Child study in Chicago : [a report ] / [by Fred W. Smedley].

  • Smedley, Fred W.
Date:
[1902]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Child study in Chicago : [a report ] / [by Fred W. Smedley]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

    44/46 (page 1136)
    Table XIV.—Comparison of memory power and physical condition. Physical measurements. Auditory memory. Visual memory. Above the average. Below the average. Above the average. Below the average. Net height millimeters.. Height sitting do Weight kilograms.. Strength of right hand do 1,485 795 40. 706 23.07 21.41 2,089 176 148 1,464 785 39.793 22.29 20. 77 2,019 174 146 1,484 785 40.561 22.65 20.97 2,091 180 155 1,468 784 39.435 22.23 20.69 1,987 169 144 Strength of left hand do Vital capacity cubic centimeters.. Motor ability of right hand taps.. Motor ability of left hand do Boys of the John Worthy School.—Tests in auditory and visual memory were made on the pupils of the John Worthy School [reformatory]. Nearly one-fourth of these pupils could not be tested after the manner in which the tests were made in the pub- lic schools, because the pupils wTere not far enough advanced in scholarship to write the figures which were read to them. Although on this account the averages are probably much higher than they otherwise would be, yet it will be noted from Table XV that the boys of the John Worthy School are lower in memory power than are the pupils of the other schools, and that this disparity increases with age. Table XV.—Memory power of the John Worthy hoys. Auditory. Visual. Age. Number tested. Average. Normal for this age. Per cent John Worthy is of normal. Number tested. Average. Normal for this age. Per cent John Worthy is of normal. 9 years 1 Per cevt. 38 45 84 1 Per cent. 53 47 113 10 years 6 48 49 89 6 58 55 105 11 years 21 42 55 76 21 56 65. 86 12 years 33 48 56 86 33 65 72 90 13 years...... 49 49 68 72 49 66 77 86 14 vears 65 48 66 73 65 60 81 74 15 years 53 53 66 80 53 72 78 91 16 years 13 61 67 ■' 91 13 78 81 96 17 years 5 41 66 62 5 56 84 67 Spelling test.—In order to determine how the power of auditory memory compares with visual memory when actually employed in learning to spell, tests, were given in the following manner: Two lists'of 70 words each were prepared, and each list divided into 7 sets of 10 words each. These words were believed by the principal and teachers to be in the speaking vocabulary of all the pupils. Seven tests of 10 words each were given during the day at intervals of one hour. Instead of allowing the pupils to write the word immediately after its presentation, as in the work with figures, the 10 words were presented one at a time and then were pronounced, to be written as in the ordinary spelling exercise. The first day the 7 sets of the first list were given as auditory tests, and the next day the sets of the second list were used as visual tests. Of course it was impossible to make lists of words of exactly equal difficulty. To obviate this the tests were repeated one wreek later. The exercises were given as before, except that the words used as auditory wTere given as visual tests in the second trial, and vice versa. So each word wras used twice—once in an auditory test and once in a visual test. On compiling the results we find an average standing of 6-1 per cent in the auditory tests and 73 per cent in the visual. The striking similarity in the comparative strength of auditory and visual memory, as shown in this spelling test and in the test of the