686 TRANSACTIONS OF SUB-SECTION I. 
being prejudiced by the pedagogical proficiency of the school which the pupil 
attends. 
(10) They help us to distinguish the different levels of mental ability of 
pupils to be found in schools of different ‘social class.’ 
II.—The Tests and Method of Administration. 
The tests, one at a time, are presented in writing to the children, are read 
twice, without undue emphasis, by a person whose voice and accent are familiar 
to the children, and are then answered in writing, one at a time. They are of 
service between the ages of eight and fifteen. One set of tests, distinguished 
as Set 5, follows :— 
(1) Mary sowed some seeds in some flower-pots, and every few days she 
watered them. Johnny said that he did not see that putting water on the seeds 
did any good. Do you think that Mary could prove to him that watering them 
made them come up quicker, or do you not? If you think she could, say how 
you think she could do it. If you think she could not, say why not. 
(2) Do you think a shilling is larger than a halfpenny, or smaller than a 
halfpenny, or the same size? Suppose you had a halfpenny and a shilling and 
nothing else to measure with, how could you find out? 
(3) Harry and Tom live in a long road a long way away from each other. 
Harry starts from his house to go to meet Tom, and Tom starts from his house 
to go to meet Harry. They both start at exactly the same time, but Tom 
walks faster than Harry. Do you think they will meet nearer Tom’s house or 
nearer Harry’s house, or exactly in the middle? You must give a reason for 
your answer. 
(4) If more than half the boys im a class get all their sums right, and more 
than half the boys in the same class get no mistakes in dictation, do you think 
there were any boys who got all their sums right and also no mistakes in 
dictation, or do you think there were no boys who got all their sums right and 
also no mistakes in dictation, or can’t you tell? You must say why. 
III.—The Marking of the Tests. 
They are marked simply ‘right’ or ‘wrong,’ not on any @ priori scheme; 
for the method of marking emerges quite simply from a consideration of the 
papers worked by the children. Illustrative papers will be read from boys and 
girls of various ages, of various grades of mental proficiency, and of various 
‘types’ of school. 
The first problem, based on the logical method of difference, is not marked 
correct unless this method is appealed to. 
The second problem is based on the Geometrical Method of Superposition, 
and is marked correct if the examinee states that he would place one on or 
over the other. The examinee is not marked wrong if he says the shilling is 
larger. The first part of the question only introduces the real problem. 
The third problem depends on the Dynamical Principle that, in equal times, 
the boy moving faster goes further. The answer is correct which places the 
meeting of Tom and Harry nearer Harry’s house than Tom’s, and gives the 
reason. 
The fourth problem is based on the Overlapping of Classes within a Whole, 
reminiscent of Euler’s diagrams in Logic. The examinee, to be marked correct, 
must perceive that the classes overlap, and give a reason. 
IV.—The Results of the Tests. 
Iigures were given to show :— 
(1) That the results of the tests correlate fairly well with age. 
(2) That the results correlate much more closely with mental proficiency as 
indicated by school ‘standards’ or ‘ grades’ than with age. 
(3) ‘hat there is a considerable difference in ‘reasoning ability’ in schools 
attended by children of different ‘social classes.’ 
(4) That the difference between boys and girls in non-numerical reasoning 
