; for example, pupils testing nine years mentally being found in 
every grade beginning with the second up through the eighth. The chro- 
nological age of the mental nine-year-olds also varied from seven to fifteen. 

It was then seen that the results on the intelligence tests alone could not 
be used as a basis for regrouping, especially as one test will not always place 
them in the same class that another might. 

Regrouping in the upper grades—To get more light on the subject of 
regrouping, standardized tests in various subjects were next given. In this 
way we were able to diagnose more accurately the particular points of di- 
vergence. The tests given included those of Gray, Monroe, Ayres, Courtis, 
Van Wagenen, and Woody-McCall. These tests in specific subjects, like 
the intelligence tests, showed a very great scattering in ability among the 



































REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 399 








pupils of the same grade In addition they proved that it was very rare for 
any pupil to be altogether good or altogether poor in scholarship. Nearly 
every child had at least one subject in which he excelled and one in which 
he encountered difficulty. 

It was therefore determined that the groups should vary according to the 
subject and that the division should not be hard and fast, but so arranged 
that a pupil might at any time be changed from one class to another if his 
work showed sufficient improvement. This adjustment is virtually an ex- 
periment in remedial work, and is made possible by a modified use of the 
platoon system. , 

A follow-up system is now being worked out to meet the needs of the 
new groups along the lines given below: (a) Development of special types 
of remedial work; (4) study of minimum essentials; (c) consideration of 
methods of measuring progress; and (d) study of the means of making 
more complete use of special talents. 

Types of remedial work—The goal of the remedial work is reached when 
the attainment of the child is brought up to a point commensurate with his 
ability. His present rating is given by the tests. 

A series of close case studies was started in order to make a better esti- 
mate of the improvement that might result if the instruction were more 
exactly fitted to the individual, and also to determine, if possible, the rate 
of advance that might be expected from a child of normal ability as com- 
pared to one whose rating was less than average. In working along this 
line it has been our good fortune to come under the direction of Dr. Wil- 
liam S$. Gray, of Chicago University, who has selected a few pupils from 
Newton School as subjects for special training in reading. 

Each pupil’s ability to read is measured by a series of tests until the cause 
of every difficulty has been disclosed. The outstanding defects are then 
classified and the corrective work directed along the most needed lines. 

One of the greatest contributions to scientific remedial work is the series 
of graded tests prepared by Dr. Gray, which can be given frequently, and 
the effectiveness of the instruction thus determined. 

All the methods that accomplished their purpose in the laboratory of case 
studies have been found to produce equally good results in the classroom. 
Our reading in general has been greatly improved by the use of Dr. Gray’s 
system of closer analysis of difficulties and subsequent concentration on 
points to be improved. 

In the case studies a marked correlation has been shown between grade 
of intelligence and rate of improvement, but there has been no uniformity 
in types of weakness among pupils of the same mentality, nor have we 
found any particular point beyond which it seems hopeless to try to advance 
with the pupils on the lower mental level. 

The findings have brought us to the conclusion that individual limita- 
tions, though largely matters of heredity, may be overcome to a great extent 
by improved methods of education so long as “ the potentialities of develop- 
ment are found to be so much greater than the actualities.” 














400 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





Another type of remedial work is being prepared for the pupil who is 
doing excellent work in his grade but is falling short of the work to be 
expected from a child of his mentality. Case studies have shown that there 
are possibilities of great increases in attainment, particularly in the upper 
ranges. However, placing a young child with an older group destroys the 
social adjustment to such an extent that there is grave doubt as to the wis- 
dom of such an arrangement. An alternative when working with a bright 
group is to have mental development as an objective rather than the acqui- 
sition of facts. Assignments are given that provide “ stretching exercises ” 
in the power to select, evaluate, and organize, while many school projects 
are chosen because of the opportunity afforded for the development of the 
much-desired qualities of initiative and leadership. 

Minimum essentials—After the pupils have been regrouped in accordance 
with some specific need, the courses of study must be altered to meet the 
new requirements. The greatest difficulty arises from a lack of courage to 
cast out things that are not indispensable. As a basis for elimination an 
effort has been made to take out the various phases of the work which 
studies in relative difficulty have shown would require an undue amount of 
time on the program. Development of a good method of attack has often 
been found to take the place of much detailed work now in the course of 
study. Drill on only the simplest form of any type work required has also 
been a help in bringing retarded pupils up to grade without seriously weak- 
ening the foundation. 

A close study of many varieties of standardized tests gives an insight into 
the things considered essential in the learning process, and these essentials 
furnish in turn a scientific basis for the estimate of the value of subjects 
taught. 

One thing is obvious: it is useless to make a diagnostic study of indi- 
vidual needs and then make no differentiation in the curriculum. 

Methods of measuring progress—Both teachers and pupils are anxious to 
have some scientific method of measuring progress, for the age of opinion 
in education is past. 

Of course, the most satisfactory method is by giving those standardized 
tests which come in a series. Such tests have already been prepared for 
measuring spelling, reading, and fundamental processes in arithmetic, but 
their use for frequent testing by the average principal is out of the question 
because of the cost. 

As a substitute for the tests many teachers have prepared specific drills 
upon which the pupils can easily measure gain, such as that provided by the 
mastery of “ books” of new words added to a child’s vocabulary, as sug- 
gested by Dr. Gray. These “ books ” are merely a series of cards upon each 
of which has been printed a new word with which some child in the class 
has difficulty. The cards are then flashed before the pupil, and when he is 
able to recognize every word the book is put away to be used later in review. 

Similar drills can be prepared in each subject. Any type of lessons can 
also be made into a series, provided that they are so arranged as to be 
graded on points that can be easily recognized by the children. 

















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Giving these lessons at a stated time—as every Friday, every two weeks, 
or even once each month—makes them still more valuable as incentives. It 
is desirable that whenever possible standardized tests in specific subjects be 
given at the beginning and close of each school year. The joint intelligence 
and educational tests can be given profitably every two years. 

Progress on drills and tests can be represented objectively, and individual 
record and classroom charts have both been found very effective in stimu- 
lating the pupils to increased effort. 

Making use of the special talents—The constant overcrowding in the 
school curriculum has resulted in the overlooking of special aptitudes for 
much the same reason that the dull child has received more consideration 
than the bright child. That is, the attention has been fixed upon grade 
standards and not upon individual possibilities. In the rush of work the 
talents, even when discovered, have often been left to take care of them- 
selves. A study of the economic situation shows the inadvisability of this 
method, for success in life has been found to depend largely upon the pe- 
culiar fitness of a man for his calling. 

The use of tests has shown that nearly every child has genuine ability 
along some line, or, at the worst, finds some line less difficult than the 
others. Our problem, then, is to provide the environment in which talents 
will grow. The flexible system of grouping furnishes one means of meet- 
ing this need, for a child can be placed in a class which will require the 
stressing of the talent in order to hold his own. This arrangement is 
usually of particular benefit to the retarded child, for he is apt to be placed, 
for a part of the day at least, with pupils of his social age. One of the first 
responses obtained is that of an increase in happiness, which is essential to 
growth. The child also learns faster, because he is going at a rate suited 
to his ability, and this fact encourages him to greater effort. 

The bright child who can do things quickly can also be given tasks re- 
quiring all his energy, and habits of industry will be developed because he 
is allowed to work at his maximum speed. 

When regrouping is not possible, other means may be found to make use 
of the talents. Some responsibility for helping a slow student in the class 
helps in a child’s own development, and special assignments often serve to 
keep the bright child busy and interested. 

On the whole, new methods of discovery and encouragement of superior 
ability are much needed, for when sufficient stimulus is provided the upper 
limit in attainment is greatly extended even among pupils of elementary- 
school age, and nothing that gives promise of achievement should be 
neglected. 

Grouping in the first grade—The wide scattering in ability and attain- 
ment in the higher classes which was revealed by the tests raised the ques- 
tion as to whether it would be possible, by using improved methods of 
grouping when children first entered school, to avoid much of the confusion 
and overlapping that are found in our upper grades today. This need for 
re-classification is not a local one. Hoke, of Richmond, Virginia, in exam- 

18 











402 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





ining 743 children from a typical school, found that almost one half of all 
those tested were above or below normal mental age for the grade; while 
Garver, in a study made at the University of Pennsylvania, found that in 
any of the upper grades examined there existed a range in ability to do work 
according to the grade norm of six or seven grades. 

An experimental classification was made in the first grade, based on the 
standings on an intelligence test prepared for young children who cannot 
read or write. The test here used was the Pintner-Cunningham test, 
brought out under the auspices of Columbia University. 

The first result hoped for was to establish a rate of progress, each group 
being allowed to work at maximum speed. At the end of the first semester 
the best group had completed the first-grade course and was ready to start 
on the second year’s work at the beginning of February. ‘The slowest 
group had taken eleven rhymes, but was doing nothing in writing or spell- 
ing and very little in number work. The intermediate divisions were at 
different points in the course, but both supervisors and teachers agreed that 
all except the slowest division were ahead of the mixed classes in the city. 

However, the most noticeable improvement was not in the greater 
ground covered, but that above the very slowest division every pupil was 
sure of every step of the work. The scattering in educational attainments 
in the upper grades ought, then, to be materially reduced if a satisfactory 
plan of grouping in the lower grades results in developing pupils who 
“know what they know.” 

This experiment seems to indicate that group intelligence tests can be 
relied upon for the trustworthy placing of individual pupils at the begin- 
ning of the school course, and when followed by diagnostically directed 
teaching may do much toward lessening the variations now found within 
all school groups. 


Tests Used in the Measurement of Teaching Efficiency 


The joint use of intelligence and educational tests furnishes the only 
standard of measuring efficiency in teaching which takes into account the 
individual differences among children. It places the emphasis on the prog- 

ress of the child being commensurate with his ability, not demanding a fixed 
standing for all the pupils of a grade. It also provides an application of 
the statistical method in measuring teaching success. 

An analysis of comparative scores indicates that these tests may be relied 
upon to show the success of the teaching from the standpoint of the indi- 
vidual taught, and they can also be used to measure accurately the effective- 
ness of the educational system as a whole. But they cannot be used to 
measure justly the efficiency of an individual teacher, as the weaknesses 
brought to light are usually in the line of administrative procedure, or 
limitations of curricula and time schedules over which the teachers, and 
sometimes the principals, have no control. 

The results of the tests are more valuable when considered as diagnostic 
rather than as furnishing a means of measuring teaching success. They 











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also make a trustworthy basis for experimental investigation of the im- 
provement in the effectiveness of teaching due to controlled causes. 

One of the most practical uses of the joint tests, from the point of view 
of the head of an elementary school, is the help given in bringing his spe- 
cific educational problems clearly before the superintendent and supervisors. 
This is possible because the findings on the tests can be represented objec- 
tively and the standards used easily defined. The wide range in abilities 
can also be seen at a glance, and the differences may then be provided for 
by wider range in curricula, smaller classes, more individualization of in- 
struction, or any other readjustment which the superintendent may deem 
advisable. 

Summary—1. The joint use of intelligence and educational tests shows 
the range in ability and attainment of the various pupils and helps in deter- 
mining their,individual needs. 

2. The tests are an aid in solving the administrative problems of classifi- 
cation and grouping. 

3. They show the significance of individual differences upon which reme- 
dial work and curriculum changes can be based. 

4. They furnish the best standard of measuring the success with which 
the educational system is providing for the fullest development of each 
individual. 





INTELLIGENCE TESTS AS A BASIS FOR 
RECLASSIFICATION 


BENJAMIN B. GREENBERG, PRINCIPAL OF THE WILLIAM T. HARRIS SCHOOL, 
NEW YORK CITY 


After being assigned as Supervisor of the William T. Harris School on 
West Seventeenth Street, New York City, I felt the need of giving atten- 
tion to the “ educational misfits.”” This led to a study of the entire problem 
of grading and classification. In fact, even before the larger problem was 
considered, studies of individual cases of “ misfits’”’ were made. 

A psychiatric worker, interested in the boys of our school, undertook this 
work in order to discover, if possible, the causes of backwardness and con- 
duct, irregularity in the school, and to help in suggesting ways of over- 
coming these difficulties. It consisted necessarily in as thorough a study as 
possible of “ misfits’ and the various elements in their separate problems. 
The work was begun by interviewing the boys referred to us and getting 
facts as-to their home conditions and their own ideas as to the cause of the 
difficulty. It was interesting to find how frank they were and how quickly 
they responded to straight talk, combined with friendliness and concentra- 
tion, on their problems. One colored boy who had been troublesome in 
‘school and on the street gave a clear account of gang organization and the 
reason why gangs existed. He became a member of the Terman Oppor- 
tunity Class and did splendidly. 











404 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





Neighborhood conditions—A further survey of the neighborhood of the 
school showed the following: an environment that was poor as facilities 
for proper living or playing; small shops and cheap tenement houses inhab- 
ited by longshoremen and other unskilled laborers; several centers for the 
rendezvous of those who had little regard for law and order and much less 
for codperation with such institutions as cared for the proper development 
of the boys of the neighborhood; parents who understood very little what 
the school was attempting for the welfare of their boys and who made life 
for their youngsters not always a bright one; a barren condition so far as 
socially helpful agencies was concerned. 

The school building is about eighty years old, with no school play- 
ground—only a basement and the most minute of yards—only one inade- 
quate shop, no assembly-room, and no gymnasium. 


Mental survey of school—Traditional methods of reclassifying the boys 
from kindergarten to 8B grade in order to make for better teaching and 
healthier adjustments of the individual boy were discarded as having not 
proved successful in Public School No. 11. Accordingly, it was decided to 
make a mental survey of the entire school, so as to determine the native 
capacity of each boy. 

The Department of Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia Univer- 
sity, was invited to survey the school. The Department of Ungraded 
Classes of New York City’s Department of Education also coéperated in 
this work, with the thirteen graduate students of psychology working under 
the immediate supervision of their instructor, Dr. Leta S. Hollingworth. 
It should be mentioned in passing that each person had had technical in- 
struction in the task which he or she was set to perform, the reliability of 
the results being thus assured. 

The original plan for the survey included the following: 

1. Group tests in each grade as indicated in Pintner’s Mental Survey 
because it gives norms of performance, and Public School No. 11 not being 
a typical school, we would see the abnormality ; 

2. Individual tests of a large alphabetical sampling of 8B’s to determine 
how much good high-school material there may be in 8B; 

3. Individual tests of a large number of problem cases; 

4. Measurement of the product of instruction: Reading for the under- 
standing of sentences—Thorndyke ; Spelling—Ayres ; Arithmetic—Woody- 
McCall—Mixed Fundamentals; Trabue—Language; and Thorndyke— 
Penmanship. 

5. Study of special disabilities as revealed by discrepancies between men- 
tal and educational tests; 

6. Sensory examination of a random selection; 

7. Motor tests. 

The following tasks were, however, accomplished : 

1. Group intelligence tests were made of all boys between grades 3A 
and 8B inclusive by means of Pintner’s tests. 














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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 405 





2. Group intelligence tests were made in grades 1A to 2B inclusive by 
means of devices original with one of the graduate students assisting in the 
survey. 

3. Tests of spelling, arithmetic, language, and reading were made. 

4. Individual intelligence examinations were given to all boys in grades 
8B, with a view to determining the frequency of median high-school intelli- 
gence in the graduating class. 

5. Individual mental examinations were given to boys between the fourth 
and sixth grades who ranked at the top in group tests, for the purpose of 
selecting a Terman Class for the gifted children of the school. 

6. Individual mental examinations were given to boys falling lowest in 
the group tests, and selections were made for membership in the Ungraded 
Class. 

7. Partial case studies were made of some of the problem cases reported 
by teachers. 

Study of results of mental survey—A study of some of the results sub- 
mitted by Dr. Leta S. Hollingworth indicated the following: 

1. The distribution of I. Q.’s in our school gives a curve tending strongly 
towards subnormality. The school has not its normal share of the gifted 
children of the city, while it has less than average capacity for learning. 
The school has a great many boys who need vocational training and who 
can profit relatively little from following the present prescribed curriculum 
for eight years of their lives. The modal intelligence of the school lies be- 
tween 85 and 95 I. Q., whereas in the juvenile population chosen at ran- 
dom the modal intelligence lies between 95 and 108 I. Q. 

2. In each class a wide range of intellectual ability was found. In many 
of the classes the brightest boys were five or six years above the dullest in 
mental age. This was true despite the fact that the writer had already 
made a systematic effort to grade the school according to ability as well as 
can be done by separating the over-age pupils from those who are average 
or young for the grade. 

3. In the graduating or 8B classes a relatively small proportion of the 
boys gave promise in mental tests of being able to pursue high-school work 
successfully. 

4. Between grades 4A and 6A were found thirteen boys with I. Q.’s of 
120 or more. These were selected for a Terman class and several boys 
between 110 and 120 I. Q. were added to complete the register as required. 
The most intelligent of these boys stood as high as 146 I. Q. 

5. Several children who fell below 70 I. Q. were placed in the Ungraded 
Class by the Department of Ungraded Classes acting upon the evidence 
adduced. In a group of 743 boys it was found that only 143 were nor- 
mal—i. e., their mental age corresponded with their chronological age. Of 
the remainder, 428 were below normal and 172 were above normal. 

Reorganization of the school—Utilizing the findings of the Mental Sur- 
vey, the school was reorganized to give every boy in Public School No. 11 the 
opportunity to develop in harmony with his powers and capacities and 








406 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





with the realization of the localized difficulties and diagnosed capabilities 
of the boys. 

The boys (3A-6B) of chronological ages ranging from 13 to 15 whose 
mental ages ranged from 8 to 15 were organized into five ‘“ opportunity ” 
classes as follows: 








Chronological age Mental age sO. 
Mie oo CUS, co arieuiee aah uue ea tated 14-12 $-9.5 65-85 
ain ao dv.a ss ngleacaanen aa hebnaia esl 14-12 8-10 65-85 
cia cigis 4G catcmde Waralaceardia wee yas 14-12 9-11 65-85 
EES Ee ees ne ea ee 15-13 10-11.7 70-85 
NN i daira. ice accom acerca e aca eaeaiahet 9-11 11-15 112-146 











Other special classes organized as a result of the observation and con- 
clusions drawn from the mental survey were: (1) Class for anemic boys; 
(2) class for foreigners; and (3) classes for normal boys more homogene- 
ously classified. 

Every boy found himself in a class where he seemed to be able to do 
much better work, and the teacher seemed to have a class which she better 
understood and led in school activities. Bright, normal, and low mental 
type, all knew that work was expected of them; work that was rather hard, 
yet valuable and pleasant—a rather new experience for the smartest boys 
of the school as well as for the boy of low mentality. 

The organization of our classes showed gradual improvement in homa- 
geneity. 

















