Part 19 (2/2)

Note that the wording of the first part of the questions is slightly different from that in year IV, test 5.

If there is no response, or if the child looks puzzled, the question may be repeated once or twice. The form of the question must not under any circ.u.mstances be altered. Question _b_, for example, would be materially changed if we should say: ”_Suppose you were to come home from school and find that your house was burning up. What would you do?_” The expression ”burning up” would probably be much less likely to suggest calling a fireman than would the words ”on fire.”

SCORING. _Two out of three_ must be answered correctly. The harder the comprehension questions are, the greater the variety of answers and the greater the difficulty of scoring. Because of the difficulty many examiners find in scoring this test, we will list the most common satisfactory, unsatisfactory, and doubtful responses to each question.

(a) _If it is raining when you start to school_

_Satisfactory._ ”Take umbrella,” ”Bring a parasol,” ”Put on rubbers,” ”Wear an overcoat,” etc. This type of response occurred 61 times out of 72 successes. ”Have my father bring me”

also counts _plus_.

_Unsatisfactory._ ”Go home,” ”Stay at home,” ”Stay in the house,” ”Have the rainbow,” ”Stay in school,” etc. ”Stay at home” is the most common failure and might at first seem to the examiner to be a satisfactory response. As a matter of fact, this answer rests on a slight misunderstanding of the question, the import of which is that one is to go to school and it is raining.

_Doubtful._ ”Run” as an answer is a little more troublesome. It may reasonably be scored _plus_ if it can be ascertained that the child is accustomed to meet the situation in this way. It is a common response with children in those regions of the Southwest where rains are so infrequent that umbrellas are rarely used. ”Bring my lunch” may be considered a satisfactory response in case the child is in the habit of so doing on rainy days.

(b) _If you find that your house is on fire_

_Satisfactory._ ”Ring the fire alarm,” ”Call the firemen,” ”Call for help,” ”Put water on it,” etc.

_Unsatisfactory._ The most common failure, accounting for nearly half of all, is to suggest finding other shelter; _e.g._, ”Go to the hotel,” ”Get another house,” ”Stay with your friends,”

”Build a new house,” etc. Others are: ”Tell them you are sorry it burned down,” ”Be careful and not let it burn again,” ”Have it insured,” ”Cry,” ”Call the policeman,” etc.

_Doubtful._ Instead of suggesting measures to put out the fire, a good many children suggest mere escape or the saving of household articles. Responses of this type are: ”Jump out of the windows,” ”Save yourself,” ”Get out as fast as you can,” ”Save the baby,” ”Get my dolls and jewelry and hurry and get out.”

These answers are about one seventh as frequent as the perfectly satisfactory ones, and the rule for scoring them is a matter of some importance. Under certain circ.u.mstances the logical thing to do would be to save one's self or valuables without wasting time trying to call help. There may be no help in reach, or a fire which the child imagines may be too far along for help to be effective. In order to avoid the possibility of doing a subject an injustice, it may be desirable to score such answers _plus_. We must not be too arbitrary.

(c) _If you miss your train_

_Satisfactory._ The answer we expect is, ”Wait for another,”

”Take the next car,” or something to that effect. This type of answer includes about 85 per cent of the responses which do not belong obviously in the unsatisfactory group. ”Take a jitney” is a modern variation of this response which must be counted as satisfactory.

_Unsatisfactory._ These are endless. One continues to meet new examples of absurdity, however many children one has tested. The possibilities are literally inexhaustible, but the following are among the most common: ”Wait for it to come back,” ”Have to walk,” ”Be mad,” ”Don't swear,” ”Run and try to catch it,” ”Try to jump on,” ”Don't go to that place,” ”Go to the next station,”

etc.

_Doubtful._ The main doubtful response is, ”Go home again,”

”Come back next day and catch another,” etc. In small or isolated towns having only one or two trains per day, this is the logical thing to do, and in such cases the score is _plus_.

Fortunately, only about one answer in ten gives rise to any difference of opinion among even partly trained examiners.

REMARKS. The three comprehension questions of this group were all suggested by Binet in 1905. Only one of them, however, ”What would you do if you were going some place and missed your train?” was incorporated in the 1908 or 1911 series, and this was used in year X with seven others much harder. The other two remained unstandardized previous to the Stanford investigation.[53]

[53] For general discussion of the comprehension questions as a test, see p. 158.

VI, 5. NAMING FOUR COINS

PROCEDURE. Show a nickel, a penny, a quarter, and a dime, asking each time: ”_What is that?_” If the child misunderstands and answers, ”Money,” or ”A piece of money,” we say: ”_Yes, but what do you call that piece of money?_” Show the coins always in the order given above.

SCORING. The test is pa.s.sed if _three of the four_ questions are correctly answered. Any correct designation of a coin is satisfactory, including provincialisms like ”two bits” for the 25-cent piece, etc. If the child changes his response for a coin, we count the second answer and ignore the first. No supplementary questions are permissible.

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