Intelligence tests
Subject
Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Scope Note: Created For = EUA
Found in 11 Collections and/or Records:
Bingley Lecture, 1952
File
Identifier: Coll-1310/3/1/2/33
Scope and Contents
Thomson outlines the purpose of intelligence testing, referring to his own work in Northumberland in 1919, which was to ensure clever children weren't being passed over for entry into secondary education as a result of their social background. In relation to this, Thomson talks about the benefits of standardisation of intelligence tests, and discusses the problem of coaching and how it can be overcome. Thomson also mentions a child who was tested and subsequently given a place in...
Dates:
1952
Darlington, 25 Nov 1930
File
Identifier: Coll-1310/3/1/2/17
Scope and Contents
Thomson discusses the limitations of intelligence testing, and its positive qualities, citing its objectivity and scientific basis. He outlines the processes involved in trialling the tests to establish their suitability and reliability, describing how the final order and content of the paper is decided; the difficulties involved in obtaining a representative sample of children; the need to incentivise children to do their best in the trial test, and the process of standardisation...
Dates:
25 Nov 1930
Draft article titled The Use of Tests of Intelligence in English and Scottish Schools, 10 Mar 1931
File
Identifier: Coll-1310/3/1/2/20
Scope and Contents
The article explores the uses of intelligence testing in determining mental defects in young children; examinations at 11 (eleven-plus) to determine the child's future schooling; and testing for the purpose of administering vocational guidance. Thomson examines each of these three uses in turn, citing examples of the use of intelligence tests in England and Scotland. He explores some of the problems of testing for selection to secondary school, in particular the possibility of...
Dates:
10 Mar 1931
Godfrey Thomson Unit for Educational Research, 1896-1979
Sub-subfonds
Identifier: EUA IN1/ACU/G1
Scope and Contents
Material regarding the Moray House Tests, c1920s-1970s;
Northumberland Mental Tests, c1920s;
Sample tests, 1920-1987;
Testing Samples, United States, c1920s-1950s;
Publications, 1896-c1978;
Godfrey Thomson, c1930s-1947;
Correspondence...
Dates:
1896-1979
Notes for Thomson's lecture, The Nature and Measurement of Intelligence, 30 Jul 1928
File
Identifier: Coll-1310/3/1/2/7
Scope and Contents
Rough notes which take the form of lists of topics and corresponding examples Thomson wishes to discuss, and includes notes regarding different mental tests; genetic aspects of intelligence; social classes; and vocational selection.
Dates:
30 Jul 1928
Papers of Godfrey H. Thomson
Fonds
Identifier: Coll-1310
Scope and Contents
Biographical and personal papers, c mid 19th century-1972;
Publications authored and co-authored by Thomson, 1904-1954;
Unpublished materials by Thomson, 1897-1954;
Publications collected by Thomson regarding education, intelligence, psychology, and statistics, 1879-1971
Unpublished material collected by Thomson and authored by others, c mid 20th...
Dates:
c1890s-1978
Papers of Professor Walter Ledermann
Fonds — Box CLX-A-667
Identifier: Coll-1064
Scope and Contents
The collection largely consists of letters from Godfrey Thomson to Ledermann. Many are highly mathematical in content, containing formulae and mathematical notation, though they also regard social events and contain enquiries from Thomson with regards to the safety of Ledermann's family throughout the war.
Dates:
1937-1954
Statistical Methods in Educational and Psychological Problems, 1 Mar 1929
File
Identifier: Coll-1310/3/1/2/9
Scope and Contents
The lecture was delivered to a wide audience, and is designed to be understood by non-statisticians, and non-educators. In it, Thomson explores the uses and limitations of statistics in both education and psychology, illustrating his points with examples of how an educator might effectively predict a child's performance and offer vocational guidance appropriate to their ability and intelligence. Thomson discusses the importance of obtaining a representative sample and the effect...
Dates:
1 Mar 1929
The Discovery of Talent, 1950
File
Identifier: Coll-1310/3/1/2/32
Scope and Contents
Thomson argues that the talents of the individual should be discovered and encouraged, rather than quashed because they are not intellectual enough. He discusses the uses of examinations and intelligence testing in discovering talent, and the need for tests of non-verbal as well as verbal ability.
The speech is written on the back of minutes from the National Committee for the training of Teachers.
Dates:
1950
The Extent and Significance of Individual Differences, c1930s-1940s
File
Identifier: Coll-1310/3/1/2/12
Scope and Contents
Thomson begins by introducing the concept of individual differences in general terms, before moving on to his own topic of intelligence, and discussing the extent of individual intelligence differences. He illustrates the wideness of the intellectual range within the population by reproducing Cyril Burt's table, Distribution of Intelligence among Children and Adults, which contains suggested IQ scores for different levels of schooling and occupational complexity in...
Dates:
c1930s-1940s