1918—I. Q. Range 1921—I. Q. Range | 1922—I. Q. Range 
_  eerrrrercre rer 115-60 147-85 145-107 
PROC 115-85 111-71 118-91 
Ee ee re re ae rer 92-72 
Peer rrr err 133-78 145-80 142-98 
errr rrr rr ry 108-67 108-66 110-97 
BEE Reece nsns cco eennwaiews noes eee 93-71 
BE ci ctheanressndcesinnas 128-64 110-77 139-100 
TEE pasesesegsesecere hese 120-64 119-74 106-93 
__ Peererrer rr rr ery earns tees 90-77 











Not only were intelligence-test results employed in the grouping of boys, 
but their physical and nervous condition as well as the chronological age 
were considered. The school was fortunate in having a psychiatrist. A 
certain amount of home visiting was done, and boys were referred to 
clinics (mental and medical) as well as to various welfare agencies. At no 
time did parents hinder us. In fact, they were enthusiastic codperators, 
knowing, as they soon learned, that we were closely linking school with 
the life of the boy and developing his capacity for leadership. 








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CHAPTER IV 
THE PROBLEM OF THE INDIVIDUAL CASE 


THE INDIVIDUAL CASE—AN ADMINISTRATION 
PROBLEM 


CHARLES C. KRAUSKOPF, PRINCIPAL OF THE VICTOR F. LAWSON SCHOOL, 
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 


N INSPECTING, examining, or administering a graded school, one 
of the first things to attract attention is the presence, in any group or 
grade, of pupils who do not fit, who are unable to take part fully in 

the work of the group. In the past these unfortunates were often slighted 
or ignored until increasingly rigid compulsory education laws revealed the 
large number of them who were leaving school with no: adequate prepara- 
tion for life’s struggle. Of late years, however, these atypical pupils have 
been receiving much attention from investigators both in the schools and 
in the laboratories of schools of education. These investigators have treated 
these pupils as “ individual cases’ and have attempted to diagnose and pre- 
scribe for them as individuals. In all this work, little or no attempt has 
been made to solve the difficulties of administration arising from the 
presence of these children in classes of normal pupils. 

It might be interesting to approach this problem from the side of school 
administration, to outline some of the difficulties encountered by the princi- 
pal in handling these pupils and to make a few practical suggestions. 

In spite of foolish criticism from within and without the profession, the 
graded school has been a marked success. Further, there always will be 
certain backward, slow, erratic, unstable, atypical, peculiar, unfortunate 
children who will not easily fit into any scheme for group work. ‘Teach- 
ing a “ graded ” room is a group proposition. The teacher as leader secures 
the best results from the reaction of each individual on the group and the 
group on each individual. If at any time the teacher of such a room is 
compelled to stop the group work to give special assistance to one or more 
individuals, she ceases to teach, and the group either pauses in its work or 
proceeds without a leader while the teacher tutors or coaches the indi- 
vidual case. 

Enter, then, the “ individual case’’ as an administrative problem. 

This problem, in its statement one of the simplest, is, in its complete 
solution, one of the most difficult of any with which the administrator has 
to deal. To the principal of a graded school it is, first, a matter of reliev- 
ing the graded divisions of individuals who are misfits, and who, as such, 
interfere with and delay the regular group work of the classes; or, in other 
words, the task of the partial, temporary, or permanent exclusion from the 
regular rooms of the “ individual cases”; second, a matter of arranging 
instruction for these exlcuded pupils which will be more thorough and 
adequate than that which, on account of their handicap, they can get in the 


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408 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





regular group or grade. It is easy to imagine the beneficent effects on 
the graded room of the removal of these individual cases, but any plan is 
a failure that does not give the excluded pupils at least as much as they 
can secure in the regular room, and no plan is a complete success that 
cannot show that these special cases receive greater benefit than they did 
before. 

It might be well at this point to consider how this important problem 
has been received. The actual amount of progress made in its solution 
has been pitifully small. The interest displayed by the superintendents 
of school systems in the United States is almost negligible. At the last 
meeting of the Superintendents’ section of the National Education Associa- 
tion only one paper, that of Susan M. Dorsey, of Los Angeles, mentioned 
the subject, and that address made no analysis and suggested no solution. 
These superintendents, who are supposed to outline the policies of our 
school systems, are constantly crying for better trained teachers and better 
teaching. The attempts made to relieve and help the grade teacher have 
frequently taken the form of appointing: (a) Supervisors of special sub- 
jects, who are too often enthusiastic specialists, over-emphasizing subject 
matter without helping instruction; or (b) supervisors of grades, too many 
of whom are mere peddlers of methods and devices that tend to destroy the 
initiative and freedom of the teacher and thus deaden the work. But no 
matter how skilful these supervisors may be, they never can do more than 
increase the teacher’s knowledge and improve her skill as a teacher. In a 
consideration of “ individual cases” it is like trying to overcome friction 
due to sand in the bearings, by an increase of motive power. The engi- 
neer should remove the sand. The administrator is still confronted with 
the problem of making some additional classification which will relieve the 
regular classes of the “ individual cases”” (who hamper group work), and 
which will also provide special accommodations and special teachers to care 
for these excluded pupils. 

In a way this neglect simplifies the first administrative steps necessary 
to approach the situation, i. e., the selection of those pupils who are to be 
excluded from the regular classes. We are at the beginning of the work 
and the first attack will naturally be with the most obvious cases. These 
are easily selected. Like “ mavericks” in a well-kept herd, they are easily 
detected even by the uninitiated. To the earnest teacher, busy with her 
group problems, they bear the same relation to the rest of the class that 
a sore thumb has to a busy hand, and frequently their presence produces 
much the same condition as the offending digit. The normal order of the 
class work is thrown into confusion, and delay and irritation result. Ignor- 
ing the irritation, it is easy with these obvious cases to set an arbitrary 
mark where the delay and confusion due to their presence is great enough 
to warrant exclusion from the regular classes. 

At first thought this might seem a point where the intelligence tests, 
which have been produced in such quantities by our universities, might be 
invaluable. There is no wish or intention to fleer at the efforts of our 
co-workers of the schools of education. However, the first care of the 











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principal, the administrator, the head of a school, is to keep both feet 
squarely and solidly on the ground. He must see the school as a whole. 
He must make workable decisions. 

The exclusion of these pupils from the regular classes is a class problem. 
Therefore, whatever use may be made of such tests and however illuminat- 
ing the results may seem in regard to any individual pupil, the best guide 
in the selection of these obvious cases will be the judgment of the grade 
teachers who have been, day after day, witnesses of the failure of their 
struggles to do group work. 

The study of the excluded pupil is an individual matter and should in- 
clude every available test, examination, investigation, and observation that 
can be made and, at least, should include: (1) A thorough physical and 
medical overhauling; (2) a careful estimate of any difference between 
intellectual and chronological age; (3) an exact determination of scholastic 
standing in school studies; (4) an estimate of judgment and ability in 
every-day matters; and (5) the securing of all available information in 
regard to home life, heredity, family history, and the like. The more 
complete the information secured, the more “ individual ” each case will 
appear, and the more hopeless will the problem seem. This fact prompts 
another word of caution. While no item of this information should be 
ignored, the practical decisions of the principal may, and often will, set 
aside for a time, apparently sound conclusions of the theorists and experi- 
menters. His task is to produce a workable plan for the handling of these 
pupils. 

In attempting the construction of such a plan for the more obvious cases 
the following rough groupings may be found useful: 

(1) The pupil well advanced in one or more school studies and very 
poor in others. 

(2) He who, apparently competent in every-day matters, finds it diffi- 
cult to interest himself in intellectual work or school studies. 

(3) The delayed pupil, the unfortunate, who, finding himself placed 
with much younger pupils, resents working with a group less mature than 
himself. 

(4) The backward pupil who acquires knowledge slowly and who loses 
out in group work on account of lack of mental agility. 

(5) Those distinctly below par mentally, a large and varied group often 
termed subnormal. 

(6) The mentally unstable, the erratic, the weak-willed. 

(7) The physically handicapped—crippled, deaf, blind, or epileptic. 

Other groups or sub-groups may be made as the work progresses. 

Where the school is large enough or where a number of schools con- 
tribute to a “ center,” divisions may be formed on the basis of some such 
practical classification and some little group work may be possible, but for 
the most part the problem remains one of personal, individual instruction, 
and this factor governs the size of such divisions. Where, for any reasons, 
the members of such divisions are markedly disparate in age, normal-grade, 
mental condition, ten will be none too few for good work, while, under the 











410 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





most favorable conditions, twenty pupils per teacher is a dead line which 
is dangerous to approach. 

The selection of the teacher for this work is of prime importance. ‘lact, 
sympathy, directness, alertness, ingenuity, resourcefulness are only a few 
of the definite qualities to be hoped for, to which must be added a real 
interest in, and desire to attempt, such work; nor is superior ability in the 
group work of the regular grades a certain proof of ability to succeed in 
this comparatively new field. May the gods be kind to the principal in 
his search for the next-to-impossible. Having found the teacher, let noth- 
ing interfere with the work; let nothing come between teacher and pupil. 
Supervisors of grade work or special subjects should be absolutely barred. 
Superintendents, district superintendents, inspectors, might be allowed to 
visit and observe but had much better be attending to other business. 
The principal, whose decisions created the division, may well keep his 
mouth shut and tread softly. It should ever be kept in mind that these 
pupils are just what the term implies—individual cases—and the instruc- 
tion is often, nay usually, a pedagogical wrestling match, catch as catch 
can, no holds barred. 

The broad test of the success of such instruction will always remain this: 
Are these pupils happier, more intellectually alive, progressing more rapidly 
toward worthwhile citizenship in school and after-life, than they could be 
in the regular grades? The constant application of this test will disclose 
a vertical cleavage through any strata of classification made for purposes 
of instruction, and there will be at least three classes of pupils—those 
partially, those temporarily, and those permanently excluded from normal 
class work. 

An attempt at the handling of the more serious cases of the atypical and 
unfortunate children may be seen in the special divisions of the Chicago 
schools. Of the groups listed in the rough classification given above Chi- 
cago has partially provided for: 

(1) The physically unfit: Rooms for anemic and tubercular, deaf, blind, 
crippled, and epileptic have been provided. Of the deaf and blind a few 
have attempted to enter and follow the work of the upper grades and high 
schools after a course of special instruction, but the vast majority pass to 
the special state or private schools, or are cared for privately. 

(2) The epileptic: This work is still in the experimental stage. 

(3) The crippled, anemic, and tubercular: These are cared for in spe- 
cial divisions in quarters especially fitted for their treatment. They are 
patently surgical and medical cases where instruction either waits on suc- 
cessful medical, hygienic, or surgical treatment, or is modified and special- 
ized to assist the child in overcoming his physical handicap and become 
self-supporting in spite of misfortune. The mortality is naturally high. 
A few of the crippled and a large number of the anemic and tubercular 
recover sufficiently to return to the regular divisions. 

(4) The mentally low grade pupils: On account of lack of room only 
the younger and more serious cases can be cared for. Very few of these 
become able to carry the grade work, and when replaced in the grades on 














ily 
ase 
on 








Reprint OF THE First YEARBOOK 411 





account of lack of room, drag along and are later withdrawn from school 
to enter custodial institutions, or are cared for at home and become a 
menace to the community as they grow older. For the large number of 
border-line cases, the ones who might receive the most benefit from special 
instruction, no provision has been made. 

For all the other thousands of individuals who (while not receiving 
proper attention themselves) are hampering to a greater or less extent the 
regular work, a few divisions of pre-vocational classes are provided. ‘These 
classes are so few that only a limited number of the oldest and most back- 
ward can be received and attendance is voluntary. The large majority of 
these children reach these classes too late to derive much benefit from the 
careful attention and the liberal courses (including much manual work) 
which they receive. The vast majority leave school and drift into poorly 
paid, blind-alley jobs, often a prey to the unscrupulous employer and a dupe 
to the criminal and vicious. Compared to most school systems, Chicago’s 
pitiful attempts to zpproach this problem stand out as a shining light. The 
results of these experiments, while woefully meager, give almost certain 
indication of success if adequate facilities could be provided. 

In conclusion, it might be said that theoretically and emotionally the 
United States has had, during and since the Great War, a wonderful en- 
lightenment on the subject of education. Practically this awakening has 
resulted mainly in vastly increased demands on the public schools: business 
demands better trained employees; society demands special and specific in- 
struction, mental, moral, and physical, on every subject under the sun. 

Legislatures pass mandatory laws providing for special instruction, spe- 
cial schools, higher grade and age limits, and then, at the behest of those 
same business groups, refuse appropriations to carry the added burden. 

The day has passed when the public looks with indifference upon the 
withdrawal from school of a child inadequately equipped for life. It 
objects to the individual case, the misfit, dropping out of school to become 
a misfit in society. 

In other words, the public has developed an abiding faith that the pub- 
lic schools can solve any problem put up to them. Some day it may awake 
to the necessity of furnishing adequate sinews of war. Meanwhile it is 
the principals and teachers in daily contact with the work who most clearly 
see the need for more careful classification of pupils to meet the complica- 
tions arising from these new demands, and on them will ultimately fall the 
burden of this new work. In any attempt to make a closer or more accu- 
rate classification the problem of the “ individual case’ looms large. 

Conclusion—-(A) The greater demands now made on the schools must 
be met by more careful and closer organization and classification of pupils. 

(B) This organization and classification is the work of the principal 
of the school. 

(C) The “ individual” forms one of the most serious problems in this 
better classification. 











412 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





FINDING THE INDIVIDUAL 


MARGARET H. SMITH, PRINCIPAL OF THE 61ST STREET SCHOOL, 
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 


Educators everywhere are searching for a method of instruction that 
will more adequately and successfully train our youth for effective citizen- 
ship—for a method that will permit the pupils to develop the full range 
of abilities possible to each individual. In October, 1921, a method was 
installed in part of our school which solves many of the problems which 
prevented this desired training under the present public-school method. 

Dr. Arthur Sutherland, Director of Psychology and Educational Re- 
search, of the Los Angeles City Schools, is the author of the basic principles 
of this method, and his able assistants, under his direct supervision, have 
worked out the material which makes it in fact as well as in theory, an 
individual method of instruction. The plan was first tried in adjustment 
rooms, where the retarded child was permitted to work on the subjects in 
which he was weak to the exclusion of all others until he had strengthened 
these subjects sufficiently to return to his regular grade. But in the present 
experiment the material is being used in regular grades under normal con- 
ditions—in classes containing slow, average, and bright pupils. 

The most important of the basic principles are: first, that the child be 
properly placed in each subject; then, that he be trained to think quantita- 
tively ; to read with comprehension ; to organize his ideas for self-expression 
through the use of definite guides within his comprehension; that the sub- 
jects of the curriculum should be used as tools in obtaining real educational 
objectives ; that there should be a distinction made between training [habit 
and attitude formation] and appreciation [a broadening, deepening, and 
extending of the intelligent and emotional comprehension and organiza- 
tion]. That these principles may be realized, each step in the material was 
worked out with a definite goal or purpose in mind. 

The material is prepared in twelve levels, each level corresponding to a 
class of the first six grades of the elementary schools. The content of the 
Reading Exercise Books is based on the Horace Mann and the Riverside 
Primers in the second grade, on Tree Dwellers and Robinson Crusoe in the 
third and fourth, and on the regular geography and history work of the 
fifth and sixth grades. Each level has twelve goals or purposes, each repre- 
senting a definite mental attitude; and so that the child may study more 
intelligently, each goal is printed at the head of each exercise. Steps are 
worked out so progressively that the child may measure his own growth 
by his ability to work the problems as they are presented in each successive 
level. Four of these reading goals deal with number problems. These 
are placed in separate booklets for convenience in the classroom. Formal 
number exercises, the processes of association and memory, are presented by 
cards of the Studebaker type. In the written Expression Exercises empha- 
sis is placed on the ideas to be expressed and definite guides within the 
comprehension of the pupils are given before any free expression is at- 








— 














REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 413 





tempted. There are three types of exercises: copying, reconstruction, and 
completion of a structure; or imitation, organization, and constructive 
imagination. The language content follows the city curriculum and it is a 
group of minimum essentials. A student self-analyzing card directs the 
self-criticism of the written work. This criticism includes penmanship, 
spelling, language, and form—rhetorical and literary. 

A very adequate system of project tests has been prepared whereby a 
careful check may be kept of each pupil’s progress. There is a series of 
tests for each level, a test for each goal, each representing a particular 
mental attitude—comprehension, analysis, reason, speed and accuracy, to- 
gether with imagery and memory; they are given scientifically and are in 
effect intelligence tests, the use of which soon discloses the level of each 
individual mentality. 

In order that the conditions in the present experiment might be as normal 
as possible, the first twenty-three odd-numbered children on the registers 
were chosen from each class from the B2 to A§5 inclusive, giving one hun- 
dred and eighty-four children in all. They are under the direction of six 
teachers, thus averaging thirty-one to each teacher. The day is divided 
into four periods: two are devoted to individual work while two are spent 
in group work. The child is a social being and must learn the importance 
of the social group. In the individual-education room there are two teach- 
ers, each responsible for twenty-three pupils or one class each period. In 
the recitation-group room there is but one teacher who has forty-six pupils 
or two classes each period. In this room the penmanship, music, drawing, 
nature study, oral language, history, and geography are studied in groups. 
During the first period in the morning the second grade works in the group 
room while the third grade is in the individual-education room; they ex- 
change rooms for the second period, then the second grade returns to the 
group room for the third period and to the individual-education room for 
the fourth; the third grade being in the opposite room at the same time. 
The fourth and fifth grades alternate in the same way. All subjects are 
given the full State schedule allotment of time. 

After the children were chosen they were very carefully tested individu- 
ally by specially trained teachers, to determine the weaknesses and powers 
of their “ performance abilities.” In reading the Starch Test was given 
for speed; the Gray for accuracy; the Monroe for comprehension; the 
Sutherland Reading Number Problem Test for comprehension of problems ; 
the Courtis for the four fundamentals in Arithmetic; the Arleigh Fraction 
Test; and the Spelling from the Ayres list. The results were carefully 
tabulated on cards showing the grades as well as the levels reached by each 
of the individual pupils. The results were startling. Many cards showed 
a variation from A2 to A6—in fact not one of the one hundred eighty-four 
pupils registered the same grade in all of the reading tests. Many of the 
4th and 5th grade pupils made a second-grade score in addition and sub- 
traction while making a 4th, 5th or even 6th-grade score in multiplication 
and division; while some made satisfactory scores in the fundamentals but 











414 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





fell low in the problem scores. The speed and accuracy in reading was 
usually above grade and the comprehension was generally one or two 
classes below. Whenever there was a question the pupil was placed lower 
rather than higher, the examiners feeling that the child needed the review 
in any subject in which there was any doubt as to his performance ability. 


