The Intelligence Of Retarded Children Usually Overestimated
One of the most common errors made by the teacher is to overestimate the
intelligence of the over-age pupil. This is because she fails to take
account of age differences and estimates intelligence on the basis of
the child's school performance in the grade where he happens to be
located. She tends to overlook the fact that quality of school work is
no index of intelligence unless age is taken into account. The question
"In what school grade should a child of this age be able to do
satisfactory work?" A high-grade imbecile may do average work in the
first grade, and a high-grade moron average work in the third or fourth
grade, provided only they are sufficiently over-age for the grade in
question.
Our experience in testing children for segregation in special classes
has time and again brought this fallacy of teachers to our attention. We
have often found one or more feeble-minded children in a class after
the teacher had confidently asserted that there was not a single
exceptionally dull child present. In every case where there has been
opportunity to follow the later school progress of such a child the
validity of the intelligence test has been fully confirmed.
The following are typical examples of the neglect of teachers to take
the age factor into account when estimating the intelligence of the
over-age child:--
_A. R. Girl, age 11; in low second grade._ She was able to do
the work of this grade, not well, but passably. The teacher's
judgment as to this child's intelligence was "dull but not
defective." What the teacher overlooked was the fact that she
had judged the child by a 7-year standard, and that, instead of
only being able to do the work of the second grade
indifferently, a child of this age should have been equal to the
work of the fifth grade. In reality, A. R. is definitely
feeble-minded. Although she is from a home of average culture,
is 11 years old, and has attended school five years, she has
barely the intelligence of the average child of six years.
_D. C. Boy, age 17; in fifth grade._ His teacher knew that he
was dull, but had not thought of him as belonging to the class
of feeble-minded. She had judged this boy by the 11-year
standard and had perhaps been further misled by his normal
appearance and exceptionally satisfactory behavior. The Binet
test quickly showed that he had a mental level of approximately
9 years. There is little probability that his comprehension will
ever surpass that of the average 10-year-old.
_R. A. Boy, age 17; mental age 11; sixth grade; school work
"nearly average"; teacher's estimate of intelligence "average."_
Test plainly shows this child to be a high-grade moron, or
border-liner at best. Had attended school regularly 11 years and
had made 6 grades. Teacher had compared child with his
12-year-old classmates.
_H. A. Boy, age 14; mental age 9-6; low fourth grade; school
work "inferior"; teacher's estimate of intelligence "average."_
The teacher blamed the inferior quality of school work to "bad
home environment." As a matter of fact, the boy's father is
feeble-minded and the normality of the mother is questionable.
An older brother is in a reform school. We are perfectly safe in
predicting that this boy will not complete the eighth grade even
if he attends school till he is 21 years of age.
_F. I. Boy, age 12-11; mental age 9-4; third grade; school work
"average"; teacher's estimate of intelligence "average"; social
environment "average"; health good and attendance regular._
Intelligence and school success are what we should expect of an
average 9-year-old.
_D. A. Boy, age 12; mental age 9-2; third grade; school work
"inferior"; teacher's estimate of intelligence "average."_
Teacher imputes inferior school work to "absence from school and
lack of interest in books"; we have yet to find a child with a
mental age 25 per cent below chronological age who _was_
particularly interested in books or enthusiastic about school.
_C. U. Girl, age 10; mental age 7-8; second grade; school work
"average"; teacher's estimate of intelligence "average."_
Teacher blames adenoids and bad teeth for retardation. No doubt
of child's mental deficiency.
_P. I. Girl, age 8-10; mental age 6-7; has been in first grade
21/2 years; school work "average"; teacher's estimate of
intelligence "average."_ The mother and one brother of this girl
are both feeble-minded.
_H. O. Girl, age 7-10; mental age 5-2; first grade for 2 years;
school work "inferior"; teacher's estimate of intelligence
"average."_ The teacher nevertheless adds, "This child is not
normal, but her ability to respond to drill shows that she has
intelligence." It is of course true that even feeble-minded
children of 5-year intelligence are able to profit a little from
drill. Their weakness comes to light in their inability to
perform higher types of mental activity.
