CONTENTS. Page. Letter of transmittal... 5 Chapter I. Introduction....... II. Progress of children in the elementary schools (white).......... 7 V. Absence and entrance age in relation to progress through school... VII. Further application of mental tests for the placement of children and 85 3 PREFACE. By P. P. CLAXTON, Commissioner of Education. The progress of children through the grades of the public schools and the stage of advancement at which they quit school are matters of great educational and economic importance and enlist the interest of both school officers and taxpayers. If many children fail to accomplish any part of the work of the school in the time prescribed, it may be supposed that the work is not well adjusted to the powers of the children or that the teaching is at fault. If many quit school before completing the minimum course of instruction necessary for intelligent citizenship and industrial and social life, then the purposes for which the schools are maintained are not accomplished and our life in all its phases is less full and less efficient than it should be. In both cases there is economic and vital waste. To the end that intelligent search may be made for the means to prevent this loss there is need of a large body of accurate information as to the amount and kind of retardation and the time of quitting school. The following study by Mr. K. J. Hoke, second assistant superintendent of schools of Richmond, Va., contains valuable information on these subjects for the schools of that city. 5 THE PLACEMENT OF CHILDREN IN THE ELEMENTARY GRADES. CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION. In recent years many students of education have been placing considerable emphasis on the study of scientific measurements applied to the achievements of school children with a view to putting educational practice on a more scientific basis than in the past. Because of the lack of scientific information, many theories not justified by systematic observation have obtained currency. As a result, much of the time and energy of teachers and pupils has been spent to a great disadvantage; confusion has been produced, and the advancement of the teaching profession has at times been greatly retarded. Gradually a body of scientific knowledge concerning the actual accomplishment of school children is evolving. Administrators are being trained to realize the need of accurate and uniform records whereby the progress of children can be determined, not only in relation to other children in the city, but also to children in other cities. By this means standards or norms in educational practice will be set up whereby one school system can be compared with another as to the amount of elimination, retardation, and promotion; the percentage of children entering the high school from the elementary school, and the like. Such information has also been used to determine the relative differences between sexes and nationalities for the purpose of planning courses of study, the organization of children into classes, and the determining of other educational policies. Administrators are further beginning to realize the necessity for definite and objective standards for guidance in the expenditure of school finances. A superintendent of schools in one city should know how much he is spending to educate a child through the kindergarten, the elementary school, and the high school, as well as the amount spent for the same purposes by a superintendent of schools in another city. |