Measure Your Mind: The Mentimeter and How to Use ItTrabue, Marion Rex
Science
Measure Your Mind: The Mentimeter and How to Use It
Trabue, Marion Rex
Educational tests and measurements; Intelligence tests; Psychological tests
The child should by this time be able to count pennies or buttons, at
least up to four, without any error. The child should be able to handle
a pencil well enough so that a square one inch each way could be copied
fairly well. The child’s memory has developed to such an extent that if
four numbers are repeated to him at the rate of one per second he should
be able to repeat them in correct order at once. Three trials should be
allowed and at least one of the three should be right. By this time,
also, a sentence of twelve or thirteen syllables should be remembered
correctly. The sentences used by Terman are: (1) “When the train passes
you will hear the whistle blow.” (2) “We are going to have a good time
in the country.” (3) “The boy’s name is John. He is a very good boy.”
The method of getting the child’s attention and leading up to these
longer sentences is the same as was described under Year Three.
The child’s judgment has developed by this time through experience and
precept to the point where an inquiry from the examiner as to “What must
you do when you are sleepy?” will bring forth a response indicating that
one should go to bed and sleep. The question of “What must you do when
you are cold?” should bring forth some such reply as, “Put on a coat,”
“Build a fire,” or “Stand next to the radiator.” The question, “What
must you do when you are hungry?” should bring forth such answers as
“Buy some lunch,” “Drink some milk,” or “Eat something.”
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The method of scoring is briefly indicated in the list of typical
performances printed on pages 115–117. The three tests at age three
months are each to be given one month credit. The three tests at six
months are likewise to be given one month credit for each successful
performance, as are the six tests at one year. The six tests at two
years, the six at three years, and the six at four years, are in each
case to be given a credit of two months each. The child who did
everything in the entire test correctly would then have demonstrated the
mental ability of the average child of four years or older. The child
who completes all of the tests at three months and one of the tests at
six months would then be rated as having mental ability typical of a
four-months-old-child. If the child were to fail on only one of the
tests at one year but to pass all those previous to one year, his mental
age score would be eleven months, according to this system of assigning
credits. It will frequently be found that a child does not pass all of
the one-year tests before being able to do one or two of the two-year
tests and so on. This should not make it more difficult to score the
test, for each particular performance has its value indicated in the
list which was given above.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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