THE INTELLIGENCE OF SUPERIOR CHILDREN USUALLY UNDERESTIMATED. We have
already mentioned the frequent failure of teachers and parents to
recognize superior ability. The fallacy here is again largely due to
the neglect of the age factor, but the resulting error is in the
opposite direction from that set forth above. The superior child is
likely to be a year or two younger than the average child of his grade,
and is accordingly judged by a standard which is too high. The following
are illustrations:--
_M. L. Girl, age 11-2; mental age "average adult" (16); sixth
grade; school work "superior"; teacher's estimate of
intelligence "average."_ Teacher credits superior school work to
"unusual home advantages." Father a college professor. The
teacher considers the child accelerated in school. In reality
she ought to be in the second year of high school instead of in
the sixth grade.
_H. A. Boy, age 11; mental age 14; sixth grade; school work
"average"; teacher's estimate of intelligence "average."_
According to the supplementary information the boy is
"wonderfully attentive," "studious," and possessed of
"all-round ability." The estimate of "average intelligence" was
probably the result of comparing him with classmates who
averaged about a year older.
_K. R. Girl, age 6-1; mental age 8-5; second grade; school work
"average"; teacher's estimate of intelligence "superior"; social
environment "average."_ Is it not evident that a child from
ordinary social environment, who does work of average quality in
the second grade when barely 6 years of age, should be judged
"very superior" rather than merely "superior" in intelligence?
The intelligence quotient of this girl is 140, which is not
reached by more than one child in two hundred.
_S. A. Boy, age 8-10; mental age 10-9; fourth grade; school work
"average"; teacher's estimate of intelligence "average."_
Teacher attributed school acceleration to "studiousness" and
"delight in school work." It would be more reasonable to infer
that these traits are indications of unusually superior
intelligence.
More
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Problem Of The Enclosed Boxes
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PROCEDURE. Say to the subject: "_Listen, and see if you can understand what I read._" Then read the following three problems, rather slowly and with expression, pausing after each long enough for the subject to find an answer:-- (a) "_A man who... Quiet And Seclusion
The tests should be conducted in a quiet room, located where the noises of the street and other outside distractions cannot enter. A reasonably small room is better than a very large one, because it is more homelike. The furnishings of the room s... Reading For Eight Memories
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Plus and minus signs alone are not usually sufficient. Whenever possible the entire response should be recorded. If the test results are to be used by any other person than the examiner, this is absolutely essential. Any other standard of completen... Reliability Of Repeated Tests
Will the same tests give consistent results when used repeatedly with the same subject? In general we may say that they do. Something depends, however, on the age and intelligence of the subject and on the time interval between the examinations. ... Repeating Five Digits
PROCEDURE. Use: 3-1-7-5-9; 4-2-3-8-5; 9-8-1-7-6. Tell the child to listen and to say after you just what you say. Then read the first series of digits at a slightly faster rate than one per second, in a distinct voice, and with perfectly uniform emp... Repeating Five Digits Reversed
The series are 3-1-8-7-9; 6-9-4-8-2; 5-2-9-6-1. PROCEDURE and SCORING. Exactly as in years VII and IX. ... Repeating Four Digits
PROCEDURE. Say: "_Now, listen. I am going to say over some numbers and after I am through, I want you to say them exactly like I do. Listen closely and get them just right--4-7-3-9._" Same with 2-8-5-4 and 7-2-6-1. The examiner should consume nearly... Repeating Four Digits Reversed
The series are 6-5-2-8; 4-9-3-7; 3-6-2-9. PROCEDURE AND SCORING. Exactly as in VII, alternate test 2. ... Repeating Six Digits Reversed
The series used are: 4-7-1-9-5-2; 5-8-3-2-9-4; and 7-5-2-6-3-8. PROCEDURE and SCORING, as in year VII, alternative 2. REMARKS. The test is passed by approximately half of "average adults" and by three fourths of "superior adults." It shows no ef... Repeating Six To Seven Syllables
PROCEDURE. Begin by saying: "_Can you say 'mamma'? Now, say 'nice kitty.'_" Then ask the child to say, "_I have a little dog._" Speak the sentence distinctly and with expression, but in a natural voice and not too slowly. If there is no response, th... Repeating Sixteen To Eighteen Syllables
The sentences are:-- (a) "_We are having a fine time. We found a little mouse in the trap._" (b) "_Walter had a fine time on his vacation. He went fishing every day._" (c) "_We will go out for a long walk. Please give me my pre... Reversing Hands Of Clock