PRELIMINARY PLACEMENT CARD 





READING we eee 


Accuracy —Gray . ‘ “ ‘ ‘ F Fig VII 
Speed—Starch ‘ ‘ . - P awe 
Comprehension— Monroe Test—Score -rrrh J 
Reading Number—(Problem Comprehension) 1 jz 





NUMBER SCORE 
Integers— Prim. Add. Courtis Add. 
Sub. Test nn... 
Mult. Mult. Above 
Div. ———E— 

Fractions —Common: 
Add. and Sub. ‘ Test 1 
Mult. and Div. ‘ . Test 2 
Mixed Num. ‘ . Test 3 

Decimal: 

Add. and Sub. : ‘ Test 4 
Mult. and Div. ; . Test 5 











} Test 





|] [be BEE 


HT IT 


Date__21-7-21 NAME__Katherine K 
AS 


Grade Age ___ iscaniiislint iinaialipie aidan 








After the scoring was finished the pupil was given a program showing 
just which level he was to work in each subject [he was not told his 
grade score] and was taught to use the material. Then he became his 
own teacher, analyzing his own weaknesses and judging of his own needs. 
He is privileged to ask help of any neighbor, or he may go to the teacher 
for assistance at any time. In the 4th and 5th grades were found the 
greatest variations of levels; and in almost every case, without any sugges- 
tions, the child worked on the lowest levels until they were brought up to 
the levels of the other subjects. Sometimes a little time is given to the 
higher level, but the larger share is given to the lower ones. When one 
level is extremely low in comparison, it is because of one or two weaknesses 
which are soon overcome and the child finds, maybe for the first time, that 
the subject that he has always considered difficult is easy after all; his 
confidence is strengthened and he enjoys conquering the subject and is 
anxious to take the test to prove his power. Many children who had been 
having difficulty in doing the long division work discovered that the diffi- 
culties lay in the addition and subtraction and not in the long division at 
all. The same was discovered in relation to fractions. 

The pupil works from an exercise book and the required text, writing 
his results in a notebook. When he has finished a certain task, he passes 
to a rack on which hang other exercise books like the one he is using but 











Vas 
wo 
ver 
Cw 


bebe le] | [ TT Te] 





SRSee 





Reprint of THE First YEARBOOK 415 














in which the answers have been written. He takes the two books to a 
large table, where he corrects his work. Pencils are left at the seats and 
the corrections are noted with colored crayons. If the answer in his note- 
book differs from that in the answer book he does not check his answer 
as wrong, but makes a note of it, returns to his seat and tries to obtain the 
correct results from his own work. If he is unsuccessful, he questions the 
correctness of the book and takes it to the teacher for final judgment. 
There is no promotion given on this exercise work, so there is no incentive 
to be dishonest. The few who tried to get through the exercise book, by 
copying a good part of the answers, found that they were unable to pass 
the test. The same time and energy spent in good honest effort brought 
results, while copying only brought disappointment and the need of spend- 
ing more time on the same work. 

As soon as the pupil feels that he has gained the ability that he has 
been working for by using a given exercise, he writes his name on a paper 
provided for that purpose, signifying his readiness for a test, which is 
given at the teacher’s earliest convenience. A child rarely fails in a test 
because he is sure of himself before putting up his name, he knows that 
the test has been worked out similar to the material he has been working 
with, and that if he has conscientiously worked the exercises he will find 
the test easier than the text. These project tests are given at the teacher's 
desk ; no variations as to time or procedure, no questions, interruptions, nor 
suggestions being permitted. In giving these individual tests the teacher 
has an opportunity to judge the powers and abilities, to analyze difficulties, 
and to advise wisely as to the best methods for further study. 

The results of the tests are recorded on progress cards, on which squares 
are laid off; vertical columns representing the levels and the horizontal 
columns representing the goals. When a test has been successfully com- 
pleted the pupil blocks in the proper square, while the teacher writes in 
the date on her duplicate card. The completed tests are put in large 
envelopes made for that purpose. If a pupil passes his test with exceptional 
ability, on a goal of speed in reading for instance, he may be excused from 
a test on the same goal in the next level. In that case the square js 
crossed out. 

This child’s card varied from the B2 in problem work to Bs in speed 
in reading. She is now doing straight B6 work in reading, while she has 
finished the required work in the fundamentals of arithmetic. 

The following represents typical portions of the Adjustment Progress 
Card: 

ADJUSTMENT ProcGress Carp 


School——6 1st Street ee Ter eee UL 
Pupil——Katherine K. PEE ce vaweceakseroReeneaes 
ee 8 reer es ere Mb iHitetandndeadsanaewewens 
Date of Entrance............... Prom Grade AS... .0.605ccc0e0s 
£8 ere rer er ;. 5 ne en ree Ene 


NE Ee Rs 6 kh iid exons eo Weeks Prog. ...... ne eee 











416 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





PRELIMINARY PLACEMENT 








Reading Level Arithmetic Level 
Accuracy Xi Addition Vv : 
Speed IX Subtraction X 
Comprehension VII Multiplication XII 
No. Placement III —_— Division XII 


FINAL PLACEMENT 
Reading VII No. III W. E. 1V 


To Teachers: Cards should be numbered in order of entrance, and one 
card sent to the Department of Psychology and Educational Research on 
the first of each calendar month. When pupil leaves, this card is sent in 
for permanent record. 

To Pupil: You should have two of these Progress Cards. Keep one 
at your teacher’s desk and one at your desk. When you complete a project, 
block it in on your card. Copy your record on the other card as your 
teacher directs. 

When pupils are placed low in subjects the review soon discovers the 
difficulties. These are rapidly overcome and the progress is very marked. 
Some children have done the work of six terms or three years in the twelve 
weeks that the experiment has been in operation. Some have made even 
more progress in one or two subjects especially those who were placed low 
in the fundamentals in arithmetic. One little girl who was a normal A4 
is now doing straight B6 work; one boy who was an A§5 is now doing 
straight A6éth. The aim is not to shorten the time in the elementary grades 
but to build a firm foundation for the work of the intermediate and high 
schools. Supplementary material is being prepared that the children with 
the quicker minds may have a broader and richer experience along the lines 
of the elementary grade subjects. 

The one great fault in the present plan is the fact that the children have 
two teachers during the day. A new room has just been opened with 
twenty-five sixth-grade children at work all day under one teacher. She 
will have charge of the individual work, using the Sutherland material ; and 
also the group work, which will be based on citizenship. Objections will 
be raised because of the numbers. Many consider that it is expensive to 
have small classes ; but when it is understood that there will be no failures— 
no repeaters—as every child will find his own rate of speed and travel 
accordingly—that there will be no marking time for the brighter pupils— 
no dragging along for five months of the slow ones, who then probably 
drag over the same work for five months more without finding where 
their difficulties are—considering all these things it is not expensive to guide 
successfully twenty-five pupils into correct mental habits, attitudes, and ap- 
preciation. 














el 


I 
a 


ie 


bal 


—_— e_ Ve 








Reprint oF THe First YEARBOOK 417 





Under this method the pupil is placed at the beginning of his difficulty 
in each subject ; he spends his time in studying and making definite, business- 
like reports; he is allowed free rein for developing self-reliance by inde- 
pendent and honest industry. He develops abilities at a rapid rate and 
forms habits and attitudes of intensive and intelligent control by working 
towards a definite goal. The independence and responsibility developed 
is evident in the general character of the child; discipline as such is reduced 
to a minimum. The individual is learning the true foundation of citizen- 
ship—to compare, to evaluate, and to choose or determine intelligently 
and independently. 


19 











T SHOULD go without saying that a na- 

tion’s resources of intellectual talent are 
among the most precious it will ever have. ‘The 
origin of genius, the natural laws of its devel- 
opment, and the environmental influences by 
which it may be affected for good or ill, are 
scientific problems of almost unequaled impor- 
tance for human welfare.—Lewis M. ‘Terman, 
Genetic Studies of Genius, Vol. I, Preface, 
p. Vil. 


[ 418 J 




















CHAPTER V 
PROVISIONS FOR THE GIFTED CHILD 


AN EXPERIMENT IN THE EDUCATION OF GIFTED 
CHILDREN IN THE FIRST GRADE 


GEORGE C. KYTE, SUPERVISING PRINCIPAL, UNIVERSITY ELEMENTARY 
SCHOOL, BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA 


URING THE PAST FEW YEARS the writer has had the op- 
D portunity of directing a number of experiments in the education 

of gifted children in various grades of the Emerson School, Berke- 
ley. This public school is admirably adapted to administration of this 
nature. It is located in a residence district adjacent to the campus of the 
University of California. The fathers of the pupils are highly trained, 
successful men; professional men, engineers, financiers, and other equally 
well-trained and successful men constitute the greatest number of male 
adults. There are a few skilled mechanics and practically no unskilled 
laborers. Almost all of the mothers are free from other duties except the 
care of their households. Accordingly, the school draws its pupils where 
high levels of intelligence prevail. 

This desirable condition makes possible experimentation in the education 
of gifted children. Intelligence tests, given throughout the school, indi- 
cated that the rate of progress or development of this upper group needed 
more attention than the others. One of the readjustments made possible 
the application of mental tests as one of the means of reorganizing the first 
grades. The adjustments of classes over a period of six months resulted 
in the reduction of the new high first grade to nineteen pupils. The enter- 
ing class enrolment exceeded forty-five. It was decided to reorganize the 
two classes so as to secure two groups as nearly homogeneous in ability as 
possible. Therefore, a study of each child was made with respect to his 
possibilities. 

About one half of the new receiving class had previously attended kin- 
dergarten, and from their former teacher information was obtained regard- 
ing their general intelligence, attitude toward school-work, industry, and 
health. She was also able to supply data indicating parent codperation. 
Similar information was collected about the rest of the class through such 
sources as parents, older brothers or sisters. The high first-grade teacher 
made a similar study of her small class. The entire receiving class was 
kept intact for two weeks to give one teacher an opportunity to study the 
group with the above points in mind while the enrolment was being com- 
pleted. This made possible a tentative rating by her, which, with that of 
the kindergarten teacher, served as an index of progress possibilities. 

Meanwhile, each child was tested by means of the Stanford Revision of 
the Binet-Simon Scale. On the basis of the results and all other informa- 
tion accumulated, we selected a group of fifteen children to be moved from 
the large low first to the small high first grade. Each one of these selected 


[ 419 ] 











420 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





children seemed capable of completing the first year’s work in much shorter 
time if given the opportunity. ‘The two groups were placed under the one 
teacher, in one room. ‘The first group consisted of the entire class of high 
first-grade pupils who had completed more or less successfully a half year 
of school work. ‘The second group included only the fifteen carefully se- 
lected pupils. Because the former group was the entire high first grade, it 
constituted a control. ‘The latter, with one exception, as indicated further 
on, was composed of gifted children. 


TABLE 1—Teacher Judgment and Recorded Information with Respect to Individual 
Pupils in the Two Groups 
































Kinder- , 
el Que | Teacher | Judgment |r ony] Cote Occupation 
Group | Number! Sex |Gen. Int.|Sch. Work |Health —. of Father 
Gifted 1 G 2 3 1 Yes Merchant 
Group 2 B 1 1 1 Yes |Sales Mer. 
3 G 3 4 1 Yes Broker 
4 B 1 1 1 No Exp. Engineer 
5 G 1 1 1 Yes High-Sch. Teacher 
6 B 2 1 1 No Agriculturist 
7 B 1 1 1 Yes Mer. Wholesale 
8 G 1 1 1 Yes Univ. Professor 
9 G 1 1 1 No Mer. Wholesale 
10 G 1 1 1 Yes Phys. & Surg. 
11 B 1 1 1 No Accountant 
12 B 1 1 1 Yes Merchant 
13 G 2 2 3 Yes |Insurance Agent 
14 B 2 1 2 Yes |BankRepresentative 
15 B 1 1 1 Yes Civil Engineer 
Lower Q. 2 1 1 
Median . 1 1 1 
Upper Q 1 1 1 
High... 1 G 3 3 1 Yes |Com’l Artist 
First... . 2 G 5 5 1 Yes {Marine Survey 
3 B 3 3 1 No (deceased) 
4 B 3 4 2 Yes {Lithographer 
5 G 1 3 1 Yes |Attorney 
6 G 3 1 1 No Mining Engineer 
7 G 3 4 1 No Mining Engineer 
8 G 2 2 1 No Farmer (Jap.) 
9 B 5 5 5 Yes |Phys. & Surg. 
10 G 2 2 2 Yes |Accountant 
11 B 3 3 1 No (deceased) 
12 B 5 + 1 Yes Farmer 
13 G 3 4 1 Yes R. R. Brakeman 
14 G 1 4 1 Yes Musician 
15 G 4 4 2 Yes |Mgr. Wholesale 
16 B 2 3 1 Yes’ {Auditor 
17 B 2 5 5 Yes {Adjuster 
18 B 1 2 1 No H. S. Vice-Principal 
19 B 2 2 1 No Asst. Mer. Mfg. 
Lower Q 3 4 2 
Median 3 4 1 
Upper Q 2 2 1 





























Ee a 














REPRINT OF THe First YEARBOOK 421 











Table I gives the data obtained from teacher judgment and enrolment 
cards. The ratings by the teachers were based upon the following seven- 
point scale: “ Very superior ” was marked “1”; “ superior,” “2”; “ above 
average,” “3”; “average,” “4”; “below average,” “5”; “ inferior,”’ 
“6”: and “ very inferior,” “7.” In making the division, we had given no 
thought to distribution according to sex, but upon checking up this item 
found that each group was divided about equally with respect to the num- 
ber of boys and girls. The table also shows that a very large majority of 
each group had received training in the kindergarten. Both groups seemed 
to be healthy, with the gifted group having a slight advantage. ‘This was 
partly due to the fact that health was considered in selecting the members. 


“é ” “ ” 


TABLE 11—Teachers’ Judgment of Intelligence, the Age and Mentality of the Indi- 
vidual Pupils in the Two Groups 





























6 — Teacher Judg't of Chron. Age] Mental Age | _ Intelligence 
roup umber] ,. : ; 
General Intelligence Yrs."Mo.| Yrs. Mo. | Quotient 
Gifted 1 2 6 4/7 8 121 
Group 2 1 6 11] 8 — 116 
3 3 5 10| 7 6 128 
4 1 6 9/9 _ 133 
5 1 6 31s — 128 
6 2 7 ae a 107 
7 1 6 Zit 8 125 
8 1 6 —|7 — 117 
9 1 6 ai? 10 127 
10 1 6 5| 8 _ 125 
il 1 7 218 4 116 
12 1 6 —|8 9 146 
13 2 5 9/8 6 148 
14 2 7 318 1 111 
15 1 6 117 8 111 
Lower Q.. 2 6 —j|7 8 116 
Median.. . 1 6 4/8 — 125 
Upper Q.. 1 6 wis 4 128 
High 1 3 6 4|6 5 101 
First 2 5 6 6| 8 3 126 
3 3 7 —|7 6 107 
4 3 7 5 | 6 2 83 
5 1 7 317 2 98 
6 3 8 Si7 1 84 
7 3 7 Pi? 3 102 
8 2 6 6 | No test; lajng. hdcp 
9 5 7 617 6 100 
10 2 7 —|8 6 121 
11 3 6 2] 6 6 105 
12 5 6 9/6 8 98 
13 3 6 11 | 6 10 98 
14 1 6 717 6 113 
15 4 7 —|7 8 109 
16 2 6 9/7 8 113 
17 2 7 2/8 7 120 
18 1 7 217 7 106 
19 2 6 4/8 3 130 
Lower Q.. 3 6 6 | 6 8 98 
Median.. . 3 7 —|7 6 102 
Upper Q.. 2 7 Zi 7 8 113 





























422 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





The data on the intelligence of the individuals in the experiment are 
contained in Table II. The teachers’ judgment with respect to the general 
intelligence of the pupils has been included again, so that immediate com- 
parison may be made with the intelligence records obtained in the tests. 
The intelligence quotient in the table is the ratio of mental age to chrono- 
logical age. —The mental age and intelligence quotient could not be accu- 
rately determined for Pupil Number 8 in the control group because of her 
language handicap and experience. She was a little Japanese girl with a 
limited command of English, living in an oriental home. Her rapid grasp 
of school work and successful efforts led the teacher to rate her a “ su- 
perior ” child. It seems safe to consider her at least an average child. 


Diagram Showing the Chronological and Mental Ages of the Two Groups, Etc. 





Age 
A 


’ 














n 


oO 
I 





1_ 
i 
I 


NO GS SS 
I 
| 
I 




















































































































BSPFL7TESSWAISZUIGE USIPZHIZUEISSIHWTIBITE 496 
Gifted Group Control Group 


Mental Advancement... Chrenolegical Age. = Mantel Retardation... 3 











An analysis of the chronological ages of the pupils discloses that the con- 
trol group consists of children older than those in the gifted one. The 
youngest pupil in the former, though only six years and two months old, 
is nearly a half year older than the youngest in the latter. The oldest in 
the high first grade, eight years and five months, is ten months older than 
the oldest in the corresponding pupil in the special first group. The median 
ages differ by eight months. The gifted group of the low first grade is at 
least one half year younger than the high first grade. The age range shows 
more homogeneity in the special division than in the other. 

Probably the most significant fact that we find in analyzing the mental 
ages of the pupils is that the gifted group, though younger chronologically, 
is older mentally than the control group. The youngest, median, and old- 




















- 


-_— 


eT  _——l/ 














REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 423 





est mental ages of the former when compared to the corresponding ages of 
the latter show the gifted children to be about a half year older mentally 
than those of the high first grade. The child with the youngest mental age 
in the selected group, seven years, is older in this respect than five of these 
in the control group. wo of the former group are older mentally than 
the mentally oldest in the latter. The median mental age of the special 
section is older than the mental ages of fifteen out of the nineteen pupils in 
the regular high first grade. The upper quartile of this control group is 
the same as the lower quartile of the other. 

The diagram constructed from Table II clearly shows the mental su- 
periority of the gifted group. The pupils have been arranged in the two 
groups according to chronological age, from the youngest to the oldest. 
The solid black extension indicates the mental advancement of each child 
beyond his actual age. Mental retardation has been presented by a shaded 
section superposed upon the chronological age bar. The graph of the gifted 
section shows mental advancement of all its members. The graph of the 
high first section indicates a more normal distribution of cases from almost 
as high mental advancement to marked retardation. ‘Tables III and IV 
have been compiled from the previous one for the purpose of presenting 
the distribution of intelligence of the groups. The classification of intelli- 
gence in the fourth table is that used by Professor Terman.’ Hence we 
have two fairly comparable tables of ratings on seven-point scales. The 
distribution based on the intelligence tests is more accurate than the one 
based on teacher judgment. However, the correponding distributions are 
strikingly similar. By teacher judgment we have all of our gifted group 
rated “ above average” or higher. According to actual test, one of the 
pupils is normal. In Table II, we find the one case to be Pupil Number 6, 
a boy much older than the rest of the group and mentally able to achieve 
what eight-year-old children are capable of doing. Therefore, there seemed 
to be no justification for eliminating him from the gifted group. The girl, 
Number 3, rated by the teacher as only “ above average,” was next to the 
youngest pupil in the group, but by test was shown to be a very superior 
child. According to teacher judgment and intelligence tests, the control 
group presented a nearly normal distribution from “ below average” and 
“dull ” to “ very superior.” 

