474 MEMOIRS NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. [Vol. xv, 



Each literary test paper [the blanks of original literary test] wall be examined briefly as it is taken from the man 

 who has written it. As an examiner or his assistant picks up a paper he will note whether the heading has been filled 

 out and at least one or two words identified. If no words have been identified on the sheet the man will be questioned 

 briefly. 



Any man who has written his name legibly in the proper space on the literacy test, even though he has not 

 identified a single word in the list to be marked, will be held for the group intelligence test if he declares, upon being 

 questioned, that he can read the newspaper and write his own letters to the folks at home. 



The man who is unable to read and write will be directed to step to the end of the room and get in line with 

 the others there. As soon as all literacy test papers have been collected, the line of illiterate men will be marched 

 to the mechanical skill tests. 



On November 5, 1917, the office of the Surgeon General in a letter to Camp Taylor stated 

 that it was extremely important that staffs develop successful procedure for segregating the 

 literates and nonliterates. The report of Camp Taylor on the 25th of December summarizes 

 their experience. It is quoted in full: 



In view of our experience here we recommend that no specific literacy test be used. The time required for 

 passing out the literacy test blanks, giving the iBstructions, and then gathering the papers up is in itself a great waste 

 in view of the fact that the illiterates who can not take the test are removed practically as certainly by the method 

 we have been using here. We ask, as soon as a group is seated and ready for the test, that all "men who can not 

 read well enough to read an ordinary newspaper or who can not write well enough to write their own letters to their 

 friends" stand up and pass to the rear of the room, in order that they may be taken to "an examination of a little 

 different sort." Mentioning the fact that they are to be taken to another examination keeps those who would try to 

 escape by feigning illiteracy. The great objection to the literary test is the time required to score the papers and 

 then match up the scores with the score in intelligence or skill. The company commanders have shown no interest 

 whatever in the "degree of literacy." It seems to us an absolute waste of time and energy to use any other than our 

 common-sense method of sorting, together with the sorting that results from the intelligence examination itself. 



Inspection of the papers during the progress of examination a enabled the examiners to 

 send a few others to the examination for illiterates. No special efforts were made to produce 

 a new group literacy test. 



Camp Devens. — The original literacy test was used as the main procedure for the segrega- 

 tion of recruits at Camp Devens. That it served materially to reduce the numbers of low- 

 grade men given examination a is indicated by the fact that of 18,000 men examined, 264, or 

 only 1.5 percent, fell below 50 in examination a. At the same time it appears that the distinc- 

 tion as made by this test did not closely follow grade differences as reported. Evidence is 

 presented elsewhere (see p. 347) to show that the grade standards assigned to the original literacy 

 test were too severe, due in part at least to the elimination of the preliminary demonstration 

 form. Data obtained at Camp Devens indicated that almost half of the men would be forced 

 to take the group skill test if all men below sixth grade literacy as determined by the literacy 

 test were eliminated from examination a. In order to avoid this, the Devens staff planned to 

 be very liberal in scoring literacy and aimed to retain all men who could be expected to do 

 " half respectable " work in examination a. Evidence presented indicates that this "liberality" 

 meant in fact approximately fourth to sixth grade, literacy, with a fairly wide range of variation. 



Camp Devens immediately began to experiment with other methods of segregation than 

 the original literacy test. A suggested alternative to the regular literacy test was to send 

 to the skill test room men whose record of schooling was less than seventh grade and who 

 obtained a score of less than 5 on test 1 in examination a. Considerable data were presented 

 to inchoate that this method sends to the skill test practically all who would obtain a score 

 of less than 100 in examination a. The most important step in the attempt to solve the segre- 

 gation problem was made at this camp. Several new tests were devised, and one which is 

 described on pages 349 to 354 of this volume was standardized for school children. This test 

 was used to some extent in the actual work of examining at Camp Devens. It was carefully 

 standardized for later use on adults at Devens and Dix. 



Another equivalent method was used. A large revolving disk was placed at the entrance 

 to the examining room. On the disk were a number of commands that could be obeyed by 

 pimply pointing to large drawings printed on a card near the disk. Each man was expected 