PROCEDURE. Say to the subject: "_Suppose it is six twenty-two o'clock, that is, twenty-two minutes after six; can you see in your mind where the large hand would be, and where the small hand would be?_" Subjects of 12- to 14-year intelligence practi... Scattering Of Successes
It is sometimes a source of concern to the untrained examiner that the successes and failures should be scattered over quite an extensive range of years. Why, it may be asked, should not a child who has 10-year intelligence answer correctly all t... Scoring
The exact method of scoring the individual tests is set forth in the following chapters. Reference to the record booklet for use in testing will show that the records are to be kept in detail. Each subdivision of a test should be scored separately, ... Sex Differences
The question as to the relative intelligence of the sexes is one of perennial interest and great social importance. The ancient hypothesis, the one which dates from the time when only men concerned themselves with scientific hypotheses, took for gra... Some Avowed Limitations Of The Binet Tests
The Binet tests have often been criticized for their unfitness to perform certain services which in reality they were never meant to render. This is unfair. We cannot make a just evaluation of the scale without bearing in mind its avowed limitations... Sources Of Data
Our revision is the result of several years of work, and involved the examination of approximately 2300 subjects, including 1700 normal children, 200 defective and superior children, and more than 400 adults. Tests of 400 of the 1700 normal child... Special Characteristics Of The Binet-simon Method
Psychologists had experimented with intelligence tests for at least twenty years before the Binet scale made its appearance. The question naturally suggests itself why Binet should have been successful in a field where previous efforts had been for ... Summary Of Changes
A comparison of the above list with either the Binet 1908 or 1911 series will reveal many changes. On the whole, it differs somewhat more from the Binet 1911 scale than from that of 1908. Thus, of the 49 tests below the "adult" group in the 1911 sc... Superior Adult 1: Vocabulary (seventy-five Definitions 13500 Words)
PROCEDURE and SCORING, as in previous vocabulary tests. At the "superior adult" level seventy-five words should be known. The test is passed by only one third of those at the "average adult" level, but by about 90 per cent of "superior adults." Ab... Superior Adult 2: Binet's Paper-cutting Test
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PROCEDURE. Say: "_I am going to read a little selection of about six or eight lines. When I am through I will ask you to repeat as much of it as you can. It doesn't make any difference whether you remember the exact words or not, but you must listen... Superior Adult 5: Repeating Seven Digits Reversed
PROCEDURE and SCORING, the same as in previous tests of this kind. The series are: 4-1-6-2-5-9-3; 3-8-2-6-4-7-5; and 9-4-5-2-8-3-7. We have collected fewer data on this test than on any of the others, as it was added later to the test series. As f... Superior Adult 6: Ingenuity Test
PROCEDURE. Problem _a_ is stated as follows:-- _A mother sent her boy to the river and told him to bring back exactly 7 pints of water. She gave him a 3-pint vessel and a 5-pint vessel. Show me how the boy can measure out exactly ... Superior Intelligence (i Q 110 To 120)
Children of this group ordinarily make higher marks and are capable of making somewhat more rapid progress than the strictly average child. Perhaps most of them could complete the eight grades in seven years as easily as the average child does in e... Supplementary Considerations
It would be a mistake to suppose that any set of mental tests could be devised which would give us complete information about a child's native intelligence. There are no tests which are absolutely pure tests of intelligence. All are influenced to a... The Avoidance Of Fatigue
Against the validity of intelligence tests it is often argued that the result of an examination depends a great deal on the time of day when it is made, whether in the morning hours when the mind is at its best, or in the afternoon when it is sup... The Ball-and-field Test (score 2 Inferior Plan)
PROCEDURE. Draw a circle about two and one half inches in diameter, leaving a small gap in the side next the child. Say: "_Let us suppose that your baseball has been lost in this round field. You have no idea what part of the field it is in. You don... The Ball-and-field Test (superior Plan)
PROCEDURE, as in year VIII, test 1. SCORING. Score 3 (or superior plan) is required for passing in year XII. ... The Distribution Of Intelligence
The question as to the manner in which intelligence is distributed is one of great practical as well as theoretical importance. One of the most vital questions which can be asked by any nation of any age is the following: "How high is the average ... The Game Of Patience