The occupations of fathers of the children have been listed in Table I. 
Although in general most children in the two divisions come from homes 
where success in life is no stranger, the gifted group show to advantage in 
this respect. The farmers are men who are able to maintain very good 
homes in the university city in order that their children may have the best 
of educational opportunities. Pupils number 6 and 7 in the control group 
are daughters of the one mining engineer. In the gifted group all fathers 
except one are highly successful professional or business men, while in the 
control group there are one parent classified as an unskilled laborer, one 
skilled mechanic, and three others slightly more successful. 





*Terman, L. M. The Measurement of Intelligence. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1916. 








424 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





Other points of contrast between the two groups can be made from the 
various tables. The most important have been noted and indicate definitely 
the difference between them. The one, a special group of gifted children, 
young, healthy, capable of doing exceptional work; the other a nearly nor- 
mal group of children ranging from dull to superior mentality, older in 
actual years, younger in mental age, healthy with a few exceptions, and 
capable of varying degrees of success and even retarded progress. Of the 
latter group, pupils number 3, 4, 11, and 17 had spent at least one year in 
the receiving class. All members of the high first grade were considered 


TABLE I11—Distribution of the Two Groups on the Basis of Teacher Judgment of 
Intelligence 





















































o~ Definition Gifted Group High First 
ad of rating number per cent number per cent 
Diese ecataies Very superior 10 66.7 3 15.8 
re Superior 4 26.6 5 26.3 
CRS Above average 1 6.7 7 36.8 
a wkneeee Average San phate 1 + 
i drive kink Below average 3 15.8 
— er Inferior aes ais 
Pikeenean Very inferior 
BM skctdwisvinrwass 15 100.00 19 100.0 
TABLE 1V—Distribution of the Two Groups Based on Intelligence 
Intelligence : ; Gifted | Group | High First 
Quotient Classification number | per cent} number | per cent 
Above 140....| Near genius or genius 2 13.3 _ sO 
120-140... | Very superior 7 46.7 3 16.7 
110-120. ...| Superior 5 33.3 3 16.7 
90-110... Normal or average 1 6.7 10 55.6 
80- 90....| Dullness ae i 2 11.1 
70- 80....| Borderline deficienc eau nae 
Below 70..... Definite feeble-mindedness 
i iccte-enaphikiackkendweekiweenae 15 100.0 18 100.1 

















ready to begir the second term’s work; a few were somewhat advanced. 
Only one pupil of the gifted gioup was able to read a few simple sentences 
and none could write. 

To insure to both groups more individual attention and to prevent any 
possibility of handicapping the high first-grade class, or the special group 
the daily program was organized, so that each group attended school ap- 
proximately four hours of the day, while the teacher’s program consisted 
of a five-hour teaching day. This type of program required each group to 
be in the room at nine o'clock and one o'clock. But one group was dis- 
missed at eleven in the morning and the other at noon. The latter group 


























REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 425 





was dismissed at two o'clock, while the former remained until three o’clock 
in the afternoon. ‘Thus, during the third hour in the morning, the teacher 
could give her undivided attention to one group and during the last hour 
in the afternoon to the other group. During the term the programs of the 
groups were interchanged, so that for a part of the term the special group 
attended school two hours in the forenoon and two in the afternoon, and 
the rest of the term three hours in the morning and one in the afternoon. 
Another reorganization was made at this time. The teaching procedure 
was modified in the interest of motivated methods. For example, language 


TasLe V—Achievement of the Two Groups in Reading at the Close of the First Half 
Year Together; Haggerty Sigma I Test 

















Scores in Haggerty Sigma I 
Pupil Gifted Group } Control] Group 
Test 1 Test 2 Test 1 Test 2 

1 10 —_— 11 1 
2 15 7 4 — 
Z Left; tr. =~ —_ _ 
4 12 1 6 5 
5 10 2 10 4 
6 1 2 8 2 
7 14 5 18 8 
8 21 12 1 a= 
9 9 2 At 2 
10 12 6 18 7 
11 Left; tr. _ 8 3 
12 17 4 11 3 
13 Absent;sick = 11 5 
14 8 3 4 4 
15 6 2 Left; tr. aa 
16 Ear ee 4 os 
17 ata salies 11 -- 
18 aetied Bier 19 16 
19 sa Fa ....  |JAbsent;sick ~ 

















and numbers were developed and reading taught through projects. A hat 
store was built and furnished and hat sales were conducted. A doll house 
was built, furniture and decorations were made, and various home activi- 
ties portrayed. With these projects as motives, the children made their 
own primers, developing their own stories of their activities. 

Three months after classwork began the teacher requested that plans for 
a new distribution be made. In her judgment, a very small number of the 
selected, gifted children were able to do work as good, if not better, than 
that of the average pupil in the control group. She felt certain that a few 
of the latter were achieving results poorer than most of the pupils in the 
former. There was available no standard scale of scientific nature simple 
enough to determine accurately the need of redistributing the pupils on the 
basis of achievement in the work of the grade. In our efforts to regroup 
into two new comparable divisions, we found that the one pupil of the 











426 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





special class, who had entered school able to read a little, and two pupils in 
the regular group seemed to be ready for advancement beyond their class. 
By trying them in the low second grade on a “ visitor basis” under a second 
teacher, one from each group was found capable of doing satisfactory work 
in that advanced grade. If there were any doubt with respect to the two 
pupils’ preparation, it applied to the one from the control rather than the 
pupil from the gifted group. Before the close of the term the second pupil 
of the regular division had adjusted himself sufficiently to join the two 
previously advanced. These three, Pupil Number 8 of the selected group 


Tas_e VI—Distribution of Scores of the Two Groups in the Haggerty Test in 
Reading Achievement 




















Score Test 1 Test 2 
sifted Control Gifted Control 
Group Group Group Group 
Over 15 3 a 1 
1 ic ‘a 
eee 1 : 6 
_ ee A oa ne 
eS 2 aie 1 
Fae ; + oe 
_. Saeee 2 1 at 
We sacs 1 St a 
ar 1 2 2 1 
i ecg ; Pe 1 
Bis news 1 1 1 
Se mE oa 1 2 
: eee e 4 1 2 
anews as re 1 2 
ree ii 4 2 
Birk alka 1 1 1 1 
eee a 1 1 5 
Total. 12 17 12 17 
Lower Q.. 9 4.63 2.25 85 
Median... 11 8.75 3 3.25 
Upper Q..- 15 11.7 6 5.38 

















and Numbers 10 and 18 of the other, were promoted to the high second 
grade at the end of the term. Pupil Number 12 of the gifted children was 
advanced also early in the new term. 

When the half year ended, the pupils were tested in reading achievement 
by means of the Haggerty tests." Table V contains these data. In Table 
VI this has been arranged according to the distribution of scores in the two 
tests. Of the pupils marked “ transfer ” in Table V, Number 3 in the gifted 
section was in the school only a short time. There is, therefore, no way of 





1M. E. Haggerty. Achievement Examination in Reading, Sigma I. 








-o7 CO Fa” 5S 


—_— 


Vw © 











REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 427 





estimating what she would have achieved. Pupil Number 11 in the group 
would have scored very high, undoubtedly, because he was placed in the high 
first grade of the school to which he was transferred, and was reported as 
doing satisfactory work. While still in the Emerson School, he had been se- 
lected as one of those pupils to be placed in the most advanced division when 
the first readjustment was made. Pupil Number 13 would have scored low, 
because of several prolonged illnesses during the half year, which necessi- 
tated remaining at home without studying. Pupil 15 in the control class 
was in the weakest section of the readjusted groups when she moved away. 
Her score would have been low. On the other hand, the absent boy of this 
section was exceptionally good and would have done better than the aver- 
age. Hence, the transferred and absent pupils would probably have af- 
fected to only a very small degree the median and the quartile scores. 

We found Test 1 of the Haggerty examination a more effective meas- 
ure of reading ability and comprehension with respect to little children than 
Test 2, because of its longer period of twenty minutes of reading. This 
was borne out by the data obtained in this test as well as the standard scores 
for each one. The scores of the individuals, as well as median and quar- 
tiles, indicated how much greater was the achievement of the gifted chil- 
dren than that of the control first grade. In spite of the fact that the 
schooling of the gifted children covered one half year, as compared with not 
less than a year for all pupils in the regular high first grade, at least seventy- 
five per cent of them had become better readers than fifty per cent of the 
control first grade. About one half of the special group were better than 
three fourths of the pupils in the other division. That the medians were 
about the same in Test 2 was due, very probably, to the advantage of 
drill during a longer period of time experienced by the regular high first 
class. In spite of this factor, five absolutely failed in Test 2, as compared 
with only one in the special class. An inspection of Table V shows that 
in Test 1 this latter pupil had scored very much higher than four of the 
five in the control group failing in Test 2. 


TABLE VII—Standard Scores and Medians of the Two Groups in the Haggerty 
Reading Examination 








Test 1 Test 2 








Control Group Medians 8.75 o.20 
Gifted Group Medians 11.00 3.00 
Standards for Grade I 4.00 2.00 
Standards for Grade II 12.00 8.00 








That no child had been handicapped by the experiment is indicated in 
Table VII. The medians of the control and special divisions were higher 
than the standards established for both tests. In Test 2 the achievement 
for both groups was at least one half year beyond first-grade standard. In 
Test 1 the selected group was within one point of finishing second-grade 
standard. 











428 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





Two administrative sources of data disclosed how markedly successful 
the experiment had proved. The promotion records at midyear were as 
follows: 

Of the eighteen pupils with complete term records, two were regularly 
promoted to the high second, fifteen to the low second grade, and one was 
given a trial promotion. The same type of information was available for 
fourteen members of the gifted group. At the completion of the half-year 
period, two pupils were regularly promoted to the high second grade, eleven 
to the low second, and one to the high first. The last case was that of the 
pupil previously mentioned as having been compelled to remain home much 
of the term on account of illness. During the broken periods of attendance 
she seemed to respond but slowly to special attention. Whether this would 
have been true if she had been in school regularly we were not able to 
determine. 

The division of the pupils after eight weeks of the second term indicated 
that those of the gifted group were doing better work than those of the 
control. In the new low second, ten of the eleven pupils of the special 
group were in the upper division. The exceptional case was the one pupil, 
Number 6, with an intelligence quotient less than 110. Evidently, he was 
able to maintain the rate of the gifted section only as long as his chrono- 
logical age, and mental age as well, was far beyond that of the normal age 
for his grade. With the eleven gifted children in the upper division there 
were only seven of the pupils of the larger original high first. 

Some of the most important advantages are summarized in conclusion: 

1. Special groups of gifted children make possible rapid progress of the 
individuals. 

2. The rapid rate of progress is in reality the normal rate of the gifted 
children. 

3. Rapid progress is achieved with and through enriched curricula and 
motivation of school work. 

4. Individual pupils within selected groups move at different rates even 
when more highly selected than ordinarily. 

5. Drill is greatly lessened, explanation required on the part of the 
teacher is minimized, and yet gifted children achieve better results in shorter 
time than do normal ones. 

6. The natural poise and social normality of bright children is not 
warped by the knowledge that they are able to accomplish more than other 
children. No incident occurred which would indicate that they felt them- 
selves better than others. 

7. Careful selection of such a group will eliminate possible failures. 
Health, age, mentality, teacher judgment of ability to do school work, and 
home conditions are important factors to consider. 

8. Normal children are not handicapped by experiments permitting more 
rapid progress of their brighter classmates. They do their best under the 
incentive of promotion whenever ready. 

9g. The use of tests gives the administrator a feeling of confidence in 
carrying on such experiments. 











ona0 DSO 























REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 429 





TAKING CARE OF THE GIFTED CHILD 
H. W. ZIRKLE, PRINCIPAL OF THE WHITTIER SCHOOL, DENVER, COLORADO 


To assist the child of supernormal ability to get more than the ordinary 
normal child is a problem that interests every teacher. Such children exist 
in every school. Their native ability enables them to accomplish more than 
the normal children. Usually much valuable time for them is wasted and 
often their energies are perverted into activities of positive harm to them- 
selves and to their associates. 

They either should be accelerated till they reach the point in the course 
corresponding to their mental age, or they should be given a broader and 
richer curriculum all along the line, retaining them the full period in the 
grades and in the high school. To require them to spend eight years in the 
grades and four years in the high school before graduating does not seem 
fair to them. That they would be stronger and better at the time of 
graduating by doing so is certain. But if they wish to do so they could 
enrich their knowledge by taking graduate work and be better prepared 
then to choose their own courses. 

I think the ideal scheme would be to have a sufficient number of super- 
normal pupils to constitute a class by themselves and then to give them a 
broader and richer course and also take them over it more rapidly. This 
can be done in a very large school or in groups of schools aggregating 3000 
or 4000 pupils. Three thousand pupils ought to furnish sufficient excep- 
tionally bright children to make a good-sized class in each grade. These 
ought to be segregated, beginning about the third grade and kept in a sepa- 
rate class throughout the grades and the high school. We are doing this 
for the subnormal type; why not for the superior? 

These superior children, when they have completed creditably the high- 
school course, should be admitted into the Freshman class at college regard- 
less of their chronological age. Our school being small, only about 1000 
average enrolment, we could not follow the plan of permanent segregation. 
We are following this plan for the subnormal type, but we draw for those 
classes from the surrounding schools. 

As the most feasible scheme possible within our limitations we hit upon 
the following plan: 

Children selected for acceleration are taken from their regular room and 
placed in the room devoted to this work. These pupils continue the work 
as in the regular room, though more rapidly, till they have caught up in all 
the main subjects with the class ahead. They are then placed in the room 
with the advanced class, thereby having gained a special promotion. 

Usually another class for the special room is then selected from the class 
to which the special promotion is made to prevent overcrowding; and in 
this manner the work is kept up through the school year. Two classes, or 
grades, aggregating from twenty to twenty-five pupils, are kept in the room 
at the same time. 











430 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





The time allowed each class to accomplish the work of catching up with 
the half grade just ahead is nine and one half weeks, or half of the semester. 
Thus four sets of pupils, aggregating about one hundred, have an oppor- 
tunity in the room each school year. 

Selecting the pupils—Two kinds of children are eligible: those with 
superior native mental ability and those who have, for some reason, become 
retarded and are capable of restoration to their proper grade. 

The following factors are considered in the selection: (a) Class stand- 
ing; (&) mental ability, as determined by the Stanford Revision of the 
Simon-Binet Intelligence Test; (c) effort; (d) physical condition. 

Of these, the two most important are the class standing and the mental 
age. Experience in this room has proved that a child is capable of accelera- 
tion until he has reached the grade corresponding to his mental age. Thus 
a child of nine with a mental age of eleven, if he has the proper oppor- 
tunity, can be accelerated at this age till he reaches the sixth grade. He 
ought not to be pushed beyond. On the contrary, a child of eleven with a 
mental age of nine ought not to be beyond the beginning fourth; but, if he 
has not yet reached the fourth he is capable of acceleration up to that point. 
In other words, a subnormal child retarded below his mental age is capable 
of acceleration to the grade corresponding to his mental age. 

In some instances, when we were unable to find a sufficient number of 
bright pupils of the grade selected to fill up the class, the slower pupils of 
the grade just above were permitted in the class, thus giving them an op- 
portunity to strengthen themselves in the work just gone over, and at the 
end of the period to be restored to their regular class. It was found that 
these pupils were always inferior to the bright pupils in the lower class. 
It did some good, but would hardly pay for the expense of an extra teacher. 

Pupils who cannot, under proper conditions and incentives, be made to 
do the regular work of the class, are usually found to be subnormal and 
should be segregated from the rest of the pupils and given a course suited 
to their mental ability. 

The plan is simple, inexpensive, and easily operated, one teacher being 
able to care fairly well for the bright pupils in a school of from 1000 to 
1500. The reason it is so little used, I think, is the ignorance of the prin- 
cipals and teachers of the actual number of superior children they really 
possess. These children exist everywhere, just as do the subnormals. Both 
ought to be sought out and cared for. Many a time in the last twelve 
years have I sat in my office and wondered where my next class was to 
come from, but on investigation the class every time was found, and very 
rarely have we pushed a child beyond its mental capacity. Since the in- 
telligence tests have come into use, there is no necessity for this to happen 
at all. Before we used the tests we had to consider the chronological age 
largely as a factor, which is not reliable. Even here we were doing what 
many are still doing—accelerating the subnormals and retarding the gifted. 

We have in this room at present (February, 1922), a 4B class of thirteen 
children working for 4A and a §A class of twelve children working for 6B. 








ith 


Or- 


ith 


me 


le 


<sS 


= FF Fw 


—— —— a 


Reprint oF THe First YEARBOOK 43] 








The 4B children were selected from a class of 57; 19 were given the in- 
telligence tests, 14 were selected, some doubtful cases being taken, in order 
to reduce the number of those remaining so one teacher could handle them 
where two had been employed before. Within a week, two were found 
unable to do the work in arithmetic and were returned to the regular room. 
Tables I and II show the ratings of the groups who were served during 
the third quarter of 1922. 


TasLe I—gB for 4A, entering January 30, 1922 






























































Chron. age Mental age cher’ 
Pupil | Sex 1.Q. inne St —-. . Effort 
Yrs. Mos. Yrs. Mos. eames 
Rica G 9 6 10 3 108 | Av. A-B A 
2... G 8 7 9 5 110 | Av. A 
S18 2 8 9 ll 5 130 | Av. A-B AA 
4...| B 11 5 10 7 93 | Av. B AA 
ae 12 10 10 1 79 | Av. B AA 
Gk 12 1 9 Oe b aiocatpas B B 
a 10 6 8 6 81 | Slow Av. A-B A 
$...1 G@ SB « 2 10 3 125.| Av. A A 
9...1 B § 8 10 4 107 | Below Av. B B 
10.. B 8 11 9 9 109 | Av. B' B 
11...| Bj] 9 9 10 | 103 | Av. B B 
+ G 10 6 |(Foreign—I.Q. not obtainable) A A 
Tasie II—5A for OB, entering January 30, 1922 
Chron. age Mental age — 
Pupil | Sex : u : 1.Q. a St Class Effort 
Yrs. Mos. Yrs. Mos. intelligence —— 
ie B 11 2 13 10 124 Ex. AA A 
: il 1 11 2 100.7 | Fair A-B A 
: ae ee 10 3 11 108 Above Av.| A-B A 
4...1 B 12 1 13 11 115 Av. A-B B 
Seas = 10 2 10 9 106 Av. A-B A 
6.. B 11 5 11 1 97 Av. A-B A 
—- G 10 2 10 6 103 Av. A-B A 
8.. B 10 7 11 6 109 Av. A-B A 
, B 10 9 10 1 94 Above Av.| A-B A- 
3... G 10 4 11 3 109 Above Av.| B-A A 
oe G 11 1 13 2 111.2 | Good A-B A 



































432 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





The following table shows the rating of ten upper-grade pupils during 
the second quarter, 1922: 


Taste I11—Standing of 7B class entering November 14, 1921, and becoming 
8B on January 27, 1921 



































on. age Mental age * | 
Pupil |Sex ssn ete) aoe, Class Effort | Standing 
Yrs Mos. | Yrs. | Mos. intelligence aint 2 py 

1...| B} 11 S| 9 | 120] Av. plus B B B 
eel a ee 13 7 | 123) Superior B-A B-A B 
3...) B] 13 3 | 15 4 | 116; Av. B A B-C 
4...;G] il 9 | 15 3 |130| Very Super.! AA AA A 
S-..) G] it 2 14 .. |125| Very Super.' AA AA A 
6...;G] 11 9 | 12 .. | 102] Av. A-B A A-B 
7...) G} 12 i« bo 8 | 140; Very Super. A AA A 
8...| G| 13 7 | 12 4 | 91} Av. B-C A B-C 
9...;G] il 1 14 9 | 130} Very Good A A A 

10...; B} 10 | il 17 1 | 155| Very Super.| A-B | B B-A 











From the very best of this class and from other 8B classes in surrounding 
schools we expect to select a good class for our last quarter and prepare 
them for 9B in June. 

