The log cabin Democrat., 1921-03-05
NORMAL COMMENDS
 GEOGRAPHY TESTS.
ARKANSAS AVERAGE GOOD
Many Average We'll Above Standard and Few Scored Low-Tests by
 Advanced Methods.

Pupils in five grades of 93 Arkansas
 public schools far surpassed what is
 considered average rank on their
 knowledge of geography, it is shown
 in tests made under the direction of ! the Arkansas State Normal School
 through it's education measurement l and standard bureau. The results of
 the tests are summarized by Prof. c.
 C. Denney, director of the bureau, and
 mailed to the schools which partici-
 pated. A relatively small per cent
 ranked below standard, the State Nor
 mal's test revealed. Tests in geog-
 raphy made during the month of Jan-
 uary, followed exhaustive tests on
 spelling made in the same schools in December.
 Explaining the nature of the tests.
 the State Normal's bulletin states that the questions asked were selected from the siv newest and most widely geography text books, and all of them are common to the six. The inference is, then, that this matter represents the most advanced views of educators as to what should be taught in public school geography An average of ability for pupils would be 66 per cent in the five grades tested. The basis of measurement was the Hahn-Lacky standard, which has been recently de- vised for this purpose.
 With 66 per cent as the average ability which all grades should dis
 play, the score made by the 93 Ar kansas schools were as follows: Grades 5 6 ' 8 Hahn-Lacky
 Standard ------66 66 66 66 66 Score, Medan Ar
 kansas Towns-72 v Il 73 IS Highest Arkansas
 Score ---------98 99 97 97 97 Lowest Arkansas
 Score -------46 33 fl 52 53 Below Standard IA 6 29 16 g About 300 questions comprised the test to which the pupils were put One half of the number were thought questions and involved rea- soning to find the answer The other were strictly memory" questions and
 merely tested the ability of the pupils
 to retain facts about geography. The Hahn-Lackey standards were recently devised and have not been used in other states, so that it is not possible
 for the State Normal to compare the
 average ability of Arkansas pupils with what is being shown in other sections of the United States, as was
 possible when the Ayres' standards
 were applied to spelling.
 For teachers, Prof. Denney points out a lesson to ase learned from the wide variation of individual pupils as well as schools. The variation from
 grade to grade and from town to
 town is wide, and represents a prob lem for school principals as well as teachers. Closer study of advanced methods in the teaching of geography might be a means of lifting the scan- wards of schools ranked low and re- suit in more uniformity for the state at large. Following the practice adopted when the tests of spelling were made, each school was given code number, and the standing by schools is listed by code so that no school will know the standing of an- other.
 Summarizing the results of the tests, Prof. Denney asserts that the efficiency in teaching geography is rather high. Schools classed as me- dian or middle class averaged from five to 12 per cent above the tenta- tive standard In general, at least four-ffths of all the grades that un- der went the tests ranked above the standard. Assuming that the Hahn Lacky standards are sufficiently high, the showing of the public schools on this test is one of the most commend able features revealed in investiga- tions of public school education in Arkansas.