MATERIAL. Prepare two rectangular cards, each 2 x 3 inches, and divide one of them into two triangles by cutting it along one of its diagonals. PROCEDURE. Place the uncut card on the table with one of its longer sides to the child. By the side of ... The Importance Of Tact
It goes without saying that children's personalities are not so uniform and simple that we can adhere always to a single stereotyped procedure in working our way into their good graces. Suggestions like the above have their value, but, like rules... The Influence Of Coaching
It might be supposed that after the intelligence scale had been used with a few pupils in a given school all of their fellows would soon be apprised of the nature of the tests, and so learn the correct responses. Experience shows, however, that the... The Intelligence Of Retarded Children Usually Overestimated
One of the most common errors made by the teacher is to overestimate the intelligence of the over-age pupil. This is because she fails to take account of age differences and estimates intelligence on the basis of the child's school performance in th... The Necessity Of Standards
In the first place, in order to judge an individual's intelligence it is necessary to have in mind some standard as to what constitutes normal intelligence. This the ordinary parent or teacher does not have. In the case of school children, for example... The Relation Between I Q And Grade Progress
This comparison, which was made for the entire 1000 children, showed a fairly high correlation, but also some astonishing disagreements. Nine-year intelligence was found all the way from grade 1 to grade 7, inclusive; 10-year intelligence all the ... The Relation Of The I Q To The Quality Of The Child's School Work
The school work of 504 children was graded by the teachers on a scale of five grades: _very inferior_, _inferior_, _average_, _superior_, and _very superior_. When this grouping was compared with that made on the basis of I Q, fairly close agreement... The Use Of The Intelligence Quotient
As elsewhere explained, the mental age alone does not tell us what we want to know about a child's intelligence status. The significance of a given number of years of retardation or acceleration depends upon the age of the child. A 3-year-old child... The Validity Of The Individual Tests
The validity of each test was checked up by measuring it against the scale as a whole in the manner described on p. 55. For example, if 10-year-old children having 11-year intelligence succeed with a given test decidedly better than 10-year-old ch... The Validity Of The Intelligence Quotient
The facts presented above argue strongly for the validity of the I Q as an expression of a child's intelligence status. This follows necessarily from the similar nature of the distributions at the various ages. The inference is that a child's I Q... Three Commissions
PROCEDURE. After getting up from the chair and moving with the child to the center of the room, say: "_Now, I want you to do something for me. Here's a key. I want you to put it on that chair over there; then I want you to shut (or open) that door, ... Tying A Bow-knot
PROCEDURE. Prepare a shoestring tied in a bow-knot around a stick. The knot should be an ordinary "double bow," with wings not over three or four inches long. Make this ready in advance of the experiment and show the child only the completed knot. ... Using A Code
PROCEDURE. Show the subject the code given on the accompanying form. Say: "_See these diagrams here. Look and you will see that they contain all the letters of the alphabet. Now, examine the arrangement of the letters. They go_ (pointing) _a b c, d ... Using Three Words In A Sentence
PROCEDURE The words used are:-- (a) _Boy_, _ball_, _river_. (b) _Work_, _money_, _men_. (c) _Desert_, _rivers_, _lakes_. Say: "_You know what a sentence is, of course. A sentence is made up of some words which say something. Now, I am go... Very Superior Intelligence (i Q 120 To 140)
Children of this group are better than somewhat above average. They are unusually superior. Not more than 3 out of 100 go as high as 125 I Q, and only about 1 out of 100 as high as 130. In the schools of a city of average population only about 1 ch... Vocabulary; Twenty Definitions 3600 Words
PROCEDURE. Use the list of words given in the record booklet. Say to the child: "_I want to find out how many words you know. Listen; and when I say a word you tell me what it means._" If the child can read, give him a printed copy of the word list ... I Ntelligence Of The Different Social Classes
Of the 1000 children, 492 were classified by their teachers according to social class into the following five groups: _very inferior_, _inferior_, _average_, _superior_, and _very superior_. A comparative study was then made of the distribution of I...