To illustrate the exact manner in which the plan is carried out, we give 
the formation of the four different groups of children in the room for 
1918-19: 

(1) First quarter, beginning September 3, 1918: 10 pupils in 4B work- 
ing for 4A; 3 pupils reviewing in 4A working for 4A; and 14 pupils in 
6B working for 6A. 

(2) Second quarter: 8 pupils in 4A working for 5B, becoming 5A at 
end of semester; 5 pupils reviewing in 5B working for 5B, becoming 5A 
at end of semester; and 10 pupils in 6A working for 7B, becoming 7A at 
end of semester. 

(3) Third quarter: 11 pupils in 5A working for 6B; and 9 pupils in 
7A working for 8B. 

(4) Fourth quarter: 11 pupils in 6B working for 6A, becoming 7B in 
June; 9 pupils in 8B working for 8A, becoming 9B in June; and 1 pupil 
in 8A working for 8A, becoming 9B in June. 

An analysis of these figures shows that had any pupil beginning with 
either class in September continued with the class until the end of the year 
in June, he would have made three full years’ work in one. This would 
be phenomenal and would likely be too great a tax upon even a very su- 
perior child; but by giving only one promotion at a time, or at most two 
in succession, the four special promotions have frequently been accomplished 
before leaving the eighth grade. These specially gifted children generally 
receive one or more special promotions before leaving the primary grades. 

If a child is capable of making more than one special promotion, he is 
retained in the room with the new class entering, or he may be returned to 
the regular school and be selected again when the opportunity comes. Some 











1 


1g 
ial 





REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 433 





children have made as many as four special promotions before leaving the 
eighth grade. Our aim is to advance the pupil to a point where he will 
find opportunity for the exercise of his superior intelligence. It is based 
on the theory that when a child has once reached the grade corresponding 
to his intelligence quotient he will then be required to put forth a normal 
effort to keep up with his class. 

In the spring of 1919, the Pressey Group Intelligence Scale was used in 
testing two hundred and fifty-four Whittier School pupils of the fifth, 
sixth, seventh, and eighth grades for the purpose of determining the corre- 
lation between the school rating and the intelligence score of the pupils 
selected for the classes for accelerates and retardates. The authors of this 
scale believe that children who score above the go percentile show superior 
endowment and that below the 10 percentile we may look for cases of 
mental deficiency. 

The tests were given to three groups, and the results are stated in detail 
in a previous discussion." They showed the correlation to be high for the 
accelerated group. 

The following table indicates the general character of the achievements 
of the pupils for four years: 


TasLe 1V—A summary of the teacher's record for four years 





1916-7 1917-8 1918-9 1920-21 





Total number of pupils in room during year.| 107 105 92 92 
Number receiving special promotion....... 82 77 82 84 
Number pupils saved from demotion... ... 20 18 7 0 
Number unable to do the work and returned 

$0 POMIMAT TOO. 5 on ok ccc oiscsic cd Be advent 4 3 2 5 
Number withdrawn before promotion . ... 1 7 1 3 


Advancement beyond chrenological age on 
receiving special promotion: 


Number advanced 6 months to 1 year..... 24 15 12 26 
Number advanced 1 year to 114 years. ... 10 11 5 11 
Number advanced 1% years to 2 years.. . t 0 5 4 
Number advanced 2 years or more..... re 1 2 0 1 
Number of normalage... .......... F 17 19 28 32 


Still retarded on receiving special promotion: 


Number retarded 6 months to 1 year.... 8 6 12 7 
Number retarded 1 year to 14 years... 9 12 9 2 
Number retarded 1% years to 2 years.... 3 8 5 0 
Number retarded 2 years or more.... 6 i 6 1 

















Careful record is kept and observation made of the gifted children after 
special promotion and it is found that as a rule the large majority of them 
continue to be among the best in the class. Rarely does one fail and lose 
what he has gained. 





1 Zirkle, H. W. ‘‘ Character and Results of Special Rooms as Conducted in the Whittier 
School.” Elementary School Journal 21:180-97; November, 1920. 


20 











434 IEXLEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





History of an individual case—R. C.—Boy, 12 years 5 months, who had 
made three special promotions; tested June 14, 1919. 

Pressey Score 168. Certified June 27, 1919, to 9B Grade. 

Pressey Score 167 is ninety percentile for 15 years, Grade 10. 

Entered Special Room January 22, 1917, in 5B Grade, 10 years old. 








Promoted March 27, 1917, to 5A, Regular Class. 
Promoted June, 1917, to 6B, Regular Class. 

Promoted January 21, 1918, to 6A. 

Entered Special Room January 21, 1918, as 6A pupil. 
Promoted March 22, 1918, to 7B. 

Promoted June, 1918, to 7A. 

Promoted January, 1919, to 8B. 

Entered Special Room May 12, 1919, as 8B. 
Promoted June 27, 1919, to 9B, age 12 years 5 months. 


Language, A; Penmanship, C; Manual Training, B; Reading, AA; 
Spelling, A; Effort, B; Deportment, B—. 
January, 1917, to June, 1919, completed grades 5, 6, 7, and 8. 


This room has been run on this plan continuously for the past twelve 
years and has demonstrated its usefulness in the lives of nearly 1000 differ- 
ent children, by putting them creditably through the grades from a half to 
two years earlier than they otherwise would have been. Many of these 
children have gone on through high school and college, never missing a 
single promotion throughout their school career. Measured in dollars and 
cents, reckoned on the number of promotions made by each regular teacher, 
it has been a saving to the district of the salary of one teacher each year 
throughout the whole period, which in Denver means nearly $15,000. 

In addition to our room for acceleration we have six rooms for subnor- 
mals, aggregating about 120 average enrolment. These represent all the 
grades and are given a modified course in academic subjects suited to their 
mental abilities. Much manual work is given, which relieves the mental 
strain of the academic subjects, and makes life much more pleasant to: 
these unfortunates. In the normal classes, wherever it is possible to do so, 
the classes of the same half grade are divided into higher and lower ac- 
cording to the mental ability of the pupils. The brighter ones are expected 
to do more than the others, each according to his ability to acquire. “Thus 
we endeavor to arrange the classes and the work in order to keep each child 
working to his full capacity and none beyond. 














IN 


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CHAPTER VI 


DIAGNOSIS BY MEANS OF THE INFORMAL OR 
UNSTANDARDIZED TEST 


INFORMAL TESTS AS 4 MEANS FOR THE IMPROVEMENT 
OF INSTRUCTION 
CLIFFORD WOODY, DIRECTOR OF THE BUREAU OF MENTAL TESTS AND 
MEASUREMENTS, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, 
ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN 


NFORMAL TESTS as used in this discussion might well be termed 
unstandardized tests. They are, in many instances at least, patterned 
after the standardized tests, but lack the tempering obtained through 

the long process of standardization. ‘They might be termed standardized 
tests in the making, although many of them will never be completely stand- 
ardized. The informal tests are similar to the standardized tests in that 
they are as nearly objective as possible, that is, they are so constructed that 
the method of administering, scoring, and tabulating is identical with that 
provided for the standardized tests. They are usually constructed by teach- 
ers or supervisors for securing accurate measures of the achievements of 
pupils in a particular room, grade, building, or city. No definite attempt 
is made to evaluate each element of the test other than possible comparison 
with similar existing standardized tests or utilization of the judgments of 
other interested people, and no attempt is made, for the time being at least, 
to develop standards of achievement through giving them to a vast num- 
ber of children in various places. The informal tests are usually constructed 
in response to local situations and limited in their use to the situations con- 
cerned. Obviously, they do not possess all the virtues of the standardized 
tests and are limited in their application, but it is the thesis of this article 
that they can be used effectively by teachers and supervisors as a means for 
the improvement of instruction. 

Types of informal tests—The following exercises from the sample ex- 
amination on the physical features of the United States described by 
McCall’ illustrates one of the popular informal tests, the true-false test. 

Sample I—Some of the following twenty statements are true, and some 
are false. When the statement is true, draw a line under TRUE; when 
it is false, draw a line under FALSE. Be sure to make a mark for every 
statement. If you do not know, guess. 

1. In general the mountain ranges run east and west.. TRUE FALSE 








2. Most of the rivers flow morth.................. TRUE FALSE 
6. The Cascade Mountains are nearer the Pacific 

Ocean than the Rocky Mountains................... TRUE FALSE 
™McCall, W. A. “ A New Kind of School Examination.” Journal of Educational Research 


1: 33-46; January, 1920. 


[ 435 ] 











436 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





13. The Mississippi flows into the Great Lakes..... TRUE FALSE 
20. The central portion of the United States is on the 
whole more level than the eastern or western part..... TRUE FALSE 


Pupil’s score= (number right) — (number wrong). Anwers not marked 
are disregarded. In case both answers to the statement are marked, the 
answer is called wrong. 

A slight variation of the true-false test is the test in which all the ques- 
tions are answered by “ yes” and “no.” Since the yes-no test is so similar 
to the true-false test no illustration of it will be given. 

The three illustrations below are extracts from informal tests patterned 
after the Thorndike-McCall Paragraph Reading Test, although one of the 
extracts pertains to the subject matter of history and one, to the subject 
matter of arithmetic. 

Sample II—Read this paragraph, and then answer the question about 
it. Read it again if you need to. 

Four years ago a garden-club boy in Massachusetts faced what would 
have seemed even to an adult a hard problem. Born in Italy, but thoroughly 
inoculated with the American idea of the necessity of an education, Tito, 
while in the eighth grade, was told by his father that he could no longer 
be kept in school. His future path was to lie toward the neighboring 
factory.’ 


Ea I ics ee wa hee 
. What did Tito think he needed? ..............cccccccecccece 
. What did Tito’s father wish him to do? ................00000: 
. What problem did Tito have to face? ........... cece ee ee cece 
pe SO A SO MNEE ict cb nade nawededwecaneedavscs 


me WN 


Sample 11I—Read this problem and then write the answers to questions 
I, 2, 3, 4, and 5. All questions must be answered from what the problem 
says. Reread the problem if you need to, but do not work it. 

A plumber and his helper leave the shop at 8: 20 A.M. to repair a pipe. 
They return at 11.15 A.M. Make out the bill for the job, counting 60 
cents an hour for the time the plumber is out from the shop, half as much 
for the helper, and 85 cents for the material used. Make the date today. 
Use any name you choose.” 


. Whose names are to be used in making out the bill? ............. 
. How many items are to be included in the bill? ................. 
. Between what hours was the plumber away from the shop? ....... 
. How much per hour was the plumber to receive? ............... 
. What does this problem ask you to do? ............2..0eeeeees 


ne WN & 


Sample IV—Read this paragraph, and then answer the questions about 
it. Read it again if you need to. 





1 Lewis and Rowland. The Silent Readers. Seventh Grade, page 96. 
2 The Thorndike Arithmetics, Book III, page 71. 





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REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 437 





The colonists reached the coast of Virginia in the spring of 1607. They 
landed on a small island. They began building a town there which they 
named Jamestown, in honor of James the First, who was then king of 
England. They built huts, made of branches of trees, to live in. But 
things did not go well with them. They were not used to such hot weather 
as they had in Virginia, and by September many of them had fallen sick 
and died. 


. In what year did the Virginians land? ..........ccceescssceces 
y. ae I RO A PE oko dts hc sn hn eenne isa eeeeeres 
. What did they name their settlement? ............e2eceeeecees 
. Whom did they wish to honor by giving their colony this name? 


PWD 


These three illustrations are sufficient to show the possibility of con- 
structing informal tests after the Thorndike-McCall reading test. Other 
illustrations could have been given from geography, physiology, nature 
study, or any of the subjects taught. The crude score on any of these 
tests is the number of questions correctly answered. The number of 
paragraphs included in the informal test depends upon the time available 
for testing, although no time limit is placed on the test itself. 

Many informal tests are patterned after the information test of the 
Army Alpha, but only two illustrations will be given. 

Sample V—In each of the following sentences underline the word, or 
group of words which make the sentence most nearly correct. 

1. The Capital of the United States is Chicago, New York, Phila- 
delphia, Washington. 

2. The germ of malaria is carried by the house-fly, wood-tick, mosquito, 
bad air. 

3. To kill poison from poison ivy bathe afflicted parts with milk, soothing 
syrup, solution of sugar of lead, kerosene. 

4. The mild climate of Seattle is caused by abundance of rain, nearness 
to the equator, Japan Current, mountains. 

Sample VI—Draw a line under the word in parenthesis which is the 
best definition of the word in capitals. 


1. IMPEACH (cto accuse, to convict, to deplore, to insist). 

2. REGULATE (to commute, to govern, to appoint, to abolish). 
3. VETERAN (foreigner, soldier, minister, professor). 

4. FEDERAL (national, ancient, municipal, judicial). 


The score to tests like Samples 5 and 6 is the number of correct answers. 
The number of questions in such tests varies from 20 to 100, depending on 
the purpose for which the tests are given and the time available. The diffi- 
culty of tests similar to Samples 5 and 6 depends upon the difficulty of the 
first part of the exercise involved and the range and similarity of the 
elements in the second part. Such tests may be given either with or with- 
out time limits. 

The sample below is an imitation of the so-called “ judgment ” test used 
in so many of the intelligence tests. This form of test is used when there 











438 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





is a desire to test the more involved mental processes. The score is the 
number of exercises correctly marked. 

Sample VII—Read the paragraph and then check the one of the five 
statements below that best expresses the central thought of the paragraph. 

One day Abraham Lincoln was riding with a friend. They came to two 
little birds lying in the road. The wind had blown them from their nest. 
One man rode on, but that man was not Abraham Lincoln. He stopped 
and put the birds back into their nest. Then with a happy heart, he rode 
after his friend. 


1, .... Abraham Lincoln once found some birds lying in the road. 

2. .... Abraham Lincoln was a very tender-hearted man. 

3. .... Abraham Lincoln went riding with his friend. 

4. .... Abraham Lincoln put the birds back into the nest. 

5. .... Abraham Lincoln stopped when he saw the birds lying in the 
road. 


The principle of the “ mixed relations ” or “ analogies ” test employed in 
the construction of the informal tests is exhibited in extracts from the 
grammar and history tests which follow. 

Sample VII]—Write in column D a word that bears the same relation to 
the word in column C as the word in column B bears to the word in 
column A. 


A B Cc D 
0 ee eee don’t GEARS eee a ee 
ih Akira enw Gadenia eae his DEEL U etch uces: .medneKae 
Pe 646665 04000sennens boys ae ee 
as hoe w ede ee run 0 en Ce a ee 
Wednesday ........... Wed. Sethe ketene 8 waedaeds 
REE beanuuesecdewes sweet IR ee a es 
Or cteee ee ees one we cats tee LeeeeEaees -exdednea 
| RC ee gone De ReeIRNDitEwiee wemedenn 


Sample IX—Write in column D a word or group of words that bear 
the same relation to the word or group of words in column C as the word 
or group of words in column B bears to the word or group of words in 
column A. 


A B C D 

Jefferson ......... Declaration of Madison........... 22.2205. 
Independence 

PE seteeweieas Sewing Machine McCormick ........  ........ 

Garfield ......... Republican NT re 

Pennsylvania ..... Quakers Eee 

New York ....... Royal Colony Pennsylvania ....... ........ 

i neecadknwnn County Unit of New England ...... ........ 
Government 


Webster ......... Unionist ee 








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wn Aw 


mim i ak 2 ee oe! oe Oe 


= 


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ine 














REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 439 





The score on tests like Samples 8 and 9 is the number that are correct. 
The use of tests similar to these is somewhat more limited than some of the 
other tests, but they present interesting possibilities. 

The final type of informal test presented is of the “ matching ”’ variety. 
Tests of this kind can be devised in almost any field, and they prove to be 
the most useful instruments of measurement. 

Sample X—Write in the answer column the particular number of the 
civic term given in column 1 which corresponds to the descriptive phrase 


given in column 2. 


Civic term Descriptive term Answer 
1. Direct Primary The movement of foreigners to America No... 
2. Initiative Method of removing public officers by 
OE 656 xtnctadcineteen eee Paice 
3. Tariff Power given voters to get new laws.... No.... 
4. Short Ballot “Victory,” appointments, and removals No. 
5. Conservation The method of secret voting......... PG. 2 
6. Recall Power given voters to pass laws...... ere 
7. Immigration The plan of filling a few important 
GHRCED Ot GUE TBs. 6s oo ckcadccess ae 
8. Australian Ballot Method of nomination of officers by 
SO WE vkkodiosaccdcaaueees No. 
9. Referendum Tax levied on imports.............. No.... 
10. Spoils System Wise use of natural resources........ Ne... 


The above samples of informal tests are sufficient to show the unlimited 
possibilities which a classroom teacher or supervisor can utilize in test 
construction. Had space permitted, illustrations of informal tests could 
have been given for each and every standardized test now constructed. 
The possible use of informal tests is in reality much wider than the use 
of the standardized tests, for informal tests can be applied in many in- 
stances where no standardized tests are yet available. 

At this point it seems fitting to describe briefly the type of informal test 
advocated by Gray.’ He urges having the teachers test the pupils on 
selections from the subject matter of their own books. He suggests that 
when a suitable selection is chosen and when the child is situated in a 
suitable environment, the following formula of directions be given. “ I 
want you to read page — aloud for me. Begin with the first word at the 
top of the page when I say Begin! Read until I tell you to stop. If 
you find some hard words, read them as best you can without help and 
continue reading.” The teacher should record the exact time required for 
reading the selection and calculate the number of words read per minute. 
If desired, while the pupil is reading, she may keep a record of the errors 
made, following about the same system of recording the errors as used in 
Gray’s Oral Reading Test. She may test the pupil for comprehension by 





1Gray, William S. ‘ Value of Informal Tests of Reading Accomplishment.” Journal of 
Educational Research, February, 1920. 








440 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





having him reproduce what was read or by having him answer a list of 
given questions. When she has tested the whole class in such manner, she 
should have a very good measure of the reading ability of the different 
pupils. Furthermore, if she has been careful in carrying out the test she 
may repeat it at a later time to show how much improvement has resulted 
from a definite amount of training. This procedure can be followed with 
many selections, and it is safe to say that it furnishes a very effective device 
for diagnosing the reading situation. 

