TIIK STKKET AS V KINDERGARTEN 



I'opular opinion Ijclicves lliat tlie children of the poorer classes in large cities acquire a 

 certain amount of valuable education' Ijy runn'ng on the streets. Actual tests usually 

 indicate, however, that such children stand very low in all the higher forms of intelligence; 

 and this might have been suspected from an examination of the environment in which 

 they are brought up. Association with older peojjle is one of the most important factors 

 in a child's education; but in the poorer classes the dwellings arc so small that a child 

 must spend most of his waking hours outside, and nowhere does he come in close contact 

 with many older persons of ability. Photograph by Milton Fairchild. (Fig. 7.) 



marked line. The ])rofessional j^roup This ranking is not wholly what 

 yields the fewest dullards and the many wotild expect, and Saffiotti briefly 

 tradinjij class the most. The upper discusses the causes of it, seeming in- 

 commercial Ki"oui) yields the largest clined to give more weight to the non- 

 projiortion of bright children, but the hereditary than to the hereditary factors, 

 professional groujj is not far behind. He points to the intellectual interests 

 The trading class shows the highest and occu])ations that constitute the 

 level of mediocrity, and a little distance daily life of the professicnal classes, the 

 behind it, the servant and professional intelligent but si^ecialized outlook of 

 class stand on almost even terms. the U]iper commercial and manufactur- 

 Single indices of ability were worked ing classes, to which should be added 

 out for the six classes, which show that the stimulus of keen c()m])etition; and 

 the professional is easily the highest the comfortal)le economic circumstances 

 and the trading class the lowest, as of the lower commercial class, with 

 represented in these Milati school labor of a character that is somewhat 

 children: favorable to the develoi)ment of intel- 



Professional 51.9 ligence. In all these ca.ses, he thinks. 



Upper commercial .SO. 8 the environment is such as to produce 



L^wCT commercial 47.2 bright children. For the relatively 



Artist" s^ 41.7 ^^i^^ standing of the children of the 



Tradespeople ^s 1 serwint class, he seeks an explanation in 



262 



