Measuring Human Intelligence 



•^35 



and each of these should receive special 

 training and treatment. 



"The lower grade imbeciles will 

 probably not get into the school 

 but will be recognized at home as 

 defectiv^e and kept there until they can 

 be placed in an institution for the 

 feebleminded. 



FITTING THE TASKS TO THE CHILD 



"Now it is impossible to decide from 

 this single examination of the children 

 on entering school just what kind of 

 training is best for each one. Con- 

 sequently with many of them it will 

 perhaps be necessary to start with the 

 regular work of the first grade, 

 but they must be carefully watched 

 and if if is found they are not progress- 

 ing like the other children then they 

 should promptly be placed in the 

 other group where children are taught 

 to do things rather than to read and 

 write about things. 



"The group that is recognized as 

 distinctly feebleminded should not 

 be worried with reading and writing 

 at all, but should at once be placed in 

 a group where they will be taught 

 various activities. The purpose of 

 this kind of training is twofold, 

 first to develop physical coordinations 

 and second to train them to do useful 

 things. They may all be started at 

 the same point but the relatively 

 brighter ones will progress faster and 

 should the more quickly get on into 

 industrial and vocational training. 



"The starting point for these cases 

 is the care of their own person. 

 These children generally have not been 

 taught to wash their faces and hands 

 and comb their hair, still less to bathe. 

 These matters should be carefully 

 taught until they become habits." 

 Then comes dressing, taking care of 

 their rooms, sewing and the like. 

 A few may even learn to read and 

 write. Those that are diagnosed 

 definitely as feebleminded should be 

 committed to some suitable institution. 

 Many of them may be taught some 

 industrial occupation and "graduated" 

 into useful places in society. 



WHEN TO GIVE MENTAL TESTS 



"Coming back now to those children 

 who are at age or above age and are 

 doing regular school work, they should 

 be given mental tests whenever it is 

 proposed to promote them to an 

 advanced grade. It will thus be 

 ascertained whether they have the 

 mentality for doing the work of that 

 grade. Whenever it is shown that 

 they have not the capacity, they 

 should be transferred to special work 

 within their capacity, and their 

 development carefully watched. 



"When it comes to high school it is 

 most inportant that their mental 

 level be determined, because there are 

 many children who get through gram- 

 mar school fairly well but have not the 

 mentality for high school work. 

 This fact should be determined and 

 these people allowed to leave school 

 and go into industries rather than be 

 forced on into high school. Again, 

 each year in the high school probably 

 requires a higher level and some will 

 fall out at each step. This brings us to 

 the college. There is a prevalent idea 

 that every child who has the means and 

 gets through high school should go to 

 college. The teachers in college have 

 long know^n that many who enter 

 should never attempt to do college 

 work." 



MENTAL TESTS FOR OCCUPATIONS 



The same principle might be applied, 

 Dr. Goddard thinks, to the various 

 professions and occupations. "Why 

 should we not ascertain the grade of 

 intelligence necessary in every essential 

 occupation and then entrust that 

 work only to those people who have the 

 necessary intelligence? This would not 

 be at all difficult to do. It would in 

 some cases require considerable labor, 

 but that is all. For example, how 

 much intelligence does it require to be a 

 Motorman on a street car? To 

 ascertain this, it is only necessary to 

 give mental tests to all the motormen, 

 and then ascertain from employers 

 which ones are highly successful, 

 which ones moderately successful, 

 and which prove to be failures. 