Principles underlying the construction of informal tests—The guiding 
principles in the construction of informal tests are the same as the principles 
underlying the construction of the standardized tests, and therefore only 
two of them will be rehearsed here. 

1. The test must attempt to measure desirable outcomes of the teaching 
of the subject under consideration. Only those bits of subject matter 
should be included which can be justified by the current philosophy of 
education. Unimportant details have no more place in an informal test 
than in any other test. The subject matter of the test should be taken 
from the course of study under consideration and should be varied enough 
to emphasize all the desirable outcomes to be derived from the teaching 
of the subject. It may be possible to include all of the different varieties 
of subject matter within one test, but it is usually better to make different 
tests for the different objectives. 

2. The test should be objective. It should be of such a nature that there 
is perfect agreement in its scoring. ‘The exercises should be terse, clearly 
expressed, and so chosen that there is only one correct answer to each. 
This accurate scoring of the informal tests constitutes one of their great 
advantages over the traditional examinations. The objectivity of the in- 
formal tests implies definite methods of administering, scoring, and tabu- 
lating. These methods are usually borrowed from appropriate standardized 
tests, and if properly carried out make possible the repetition of the tests 
and provision of comparable data. Those constructing informal tests must 
give heed to these two fundamental principles if informal testing is to go 
unchallenged. 

The use of informal tests—1. Informal tests are a valuable supplement 
to the standardized tests. Many of the standardized tests have but a single 
edition and this edition may soon lose its value if extensively used within 
a school system. This single edition may be sufficient for reliably measur- 
ing achievement of a group, but insufficient for reliably measuring the 
achievement of an individual. Informal tests patterned after the stand- 
ardized test or after a particular part of it furnish the means for pass- 
ing judgment on the reliability of the measurement with a standardized 
test. With the Woody Arithmetic Test, when the emphasis is placed on 
the measurement of an individual, it is recommended that the individual 
be given any list of problems similar to the ones in the standard test in 
order to get a reliable measure of achievement. The same is true with 
many other standard tests. 
































REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 44] 





2. Informal tests can be used when no standardized tests are available. 
As yet no suitable standardized tests have been constructed in such studies 
as nature study, physiology, hygiene, civics, or drawing. Furthermore, in 
many fields where there are standardized tests they are not applicable to all 
grades in the elementary school. Very few tests have been worked out for 
the primary grades. Many of the standardized tests, too, emphasize only 
certain phases of a particular subject and many times the phase of the 
subject emphasized is the mechanical aspect. Informal tests will overcome 
both of these deficiencies. To illustrate, there is no suitable vocabulary 
test for reading in the primary grades, but a very usable informal test can 
be constructed from the word lists of Thorndike,’ Jones,’ Packer,’ or 
Houser. Again since most of the standardized tests in arithmetic empha- 
size the mechanical aspects of the subject, the use of an informal test such 
as Sample 3, which attempts to measure the reading aspect in the solution 
of problems in arithmetic, will call attention to a most important but often 
neglected phase of the subject. 

3. Informal tests may be used as a substitute for standardized tests. 
While no one would advocate the complete substitution of informal tests, 
in these times of financial stringency the cost of providing the regular 
standardized tests makes their use prohibitive. In such cases the informal 
test, if properly constructed and mimeographed on suitable paper, is an 
excellent substitute and the cost will be nominal. While there will be 
no well-established standards of comparison for the informal tests, it must 
not be forgotten that the most significant standards of comparison for any 
city are developed within the city itself. 

4. Informal tests can be used as a means of training for the effective use 
of standardized tests. The effective use of standardized tests depends upon 
a thorough understanding of the significance of following specifically the 
directions for giving, scoring, and tabulating sent out with tests. This 
understanding comes mainly through practice with test material. Too 
often testing programs are launched without having given preliminary 
practice in the technic of testing, and gross errors, which could have 
been easily prevented, destroys the validity of the testing. In some school 
systems the first attempt at measurement is often almost worthless. Pre- 
liminary practice with informal tests will prevent this and will save the 
school the price of the standard tests and in all probability will create a 
real demand for the use of them. Furthermore, the use of informal tests 
emphasizing various aspects of a single subject and including measures of 
the high aspects, such as thinking, character, judgment, or appreciation, will 
prove an excellent antidote to the idea that achievement in a subject has 
been completely measured when a single test has been given. This fact 
will certainly make for the more effective use of the standardized tests. 





1 Thorndike, E. L. Teacher’s Word Book. Teachers College. 1921. 

2 Jones, R. G. “ Standard Vocabulary.’”’ Fourteenth Yearbook, National Society for the 
Study of Education. Part I, p. 37. 

3 Packer, Paul C. “ The Vocabularies of Ten First Readers.” Twentieth Yearbook, National 
Society for the Study of Education. Part II, p. 127. : 

*Houser, E. T. “ Analysis of the Contents of Ten Second Readers.” Seventeenth Yearbook, 
National Society for the Study of Education, Part I, p. 4o. 





442 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





5. Informal tests are useful as means of diagnosis. In this particular, 
informal tests are almost as valuable as the standardized tests. Informal 
tests in arithmetic patterned after the Woody tests will reveal the types 
of errors made just about as well as the original tests. Likewise informal 
reading tests patterned after the Thorndike-McCall tests or the Gray oral 
or silent reading tests will portray in a very satisfactory manner the 
strengths and weaknesses of the reading situation concerned. Of course, 
accurate standards of comparison for these informal tests will be lacking, 
but standards of comparison are not needed to tell whether a child has a 
habit of adding 8 and 9 and getting 15 or a habit of mispronouncing words 
or misconstruing the meaning of them when reading. Thus remedial in- 
struction and practice exercises can be based about as well on the results 
of informal tests as on those of standardized tests. ‘Che informal tests 
can be used from the standpoint of supervisory diagnosis as well as from 
the standpoint of pedagogical diagnosis just mentioned. The supervisor 
by use of properly constructed tests can measure how successfully and to 
what extent various aspects of the different subjects are being emphasized. 
In this way instruction can be directed and motivated. 

6. Informal tests are useful instruments for evaluating the results of 
educational experiments. Standardized tests are very useful in experi- 
mentation, but they are not adaptable to many of the classroom experiments 
and dependence must be placed upon the informal tests. In many of the 
experiments from which most valuable contributions have come to educa- 
tional procedure the informal tests have been the instruments by which 
the different practices have been evaluated. Often these experiments have 
been conducted by the classroom teacher, and it is safe to predict that in the 
future much more experimentation will be carried on than in the past. 
Out of it is certain to come much improvement of instruction and a real 
interest in the professional and scientific aspects of teaching. 





THE VALUE OF INFORMAL TESTS IN SUPERVISION 


WILLIAM F. BUTLER, PRINCIPAL OF THE BELMONT STREET SCHOOL, 
WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS 


If we must have standings, they should be determined in large measure 
from the results of frequent well-chosen tests, so that they may represent 
as closely as possible the relative ability of the pupils. I know of no better 
way to test the quality of teaching or the achievement of the class than by 
the informal test. The preparation of such tests by the teachers is of 
great value to them, since it demands that they give considerable thought to 
the outstanding points of the subject under consideration. Many times 
the difference between a brilliant man and a mediocre one is the ability to 
give attention to really essential points and let petty details go. 

I have heard of pupils of great natural capacity who were so excitable 
that they went to pieces at the time of tests and failed utterly, but in 

















hh 


— 


~— 26 fe Os 

















a ae 








? 


Reprint or THe Firsr YEARBOOK 443 





twenty-two years of experience in day and evening classes, I have yet to 
meet the pupil who was not able to demonstrate his ability in frequent 
informal tests. 

I have never been able to understand why a pupil should not be expected 
to answer questions upon the important facts of a subject which he is 
studying. I have always used tests to a considerable extent in ranking my 
pupils, since much of the work has been done at home, and I must be 
absolutely certain that the papers represent the work of the pupils without 
help from any kind friends. Of course, if the teacher begins to talk ex- 
amination day as if it were a day of judgment before a judge who knew 
no such words as sympathy or pity, the case is entirely different. 

The pupils are told that promotion does not depend primarily upon the 
results of tests and an effort is made to have the tests given in such a way 
that there will be no fatigue, either to the pupil or to the teacher. 

We notify students who are not doing satisfactory work at least five 
weeks before the end of the term, so that they may try to improve suf- 
ficiently to pass. Pupils who are doing satisfactory work are told of their 
good standing and are excused from the tests near the end of the term, 
unless they wish to take them in the hopes of achieving higher rank. 


SAMPLES OF INFORMAL TESTS THAT HAVE BEEN 
FOUND HELPFUL IN DIAGNOSIS 


AMERICAN HISTORY?” 


Mark correct statements +-4 
Mark incorrect statements — 
Mark statements you do not know about o 


. Columbus discovered America in 1492. 

. De Soto was a French explorer. 

. John Cabot was sent by Portugal. 

. Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin. 

. De Soto discovered the Mississippi River. 

. Samuel Adams was a President of the United States. 

. The Battle of Gettysburg was fought July 3, 1875. 

. The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought April 19, 1775. 

. The Constitution was adopted in 1787. 

. The French and Indian War was fought before Washington was born. 
. Washington was inaugurated in 1789. 

. Thomas Jefferson believed in the right of all men to vote. 

. The War of 1812 was caused by English trying to tax the colonies. 

. The Stamp Act was passed to help the colonies. 

. Dred Scott was a famous explorer. 

. Magellan was the first to circumnavigate the globe. 

. The Mexican War was caused by a dispute over slavery. 

. Samuel F. B. Morse invented the telephone. 

. Andrew Jackson was the American Commander at the Battle of New Orleans. 
. Benedict Arnold fought bravely at Saratoga. 


onl AM PWN + 


ee 
O0W CONTI AM PWN HH OM 





1 Submitted by William F. Butler, Principal Belmont Street School, Worcester, Mass. 











444 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





AMERICAN History Test I—ANALOGIES’* 


tens cKdeier dur odnsquxeeweeekmanekon Bop Of Girl. o66 2.68... 

pO ene errr Next birthday will be...............-. 

| Saree NO ca < waccie's gy. GIR a Se a aac tiert acarcce cpus amano sitoaiacers 
I cateso oe trad ac hrasthlnre tannmwersiahis 


General Directions 


This sheet contains a test in American history. Read the directions carefully, 
and when the signal to begin is given, turn the page, and do the test as rapidly 
as you can, but remember that it is more important to get it right. 

Do not turn the page until you are told to do so. 


Samples 
Attempted........ 
SS ere 
1. Battle of Bunker Hill—Revolutionary Battle of Santiago................... 
War 
2. Robert Fulton—Steamboat EE onion cig agrae cdsenemwaadesrs 
3- 1513—Balboa discovered the Pacific 1492 ........  ..seeeecseseeccceeeees 
Ocean 


Note example one. Revolutionary War tells you in what war the Battle of 
Bunker Hill was fought. Now ask yourself in what war the battle of Santiago 
was fought. It was fought in the Spanish-American War. So you write Spanish- 
American War after Battle of Santiago. 


Now look at example two. Following the name Robert Fulton, you see the word 
Steamboat. This word should recall to you what Fulton did. He invented the 
steamboat. Now you must ask yourself what Eli Whitney invented. Of course 
you know it was the cotton gin. So you write Cotton Gin after Eli Whitney. 


Now turn to the third example. 1513 was the year when Balboa discovered the 
Pacific Ocean. Now ask yourself who discovered something in 1492 and what he 
discovered. You know the answer. Columbus discovered America in 1492. Write 
Columbus discovered America. 


After you have filled in the blank spaces with your answers your paper will be 
like the examples below: 


1. Battle of Bunker Hill—Revolutionary Battle of Santiago—Spanish-American 


War War 

2. Robert Fulton—Steamboat Eli Whitney—Cotton gin 

3. 1513—Balboa discovered the Pacific 1492—Columbus discovered America 
Ocean 


Now go through the list on reverse side and write your answers in the blank 
spaces. They should be brief, and similar in character to those given above in 
explanation. If you come to one you cannot answer omit it and try the next. 


1. Jefferson—Declaration of Independ- Madison ...............000eeeeeeeees 
ence 

2. Howe—Sewing Machine IE in den wachacdccneaneasanans 

3. Northwest Territory—Michigan, In- Oregon Territory .................... 
diana, etc. 

4. 1825—Erie Canal completed I wheats crnca ace asia bm slenh an kaa eceue 

5. Supreme Court—Interpretation of Congress ..............eceeceeecuees 
the Laws 





1 Prepared by Virgil Smith, Principal of the Highland Park School, Seattle, Washington. 





on] AN 


re) 


36. 











REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 





wo osld n 


it. 
12. 
13. 


14. 
15. 


16 


r7. 
18. 


19. 
20. 
21. 


22. 


23. 
24. 


25. 
26. 


27. 
28. 


36. 


Civil War—Battle of Gettysburg 

Revolutionary War—Washington 

Battle of Lake Erie—Perry 

War of 1812—Impressment of 
American seamen 

Revolutionary War—(German) 
Steuben 

New York colony—Royal colony 

Alaska—Acquired by purchase 

Northwest Territory—George 
Rogers Clark and Daniel Boone 

New York—Settled by the Dutch 

Jetferson—Purchased Louisiana 

( fishing 

wheat raising 

cotton growing 

mining 

shipbuilding 


New England 
colonies 





| tobacco growing 

Samuel F. Smith—Wrote “ America’ 

Pennsylvania—Quakers 

Massachusetts—James Otis 

Cyrus W. Field—Atlantic cable 

Henry Hudson—Discovered Hudson 
River 

Washington—Proclamation of Neu- 
trality 

Webster—Unionist 

Jamestown Exposition—Celebrated 
settlement at Jamestown 

Cause of Dorr’s rebellion—Property 
qualification for voting 

South—County unit of government 

Susan B. Anthony—Suffrage 

Spanish-American War—Acquired 
Philippines and Porto Rico 

Raleigh—Aided by Queen Elizabeth 
of England 

Balboa—Spanish explorer 

1848—Close of the Mexican War 

1732—Settlement of Georgia 

Pennsylvania—William Penn 

1565—St. Augustine 

John Winthrop—Governor of Mas- 
sachusetts colony 


’ 


mining 

cotton raising 
sugar cane industry 
cattle raising 
hemp growing 

fur hunting 


Alaska 


ROVGIGUOHOLT WEE  66cseudeusscrwswes 
IEE NE apicea eased nasa eitene soa te 
DONTE Gr DOMNID: 0 cise 6hedeicweaneics 
CONE OE sic oie Venueet awaccs pares 
Revolutionary War (French)......... 
Pennsylvania. Colony <.occks descscesass 
BORN So asta Koa sdaaid ea aiedwaweeweas 
OREGOM: HEPENOEY 6.55 sash edid scence tien 
PUEDE, sinsiwacdcors dale pa en na eaes 
WER oaesarnis si tucciad ime etanmiodion sine ta ee 

[ mining 

fishing 


wheat raising 
cotton growing 
shipbuilding 
[tobacco growing 


Southern colonies* 





Feaneia Geott Bey iicssc0cs cscicenand de 
Maryland 
Virginia 
Samet OF. Di Mee. 6 bcccisicedscseas 
De Soto a 


Lincoln 


eee eee weer tee e eee ereeeereeses 


Calhoun 
Louisiana Purchase Exposition........ 


ee eee eee ee ee ee 


WHisKkey TODEUROD: 400s edivies co mesnsielnc 
New England 
Clara Barton 
Mexican War 


ee | 
ee ee 
ee | 


Columbus 


John Cabot 
1865 
1620 


rr 
CC 
CHHOCHCHCHS ECHOES ECHS cE HHHEEHHESEEEE 
eee eee eres ee eesreeoestes 
Ce 


1607 


{ mining 

cotton raising 
sugar cane industry 
fur hunting 

cattle raising 

| hemp growing 


Philippines < 

















446 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 
U. S. HISTORY TEST—ANALOGIES—7A * 
1. Jefferson—Declaration of Inde- DE a hd accieetnense catawee nan 
ee 8 — (EK HREM RESEDA WERE SSS 
2. Howe—Invented Sewing Machine ME ooo ek saaacanecasuamense 
3. Northwest Territory—Michigan, Cremet Teertory o.oo. cssccccccccsees 
RT igre IR sae naan guaataré athlar Geach Ald Wibarel area Wines 
4. Supreme Court—interprets law CIN oo ciccc se msacadsesycnsauisar 
5. Civil War—Battle of Gettysburg ee PO ee Cree eee rT ee 
6. Northwest Territory—Geo. Rogers Oregon Territory ................5:. 
i § || $d RAR Tene er shee Reno ha 
7. Samuel F. Smith—wrote America rrr 
8. Massachusetts—James Otis WUE, ek aah Sais as Re eH areensierre 
9. Webster—Unionist NR eek a ho erat aati aati citios 
10. Cause of Dorr’s Rebellion—Property Whiskey Rebellion ................... 
ee = =«ss(“(O”: Reeth Raa a hia a dee ews outa 
11. Field—Atlantic Cable Samuel F. B. Morse.................. 





1A. S. Gist, Principal of the B. F. Day School, Seattle, Washington. 


CIVICS: FACTS ABOUT WORCESTER * 


Fill in the blanks. 


eps 


a 


10. 
II. 
12. 
13. 
14. 
15. 


16. 


17. 
18. 


19. 


The Public Library i WOR siiacvanssccesaneos Street. 


> Me FUSE WECM 16 OR... oc ccc cccscseccs Street. 


Weeeeester is the...o..6.0ccccccces city in size in Massachusetts. 

Me PONE ise ccckcvwseeseense mill in the world owned by an individual 
in Worcester. 

Mremenener Wh Oblem CHtet * Tee ooo ooisicc ce cicdis cceescecss needs si 

A building in Worcester owned by the United States Government is 


is 


~ 


The municipal golt Tmks ate GfF.......n6cc ccc ciccccncccces Street. 


.- The Worcester Polytechnic Institute is on.................0cceeeceeee Street. 


SII, SO IR ga sacar ane iad Baan -aacecenn Street. 

Worcester Academy is OM........0sccccccsccccesees Street. 

Bene COGGE COMCMS 16 Oso 0 ice ivcisiccivcdeesceees Street. 

IS EE INNS Biis o. 5k. 0 sc cic sncndiedaccasdsncmnddawndseccaenes 

I OO I Ns ie ct nhduna Reseunae chen nk ones eed éln0% 7 

The United States Envelope Company is on...............2.-000ee00 Street. 

The industry which gives work to the greatest number of men in Worcester, 
RN das cde hacen cddactdasantarmandnalaswneds 

MUpOGE GONG Wee TUTE BG TGs ic kick cccceccssccwsecadoces snbania 

eee BOE GEUCRS BOG WOES BE BNE. ook oo oon kc iccicce cc ccttccccccccues 

An institution which belongs to the State is the................00 cc cceeeeees 
RNR s had ons ee cewee dam aus eee belek Street. 





