The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-11-28
)r. Phillips Makes Unque Test For General Knowledge
 Of Pupils
ANSWERS 10 QUESTIONS
 PROVE VE7Y IN TERES TING
Twenty Questions Were Submitted to Seventh Grade and to Senior Class in the High
 School.

Considerable interest has been mani fested in a series of questions on Bible history. submitted by Dr. J. H. Phillips, superintendent of schools, as a test to the pupils of the seventh grades of the elementary schools and to the senior class of the High school.
 The Age-Herald has asked Dr. Phillips to submit for publication a copy of the questions and statement by him of the results of the test in the schools. The questions were not issued for the purpose of determining the standing of the pupils, but to obtain an idea of their biblical knowledge. The following is the list of questions submitted:
 Questions in Bible History.
 l. With what did Eve tempt Adam?
 9 What did God place at the entrance of Eden. and for what purpose?
 ,. For what did Esau sell his birth right?
 What did Jacob see in his dream l at Bethel?
 5 What did Noah's descendants build 1 that displeased God, and what was their l punishment?
 6. What was the token of the covenant 
 I. With what did Samson slay thou sand men?
 8. With what were the children of Israel fed in the wilderness? g. What d'd ' hildren of Israel car ry around Jericho7 Hl i.l 10. What dia ..u dove bring to the Ark after the flood?
 Il. What did the spies bring back from Canaan?
 P. What did Jacob give Joseph that made his brethren jealous? 13 What became of Lots wife? IA. What sacred burden did Moses car " out of Egypt?
 15. Of what did Aaron make the Golden Calf?
 16 For what is Ruth noted? IT. Name the Bible characters associ- ated with the following: d) Patience, @ Faithfulness, (S) Wisdom, (D Meek ness, o5) Physical Strength? 1S Who was the sweet singer of Israel"?
 1e. How long were the children of | Israel on the way from Egypt to Canaan? l 20. Name a Kings son who organized | a rebellion against his father. Result of Test. 1 In discussing the results of the exami- nation Dr. Phillips said: l Tt Is correctly stated in the periodical | literature Of the day that knowledge of | Bible history is on the wane. No one 1 will question the fact that a general knowledge of Biblical history and litera- ture is certainly as essential to modern culture as a knowledge of Greek and Roman history or of classic mythology '1n order to test the general knowledge of our children on this subject I prepared the questions here given and had them submitted as a test, first, to 320 pupils in the seventh grade divisions of four of our 1 largest schools. These pupils, it must | be understood, are in the last year of the elementary school and are about to 1 enter the High school. The fact that | only nine out of the number tested had not attended some Sunday school for at least two years is significant. 'As might be expected. the results of | the test were exceedingly interesting. In the preparation of the questions care was | taken to exclude any topic that might be ambiguous, and each question involves | an allusion or fact necessary to an un- 1 derstanding or interpretation of general l literature.
 Many of the pupils showed an ex- cellent degree of knowledge and their answers were probably as satisfactory as might be reasonably expected. | General Average 40 Per Cent. l .sThe general average of 320 pupils was 70 per cent of correct answers. This is | a very low percentage, but 1t Is doubt | ful if an equal number of adults promis- 1 cuously selected would have acquitted themselves any better. The highest grade made by any pupil was 95 per cent Twenty pupils answered correctly over 80 per cent of the questions and 90 pupils
 received between 50 and 30 per cent.
 Thirty-six per cent of the pupils an-
 swered correctly 50 per cent or more of
 the questions while GA per cent an-
 swered correctly less than 50 per cent.
 "The papers show some very interest
 ing facts, aside from some very remark
 able and instructive statements Some of the answers indicate wonderful asso-
 citations of words and names and large
 amount of personal experience and home association is couched In statements that
 are frank and ingenious.
 '"The first question might be regarded
 by some as a catch question: since 255,. or about 80 per cent, gave the tra-
 ditional answer, apple instead of the biblical statement. This, of course, was
 marked by the teachers as incorrect
 Some displayed considerable originality
 in the invention of answers; for m stance, the second question was an-
 swered by one as follows: God placed an apple tree at the entrance, which tree
 bore poisonous fruit. God put it there
 to see if Adam and Eve could resist temp
 tation.' Other answers indicated fertile
 imagination, with a basis of experience
 and association. For Instance Goo
 placed the devil at the gate to keeI
 them out; God placed an anglel there to
 see that no evil went on in the garden
 and to tell God if Adam and Eve ate the
 forbidden fruit God placed soldier there
 to watch and to tempt them; God placed
 an army there
 "Esau sold his birthright for variety
 of things such as a bowl of porridge, g
 bowl of partridge. pot of lentils, gold
 money, Q corner lot.
 "Samsons destructive weapon was va
 riously described One charged him witt
 pulling down the pillars of the church and staying thousand men.
 '"There is considerable difference O | opinion as to the manner in which th' i. children of Israel were fed in the wilder ness. Bread and fsh-two loaves ant
 five fishes-and one contends that the. l were fed by walls The associative pro cess in the latter is difficult to discover
 There were very few that were no
 perfectly familiar with the tragedy o ] Lots wife, but only one knew the natur of Noses sacred burden. Ruth's Various Traits. Ruth was not only noted, but noto l rious, for many traits: Beautifulness
 She was noted because she was gentle , kind and peaceable.' She was noted be , cause she lived with her mother-in-law : She was noted for staying with her moth , sr-in-law and " accepting her religion l rrl,. b,xrno- 3n tbA~a doubf1esa min