1 Submitted by William F. Butler, Principal of the Belmont Street School, Worcester, Mass. 








aa a6 of 6 ata lhlcrlC rl lC CO 


gai 


co\ 




















REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 4h) 





DIAGNOSTIC TEST—ORAL ARITHMETIC, GRADES 4 TO 8° 


Use the pencil to write the number of the problem and the result only. 
. Cost of 7 yards of baby ribbon at 4c. a yard? 
. How many inches in half a foot? 
. How many days in 6 weeks? 
At 50 cents a dozen what should you pay for 6 apples? 
. Rachel had a quarter. She spent 10 cents for ice cream; amount left. 
The divisor is 4 and the dividend 12; what is the quotient? 
How many half pint bottles could you fill from a quart bottle? 
. At 3 for 5c. how many marbles could you buy for a dime? 
. A blackboard pointer is 2} ft. long; how many inches is that? 
. At 2 for 5c. what will half a dozen oranges cost? 
11. A yard stick is cut into 4 equal parts; how long is each part? 
12. A boy’s shoes cost $5.50; what change should he receive from $10? 
13. At 4oc. per yard what should you pay for 24 yards of gingham? 
14. Your school room is 24 ft. wide; how many yards is that? 
15. At goc. per lb. what would 8 oz. of steak cost? 
16. When milk sells at 2 cans for 25c. what should 6 cans cost? 
17. When grape fruit are 3 for 25c. what should you get for $1.00? 
18. How many 6 in. badges could you cut from 5 yds. of ribbon? 
19. Which is cheaper, 2 lbs. for 15c. or 3 Ibs. for 25c.? 
20. At 20c. a pound, how many pounds of chops should you get for 50c.? 
21. Gloves that cost $72 per doz. sold for $9 per pair. Gain per pr.? 
22. Apples that cost $2.25 per box of 84 apples sold at soc. per doz. What was 
gained on a box? 
23. Your schoolroom is 24 ft. x 24 ft. At $3.00 per yard, what would it cost to 
cover the floor with linoleum? 
24. What is the gain per cent when hats that cost $60 per dozen sell at $7.50 each? 
25. What is the distance around a 7 in. stove pipe? 
26. Find the cost of a load of coal weighing 4000 lbs. at $12.50 per ton? 
27. At 50 lbs. per cu. ft. what is the weight of a block of ice 12” x 18” x 24”? 
28. Potatoes costing $30 per ton sell at $200 per cwt.; what is the gain per cent? 
29. At a 25% discount sale what should I pay for a suit of clothes marked $60? 
30. A piece of paper 8” x 12” is cut into squares to cover a 4 in. cube. How 


C2 TIAN Pw nd 


~ 
° 


much paper remained? 


Instructions to teachers—Fourth-grade pupils should solve a minimum of 10 
problems, fifth-grade pupils 15, sixth-grade pupils 20, and seventh-grade pupils 25 
problems. Eighth-grade pupils should solve all of the problems. Tabulate care- 
fully the number of pupils missing each problem, so as to bring out points of 
weakness. 

The maximum time allowance should be 1o minutes for the fourth grade, 13 
for the fifth, 15 for the sixth, 17 for the seventh, and 20 minutes for the eighth 
grade. All pupils who finish in 5 minutes less than the time allotted should be 


given 100 per cent in speed. 





1 Submitted by George A. Stanton, Principal of the Washington School, Seattle, Washington. 








448 





ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





DIAGNOSTIC TEST—WRITTEN ARITHMETIC, GRADES 4 TO 8' 


Solve the following on this sheet without copying the problems: 

















(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) 
17 9 12 84—12= 7 5 | 3685 2846 
— 8 +? 8 x 8 
—_—— —_——— ———— 5 — 
9 
(8) (9) (10) (11) (12) 
6+s5+7+9= 87543 24632 29 | 86496 365 
— 79652 X 36 284 
aaa 576 
734 
842 
(13) (14) (15) (16) 
5%4 24% 36 3 8 
83% —17% x 8% —-x-= 
+7% . 3 
(17) (18) 
3 9 4 2 
— — — — 2—X4q- = 
g¢ @# 5 7 
(19) (20) 


3 gal. 2 qt. o pt. 


—1 gal. o qt. 1 pt. 





3 yd. 1 ft. 6 in. 
x5 





To the teacher: Tabulate carefully the number of pupils missing each example, 
so as to bring out points of weakness. 





1 Submitted by George A. Stanton, Principal of the Washington School, Seattle, Washington. 








sch 


ary 
op 
nul 
ma 


cor 


esp 
cor 


bel 
of 


—" 


II 


III 


Sco 
Rig 
Wr 
Not 











REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 449 





DICTIONARY TEST* 


This test is diagnostic in purpose. It was devised in September, 1921, as an aid 
in the discovery of difficulties that children in the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th grades 
have in finding words readily in the dictionary. It has been used in only three 
schools thus far, so there are no tentative standards of achievement. 

Preliminary to taking this test, the pupils of the Salmon Bay School in the grades 
mentioned above, were required to find a listed group of ten words in the diction- 
ary. As each word was found, its page number and column number were recorded 
opposite the word. Records for the different classes, showing the medians for 
number attempted and number correctly found, within a certain time limit, were 
made. 

The dictionary test was then given. During the year, dictionary drills have been 
conducted which should bring about a marked improvement in this kind of work. 

The dictionary test seems to lead to these conclusions: (1) That many pupils, 
especially in the intermediate grades, cannot write the letters of the alphabet in 
correct order; (2) that extensive drills on letter groups, like those found in part 2 
of the test, should be given; and (3) part 4 of the test is too difficult for pupils 
below the 7th grade. However, pupils of the 7th and 8th grades enjoy this part 
of the test. 

NotrE—This test serves, to a considerable extent, as an intelligence test. 





DICTIONARY TEST 


acca va biniccdsebete noua cewes ace rage... Room..... See ere 
I. Writing letters in alphabetic order: 
Bs RP AO ire xo wor tiaairad oak graven lsibis aleve g's 40 beeen anal sw ee ela a 
ie EO BS ovis ccainia ei achisida bce sine ed adres gaan a PES REMERON Aran 
i, ON BORN BSS isos s ce nna veks cha pader dives dies hakaeekeetee eer ear” 
i, TN Ne a ase sa sre 5.0 ai sin Riw Sep ecnrnie py Erie Wi pore Seema ue aa en Oe a 
II. Rearranging groups in alphabetic order: 
GE SP RE oo sieves ccncsiscincseniciewavasergastoeanieenenes 
SB. CONE COE GORI COREE CONS so 6iisdincctccinccsssoneascepdaedewiaenssiss 
OO INS aii on i one cc wenden tos sdciesesensanaieeeaaen eae 
ic SEO UE OO RE I ossisis ci sc as ec rennsscmenincnenscsmaceaenar maaan 
III. Writing words in alphabetic order: 
t. Mary Marie Marta Marion McGill. icccicncicccctccassacsecece 


2. Montana Kentucky Indiana Nebraska Illinois: 
3. gone get grind game group: 
4. hundred hinder hence hour hand: 
IV. Writing words in alphabetic order: 
1. Five words that begin with “s.” The first word is sand. Think of four 
others and write them in alphabetic order: 


a. sand ree eT re Tere ORs were Chativecnwweses 
2. Five words that begin with “d.” The first word is day. 
a. day _ Ree occgin vs ramen ee ee ere Dinesh eewesuen 
3. Five words that begin with “ca.” The first word is cab. 
a. cab Me semab epee wea Citncemudesnie odscctvasces Gicinietaeas 
4. Five words that begin with “cr.” The first word is crab. 
a. crab a ee ee Qsaccentsatar Ds.scstawaweses Ricacsgeadsnes 
Score: I II III IV Total 
BNI, dig lara ve sva:chias ec tino & Gahan osasarar WeSire 6619 Sivas Saeed gaol ace aes nae einer eee 
NONI 515s 5:8 ree ro0lh- Wd clave pedi sta aroru Le LaGh im lace aepaig. 6 thea A kcud cae SOR aS es oe aT 


Note: “Right” means entirely right. 





1 Submitted by W. A. King, Principal of the Salmon Bay School, Seattle, Washington. 
21 








450 





ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





ENGLISH—TESTS FOR PARTS OF SPEECH * 


N. = Noun Adv. = Adverb 
V. = Verb Conj. = Conjunction 
Pro. = Pronoun Inter. = Interjection 
Prep. = Preposition o= Do not know 


Adj. = Adjective 


Write the abbreviation above each word. 

“Whilst the camel was speaking, there arose a cloud of dust which opened and 
showed a short, thin old man, with a basket of carpenter’s tools on his shoulders 
and a branch of a tree and eight planks on his head. When I saw him, O my 
sister, I fell down for excess of affright.” 








1 Submitted by William F. Butler, Principal of the Belmont Street School, Worcester, Mass. 


CORRECT USAGE’ 


Write the following exercises on your paper choosing the correct words needed 
to complete the sentences. 


I. 
. (Who whom) did you wish to see? 

. Was that Mary? I am sure that it was (her, she). 
. I (saw, seen) her on the car last Wednesday. 


on AnwP wn 


Do you think that it was (he him) ? 


Where (was, were) you last evening? 


. (Can, may) I speak to you at recess? 


Who was speaking? It was (I, me.) 


. She (done, did) her work very well. 
9. 
10. 
11. 
12. 
13. 
14. 
15. 
16. 
17. 
18. 
19. 
20. 


John (don’t, doesn’t) recite so well as he did last week. 
Will you please (set, sit) down, Julia? 

Laura and (her, she) are invited. 

He sent an invitation for you and (she, her) to go. 
The dog (lay, laid) on the rug by the fire. 

He has (laid, lain) there a long time. 

The game (begun, began) before I arrived. 

There (was, were) several people on the car. 

Only Rose and (her, she) were present. 

They were (sitting, setting) on the grass. 

The rain has (lain, laid) the dust. 

Was that your father and mother? Yes it was (them, they). 


Instructions to teacher—Tabulate results by questions, so as to determine which 
points the class needs to have better fixed by drills. 





1 Submitted by George A. Stanton, Principal of the Washington School, Seattle, Washington. 











nd 
“rs 
ny 





REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 451 

















GEOGRAPHY * 


Mark correct statements + 
Mark incorrect statements — 
Mark statements not known o 


onl AMS WN 


ee ee ee 
OC ONAN PWN HH OW 


. The capital of New York is Albany. 
. Chicago is in Indiana. 
. Seattle is in Idaho. 


The Mississippi is the longest river in the United States. 
The deepest part of New York Harbor is 183 feet. 


. Boston is south of Providence. 

. Worcester is the second city in New England in population. 
. Richmond is the capital of Virginia. 

. There are more than 500,000 people in Boston. 

. Worcester has a population of 210,000. 

. Boston exports more shoes than any city in the world. 


The largest carpet mill owned by an individual is in Worcester. 


. Louisiana is mostly east of the Mississippi. 

. The capital of Maine is Bangor. 

. New York is east of Rhode Island. 

. In 1920 the population of Boston was 132,726. 

. Maine exports great quantities of potatoes. 

. North Carolina is north of the city of Washington. 
. Philadelphia is the capital of Pennsylvania. 

. Providence is not a seaport. 


1 Submitted by William F. Butler, Principal of the Belmont Street School, Worcester, Mass. 


GEOGRAPHY—COMPARISON AND CONTRASTS * 


1. Maine is (larger, smaller) than Washington. 

2. Seattle is (larger, smaller) than Chicago. 

3. Saint Paul has (less, greater) extremes of climate than Seattle. 
4. 

5. Louisiana raises (more, less) sugar than Cuba. 

6. 
7. 


New York is further (north, south) than London. 


The foreign commerce of Seattle is (greater, less) than that of San Francisco. 
The distance from Seattle to New York is (less, greater) than from New York 


to Liverpool. 


8. 
9: 


10. 





The climate of Florida is (more, less) moist than most of southern California. 
The area of Washington is (less, greater) than that of England. 
The elevation of Seattle is (greater, less) than that of Minneapolis. 


1 Submitted by George A. Stanton, Principal of the Washington School, Seattle, Washington. 











452 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





READING TESTS 


The following tests are selected from a number of similar tests made by a 
study club composed of seven women principals of the Seattle public schools, 
Belle Dirimple, Chairman. These texts, similar in form to various standard tests, 
were prepared for the purpose of determining children’s comprehension of the 
Geography, History, Arithmetic, and Reading material used in the Seattle Schools, 

The twenty-five sentences in the second-grade tests contain words common to 
second-grade reading material; the words to be crossed out are found in the 
minimal list of required spelling words for the second grade. 

The words and phrases given in the test for grade 5 are those which most fre- 
quently occur in the geography text used in that grade. 

The material used in the third-grade text was selected from four readers 
provided for that grade. 


Second Grade 
READING TEsT—K-1 


| Ree | ee NN bY Si atin Koma d ReS Ke we males 


Read each sentence rapidly. 
Make a circle around one word which does not belong there. 


To be done with the teacher (1 — 4) 


1. The bear ran of home. 

2. The wolf was angry get. 

3. I will play in had the garden. 
4. We will buy some had meat. 


Now do the same with the following sentences: 


. The lark sang his sweet make song. 

. See he these pretty flowers. 

. I am looking for a boy do. 

. He started to with run. 

. The duck can every swim. 

. They walked any a long way. 

. The bee brings home take honey. 

. The boy up was seven years old. 

. There are many flowers in Holland man. 
. They ride on the horse come. 

. I saw the such elephant. 

. I have a horn each, Ned. 

. Our May baskets are me done. 

. I can great climb a tree. 

. The wigwam was time done. 

. Mother be made bread. 

. The sun shines this. 

. The man built a was house. 

. He got up at little four o’clock. 

. Little Riding Hood put the basket no on the table. 
. The farmer how had a cat. 

. Where are my go sheep? 

. The pine tree lived in the woods out. 
. The bird had a nest can in the tree. 

. The bear likes climb honey. 


on nam WN 


NY NNN DN DN wm mm ee 
WP NH OW” MHI ANUHPwWN HOW 

















ya 
ols, 
ests, 

the 
ols, 


1 to 
the 


fre- 


lers 








REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 453 





Third Grade 


Es 5 ck wnse Heeeosen DI SS rats, oc Ub Ae ke ieee Se cae ane lo ree 


Read each exercise. Then answer the question or questions by drawing a line 
under the right word. 


1. George lives on a farm. He rides his little gray pony to school. George 
helped his father on the farm. When George was ten years old, his father gave 
him the gray pony. 

Where did George live? 

city, country, farm. 

What color was his pony? 

black, gray, brown. 

Who gave the pony to George? 

father, uncle, mother. 


2. Don and Rose made a big snowman. On the snowman’s head they put father’s 
tall hat. In his arms they placed mother’s old broom. Then they used large, 
round pieces of coal for buttons. 

What was tall? 

snowman, broom, hat. 

What shape were the buttons? 

square, narrow, round. 


3. But this poor boy was very happy. The great forest was his playground. 
The birds, squirrels and pretty flowers were his friends. He was kind to them 
all. He never threw stones at the birds or squirrels and never crushed the 
beautiful flowers. 

What kind of boy was he? 

selfish, kind, cruel? 

Where was his playground? 

street, forest, school. 


4. Crusoe’s stay on the desert island had come to an end. When he left the 
island he carried on board the sailing vessel his goatskin cap and umbrella, also 
the parrot. 

How many things did Crusoe carry on board with him? 

seven, one, three. 


5. And now at last the sun What time of day was it? 
Is going down behind the wood noon, evening, morning. 
And I am very happy 
For I know that I’ve been good. 


6. The Dutch people are always washing and scrubbing and dusting. They 
give their boats a coat of fresh paint every year. The floors of their homes are 
scrubbed until you can almost see yourself in them. Every morning the door- 
steps are washed and the streets swept. 

Which word best describes the Dutch people? 

wise, saving, clean, healthy. 








454 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





7. The air is warm in our Eskimo house although there is no stove to be seen. 
In place of a stove there is a big bowl made of stone, in which seal oil is burning. 
This makes a lamp which is used for cooking and for warming the house. 

What do the Eskimos burn? 

coal, oil, gas, wood. 


8. Now look at those huge ivory tusks on the ground over there. They came 
from an elephant. The man who killed the great beast has brought the tusks to 
sell to a white trader. 

For what do men hunt the elephant? 

skin, ivory, flesh. 


g. The Desert of Sahara in northern Africa is almost as large as the whole 
United States. 
Which is larger? 
United States, Sahara Desert. 


10. There are many rivers in the world. The source of a river is the place 
where it begins. Its mouth is the place where it ends in some larger body of 
water. 

The place where the river begins is called what? 

mouth, bed, source, banks. 


Fifth Grade 
DIRECTIONS FOR Test I—Part I. 


Time: This is not a time test, but it would be interesting to note the time of 
pupil who finishes first and also the last to finish. Do not consider any pupil 
who is unusually dull or clever. 


Place the list of words upon the board concealed from view, or give individual 
copies if posisble. 

Pupils place papers on desks face down. 

I am going to show you some words and phrases. There will be two or three 
words or phrases on each line like this: 
good—bad (Write on board) 
fair weather—pleasant weather 

If the words or phrases on a line seem to mean the same thing, write Yes at 
the begining of that line; if they do not mean the same, write No at the be- 
ginning of the line. Do good—bad mean the same? Then what shall we write? 
No. Do fair weather and pleasant weather mean the same? Then what shall 


we write? Yes. 

















seen. 
ning. 


‘ame 
's to 


hole 


lace 
of 


ee 





REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 455 





There are some phrases like these on the paper before you. When I say 
“ Begin,” you are to turn your paper over and start with the top line; read each 
line through; write yes at the begining of the line if you think they mean the 
same; write no at the beginning of the line if you think they do not mean the same. 
Be sure to read each line. 

Ready—begin. 


Test I—Part I 


area—size 
inhabitants—people—population 
—_—_———— principal occupation—leading occupation—chief occupation 

barren soil—productive soil 
well suited to farming—adapted to farming 
commerce—trade 
dense population—scattered population 
located—situated 
raw products—finished products 
tributaries of the Mississippi—branches of the Mississippi 
collected—distributed 
prairie—forest 
region—district—section 
natural highways—artificial highways 
densely populated—thinly settled 
vapor—moisture 

— arid—dry 
tropical climate—cool climate 
cold belt—torrid zone 
straight—irregular 
prominent city—important city 

— industry—business 


Test I—Parrt II 


From the list of words or phrases below, select the ones you think right for the 
spaces in the sentences: 


mineral products navigable 
abundant water power extensive trade 
transportation republic 
metropolis valuable deposits 
irrigation 
he tara nese Soeur has changed much of California from a desert to a paradise 
of flowers. 
i OIE icin a sivnaee sees with Alaska. 


©, Tike: Waited: StaGes: ih Bi. 5 isis cece cass 

4. Oil and natural gas are important................. 

5. Railroads run in all directions, so there is good.............+.. 
6. The Mississippi River is................ 


7. The New England States have................++4: for manufacturing. 
ee ee en ee for manufacturing. 
M antniacrssousers of gold have been found in Alaska. 


Possible score—g9. 
Score for each correct answer—t. 











456 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





TEST—THE BURNING OF THE RICE FIELDS* 


Instructions to teachers—Allow 15 minutes for the test. Explain the following 
words: Japan, precious, brand, solemnly, hearth, honored, torch, tidal, ablaze, 
Yone. 

The questions are in form of a completion test. Illustrate on the blackboard 
with such sentences as: 


MUM. oc cis endekornesusnsesneawcasmndes chute 
PIED BIOW Che 6 onc ceecssciccens and grapes grow ON............+e008: 


All the blanks in each sentence must be filled in correctly in order for it to 
count. The words used do not necessarily have to be those suggested in the key, 
but they must be reasonable and have direct reference to the story. 


Key to the questions— 


1. Grandfather Japan 

2. mountain the sea, or village, or people of the town 
3. rice food 

4. village, or sea some fire, or a brand, or a torch 

5. brand, fire, or torch rice, or grain 

6. ran, or hurried save 

7. angry, bitter, or cross set fire to, or burned 

8. water village, field, houses, or town 

9. honored, loved, praised, ete. lives. 

10. tidal wave. 


The Burning of the Rice Fields 


Once there was a good old man who lived up on a mountain, far away in 
Japan. All ’round his little house the mountain was flat, and the ground was 
rich; and there were the rice fields of all the people who lived in the village 
at the mountain’s foot. Mornings and evenings, the old man and his little grand- 
son, who lived with him, used to look far down on the people at work in the 
village and watch the blue sea which lay all ’round the land, so close that there 
was no room for fields below, only for houses. The little boy loved the rice 
fields, dearly, for he knew that all the good food for all the people came from 
them; and he often helped his grandfather watch over them. 

One day, the grandfather was standing alone, before his house, looking far 
down at the people, and out at the sea, when, suddenly, he saw something very 
strange far off where the sea and sky meet. Something like a great cloud was 
rising there, as if the sea were lifting itself high into the sky. The old man 
put his hands to his eyes and looked again. Then he turned and ran to the house. 
“Yone, Yone!” he cried, “bring a brand from the hearth! ” 

The little grandson could not imagine what his grandfather wanted of the fire, 
but he always obeyed, so he ran quickly and brought the brand. The old man 
already had one and was running for the rice fields. Yone ran after. But what 
was his horror to see his grandfather thrust his burning brand into the ripe dry 
rice, where it stood. 

“Oh, Grandfather, Grandfather!” screamed the little boy, “what are you 
doing?” 

“ Quick, set fire! Thrust your brand in!” said the grandfather. 





1 Submitted by Helen Davis, Department of Measurements and Special Education, Jackson, 
Michigan. The sample test is typical of informal tests used in upper auxiliary classes. The term 
“ auxiliary classes’ is here used to designate specially selected groups of dull over-age pupils. 

















ce) 
y; 














REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 457 





Yone thought his dear grandfather had lost his mind, and he began to sob; 
but a little Japanese boy always obeys, so though he sobbed, he thrust his torch 
in, and the sharp flame ran up the dry stalks, red and yellow. In an instant, the 
field was ablaze, and thick black smoke began to pour up, on the mountainside. 
It rose like a cloud black and fierce, and in no time the people below saw that 
their precious rice fields were on fire. Ah, how they ran! Men, women, and 
children climbed the mountain, running as fast as they could to save the rice; 
not one soul stayed behind. 

And when they came to the mountain top, and saw the beautiful rice-crop all 
in flames, beyond help, they cried bitterly, “Who has done this thing? How did 
it happen?” 

“T set fire,” said the old man, very solemnly; and the little grandson sobbed, 
“ Grandfather set fire.” 

But when they came fiercely, ’round the old man, with “ Why? Why?” he only 
turned and pointed to the sea. “ Look,” he said. 

They all turned and looked. And there, where the blue sea had lain, so calm, 
a mighty wall of water, reaching from earth to sky, was rolling in. No one could 
scream, so terrible was the sight. The wall of water rolled in on the land, passed 
quite over the place where the village had been, and broke with an awful sound 
on the mountain-side. One wave more, and still one more, came; and then all 
was water as far as they could see below; the village where they had been was 
under the sea. 

But the people were all safe. And when they saw what the old man had 
done, they honored him above all men for the quick wit which had saved them all 
from the tidal wave. 


Yone 


(Fill in the blank spaces so that the sentences will be true). 


Si NE FIN hb doce nxcaarcadnccwiieaeues ee ee 

i Pe CN Din cnc dvivcntcdncecssassntvrd and down below they could 
Tk RO ee Re Rr eee EE re ren 

S:. EMO CG CBSO CE Toc cceccacsancacwcaine fields which furnished most of 
Picscitananveoas aalnmadesaas for the people. 

4. One day as the grandfather was looking toward the.............eeeeeee: he 
CESea Oe Othe Ge WN TE Bs oe oa aie dk. bciccosgeaneausnwdess 

SN MOMENI: coi aavid asi chivce dio eiw.sisiy sca saine ee walala and thrust it into the fields of 
| EPPO eT ROC TE TT Tey reer 

6. When the people in the village saw the fields on fire they................ as 
ee et rere re ree re the rice. 

7. At first the people were very................. because they thought that the 
SR | aan eer Peer rere the rice without any good reason. 

8. When the people looked below they saw nothing but................ where 
TSW MEE RMON GCs sons: s Keiincersnnsiveus had been. 


9. When they understood what the old man had done for them they............ 
him because he had saved their..............+.. 
te: WHat Che G14 Man TA SECM WES: B...0 65 oi ccasessscccesimaneen 











OST of the failures in educational re- 
form have arisen out of the fact that 

the initial steps taken in a given subject have 
not been adequately followed up.—Charles H. 
Judd, “ Scientific Methods of Supervision,” 


Educational Administration and Supervision, 


May, 1926, p. 345. 


[ 458 ] 














CHAPTER VII 
THE FOLLOW-UP WORK OF THE PRINCIPAL 


THE IMPROVEMENT OF INSTRUCTION AND CREATING 
PROFESSIONAL ATTITUDE 


REINHARD H. RUHNKE, PRINCIPAL OF THE MINERAL STREET SCHOOL, 
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN 


HE VITAL fundamental function of the principal of a school is the 
improvement of the methods of instruction of the teachers in his 
charge. Only through the exercise of this function can the product 

which passes through his school be improved. 

One of the factors which is most essential in improving instruction and 
stimulating professional attitude is the observation and analysis lesson. 
This is more important and effective in improving classroom efficiency than 
any other agency. It has never been worked out to its fullest value. At 
the present time some of the most expert teaching power of our best teach- 
ers is going to waste as far as imparting the essence of this power to 
others is concerned. These best teachers should be used as ideals in creat- 
ing classroom efficiency for the others in the school. The principal can 
easily arrange matters so that the teachers of this school can attend a 
demonstration lesson by an expert. After the lesson the most valuable and 
important work in the matter of growth is to be done. The work should 
be discussed and analyzed, not from the standpoint of destructive criticism, 
but from the standpoint of reaching a higher. plane of teaching through 
analysis. Such work as this should go on in the school at frequent intervals. 
The teachers during each semester should be able to observe the work of 
an expert in every subject at least once, more than once, if possible to so 
arrange. If properly handled, especially the analysis factor after the lesson, 
resulting in wholesome constructive, mass-discussion on the part of the 
teachers, it will spur everyone with an extreme, wholesome, self-desire 
to improve. 

It is true that most school systems now provide for visiting days but 
these individual, isolated visits do not create mass discussion and hence do 
not create mass desire to improve. 

No principal can improve the condition of the product which passes 
through his school unless he consistently improves the methods of teaching 
of the executives who directly handle this product. 


[ 459 ] 











460 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





STIMULATING PROFESSIONAL STUDY AMONG 
TEACHERS 


ARTHUR §S. GIST, PRINCIPAL OF THE B. F. DAY SCHOOL, 
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 


Among the many responsibilities of the principals, none is more important 
than that of stimulating professional study, growth, and interest among 
his teachers. This is especially essential in cities where the length of ser- 
vice is long and the tenure fairly secure. Often the teacher’s work is 
sufficiently well done to warrant her retention year after year, yet she is 
not working or developing up to her limit of capacity. With this teacher 
of experience and training, the elementary-school principal in the large 
city has a real problem, as most of his new teachers come to him with 
enthusiasm, well-trained, and with the modern viewpoint. The writer 
has tried four means of arousing interest in professional study. 

Scientific study of pupils and standard tests—An interest in this phase 
of work has been attempted from two standpoints; from that of the pupils 
and from that of the tests. Every class has its problems, which means 
study for both the teacher and the pupil. In some cases it may be the 
individual cases, but in large schools, where the pupils are carefully classi- 
fied, an entire class may present a real problem. It has often been possible 
to arouse an interest in a scientific study of individuals and of classes as 
the problems present themselves. When standardized intelligence or 
achievement tests are given, the principal has a real problem in interpreting 
and arousing an enthusiasm for standard tests. 

Professional reading—To be of service to teachers in recommending 
professional reading, it is necessary for the principal to be familiar with 
current school literature. Professional reading can often be suggested to 
the teacher when problems arise. Sometimes quoting the contents of an 
article arouses sufficient interest. An article which does not meet with the 
teacher’s approval will often cause critical study and discussion. Ten pro- 
fessional magazines are taken by our school. The writing of schoolroom 
practices by teachers in the school always arouses interest in professional 
study and reading. 

Extension work—We are fortunate in having our State University with 
a willing and efficient College of Education close at hand. Some fifteen 
to thirty per cent of the writer’s corps take work at the State University. 
The courses and professors in charge are generally discussed with the 
principal before registering, as well as many times during the course. 
Material of a practical nature is made available to them and the papers 
written for these courses are often read and discussed with the writer. 

Professional meetings—For several years we have met as a building 
group and discussed some professional topic at each meeting. These dis- 
cussions have been short but specific. For three years we have held one 
professional meeting each month, when the afternoon program is shortened 
and school is dismissed thirty minutes early. At these meetings, the teach- 





 * — -* >, i, =e > 


mm 


at iid a” ee ee 


ME. oN 








REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 461 





ers often take the lead in the discussions; the topics having been selected 
in advance. Attendance and discussions at these meetings are always 
optional with the teachers, but never less than twenty of our thirty teach- 
ers have attended. Because our school is departmentalized, the topics are 
often general in character, that special teachers may not become too 
narrow in their outlook. Following is a list of such topics discussed: 
The Junior High School; Practical teaching of democracy to elementary- 
school pupils; How to plan and give drill; The interpretation of standard- 
ized tests; Correlation of subjects; Advantages and disadvantages of the 
semi-departmental elementary school; The teacher as a student; Special 
study; Study of texts, their contents and arrangement of material ; Class- 
room repetition wise or otherwise; Reports by teachers of vocational trips; 
The value of home assignments, and home assistance; The securing of home 
coéperation by sending home papers; and The vacation school and its 
purpose. 


REDUCING THE PERCENTAGE OF FAILURES IN THE 
DETROIT ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS WITHOUT 
LOWERING STANDARDS 


JOHN MERRILL, DISTRICT PRINCIPAL OF THE LINGEMANN SCHOOL, 
DETROIT, MICHIGAN 


For the purpose of ascertaining the number of failures in the elementary 
grades of the Detroit Public Schools, the promotion rolls for January, 
1920, were tabulated. Following an extended period of carefully planned, 
well-sustained effort, two more tabulations were made and a comparison 
of the figures showed that somewhat striking reductions had been made 
in the “ flunkage.”’ The following table and diagram tell the story of what 
was accomplished in one year. 


TABLE 1—Com parison of failures in January, 1920, with those for January, 1921 





























Per cent failed | Per cent failed Per cent failed |Per cent failed 
Grade 1920 1921 Grade 1920 921 
Bi 27 14.3 BS 10.4 6.6 
Al 19 10.3 AS 10.4 3.5 
B2 16 9.2 B6 12.7 6.4 
A2 11.3 7.2 A6 10.5 4.9 
B3 12.6 7.3 B7 12.6 
A3 12.8 7.4 A7 13.4 7.9 
B4 10.8 7.6 B8 10.4 6.6 
A4 10.8 6.3 A8 oun 2.6 

SE TN SIRI, BIDE, 56 ogo ccceciicecsenssaxconteneeses 14.7 per cent 


a PTET Teer rr Teer re ee 8.4 per cent 












462 





ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





When the promotion rolls for January, 1921, were tabulated it was 
found that out of a total of 85,804 pupils in the eight grades of the ele- 
mentary schools, 7214, or 8.4 per cent as indicated by the table, had failed. 
This amounts to a reduction of 42.8 per cent from the amount of failure 
at the end of the first term of the previous year. On the basis of the enrol- 
ment of the semester ending January, 1921, it meant that 5405 more pupils 
were saved from failure. 


DiacraM 1—Com parison of failures for January, 1920, with those for January, 1921 


of 


3 


3 


2 


222 2 © Failures 1920. Failures 1921 








For the semester ending June, 1921, “ flunkage ” was reduced to 6.7 per 
cent. Credit for this low percentage is due to the teachers and principals 
who early in the term began remedial work. 

It was made clear that the object was not to lower the standard so as 
to pass pupils, but rather to center attention and assistance upon their 
difficulties and needs, thus enabling them to raise the quality of their work 
in the subjects found difficult. The final scores* in the Courtis Standard 
Tests indicate that the quality of work did not suffer but was slightly 
strengthened by the plan. 

The initial standard tests of September, 1921, were compared with those 
of September, 1920. The results likewise indicate that the grade standards 
were maintained in spite of the reduction of failures from 14.7 per cent 
to 6.7 per cent during this time. 

The failing pupils in ten elementary schools for 1921 made scores as good 
or better than did those who failed in 1920. This was shown by a compari- 
son of test results for arithmetic and spelling, whereby it was discovered 
that the pupils failing in 1921 had scored slightly higher in those subjects 
than did those who failed the preceding year. This also serves to show 
that the reduction in “ flunkage ” was not obtained by lowering standards. 





* Editor’s Note—Detailed figures, which considerations of space make it necessary to omit, 
were submitted by Mr. Merrill to cover this statement. 











W 


st 








REPRINT OF THE First YEARBOOK 463 





The procedure followed in obtaining the results that have been stated 
was carefully worked out. By a series of detailed investigations of the 
various districts, by tables and graphs worked out by the district principals 
and presented to the principals of the various groups, the condition of the 
city, of each district, and of each school in relation to the failure problem, 
was shown. The principals were urged to study with their teachers the 
problems as found in their particular schools. This material was pre- 
sented in December, 1920. 

It was suggested to the principals that they make lists of the pupils who 
would probably fail at the end of the semester, showing the cause of each 
failure, and that attention be centered upon the weak subjects and every 
available assistance be given to the pupils in overcoming weaknesses during 
the time that intervened before the date of promotion. 

Briefly stated, the following are some of the means that were found 
effective in raising the quality of the work of the weak pupils: 

1. Attention was centered upon the needs and difficulties of each in- 
dividual. 

2. Principal or teacher interviewed privately each pupil, and the situation 
was frankly discussed in the effort to arrive at the cause and find a remedy. 

3. Parents were visited, called into consultation, or otherwise informed 
of the impending failure and their codperation was requested. 

4. Pupils were allowed to devote more time to the subjects in which they 
were weak. 

5. Special help was given by the regular coaching teacher, or by brighter 
pupils during study periods or after school. 

6. Weak pupils were required to make special reports to the office at 
stated intervals, daily or weekly, upon their scholastic progress. 

7. Outside help and study were encouraged. 





SYSTEMATIC PROFESSIONAL STUDY’ 


This year each teacher has reported to the group on the work for her grade in 
each subject in the new course of study; thus everyone got an idea of the whole 
course. 

Last year, for one semester, we took up the reviews of new books on the 
“Curriculum,” each teacher reporting on a certain number of chapters at each 
meeting. For the other semester, two teachers each month gave a resumé of two 
excellent articles in educational journals. 





1 Belle Dirimple, Principal of South Seattle School, Seattle, Washington. 





ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS 





EXAMINATION OF PUPILS’ REPORTS 7* 


I always examine all report cards just before they are sent out. This is done 
at the teacher’s desk while the room is in session. We then count up the number 
of unsatisfactory marks and record the number somewhere to see if we cannot 
reduce the number the following quarter. 

A general letter is sent to the parents calling attention to the report cards 
which are about to be issued. 





AN EXECUTIVE COUNCIL? 


Title and composition—An Executive Council of the Daniel Bagley School shall 
be elected consisting of twenty-four (24) members—twelve (12) boys and twelve 
(12) girls. Three (3) boys and three (3) girls being chosen from each of the 
four upper rooms—not grades, of the Bagley School. 


Purpose—The purpose of the establishment of this council is to arouse a keener 
sense of the responsibility of each grammar-grade pupil as a citizen of his room 
and of the school in general. 


Eligibility—The members of this council shall be chosen by each room acting 
as a committee of the whole—any pupil or teacher may make nominations. The 
basis for such nominations should be high citizenship in the classroom, in the 
halls and basement of the building, about the grounds, and in the cornmunity in 
general. It is especially desired that scholarship not be the main quality in the 
selection of the members of this council, though the attitude of the boy or girl 


toward the assignment of school tasks should be the chief factor perhaps in the 
selectten of the members. In other words, a student who is doing “ C” work should 
be eligible to election to this council if this “C” work represents the best of his 
ability and if his citizenship is of a high order. 


Certification—Each of the teachers of the four upper rooms shall certify to the 
principal the first of each calendar month the six pupils who have been selected 
from her room for the previous month. These names shall be made a part of the 
permanent record of the Bagley School and certification will be made of such 
selections when the boy, or girl, passes on to high school. The list becomes then, 
in a way, an honor roll not conditioned on scholarship alone. 


Meetings—Each Executive Council shall hold one formal meeting and then 
adjourn, sine die. The business which will be brought before the Council will 
be business pertaining to the general good of Bagley, though the business to be 
transacted will always be of importance secondary to the election of this honor 
group of the list. We propose to put before the first meeting of the executive 
Council, the matter of restoring a fence between the Bagley School and an ad- 
joining orchard, which was destroyed some years ago by former pupils of this 
school. The principle of bringing this item of business before the council is to 
emphasize the responsibility of each group of citizens not only to a succeeding 
group, but to those who have gone before them. Our plan is that refreshments 
will be served at every meeting and everything possible done to make their one 
meeting a happy occassion for all the members. The advisors of the Boys’ and 
Girls’ Clubs and the principal of the school will be ex-officio members of the 
Council. Guests may be invited by these ex-officio members of the Council. 





2 William A. Blair, Principal of T. T. Minor School, Seattle, Washington. 
2J. W. Graham, Principal of the Daniel Bagley School, Seattle, Washington.