(80 INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF EDUCATION. 
the child entered school, or whether. that inay possibly occur in this or that or the other 
part of school course. This cannot be known in advance of investigation in respect to 
any given function. It opens the way for a great field of inquiry in which every one of 
the functions which we wish to cultivate comes up for separate and extended exam- 
‘nation. 
The memory-span tests were made in substantially the same manner as those made by 
Mr. Boulton, under direction of Dr. Boaz, in the schools of Worcester, except that 
besides the ear-span tests, eye-span tests were made. As nearly as possible the condi- 
tions were made the same for the eye and for the ear. The first general result of this, 
is that, as Dr. Bealey and others have surmised, ‘the majority of pupils are not 
decidedly eye-minded or ear-minded.” 
Take the number of errors made by each pupil with the eye, and with the ear, let them 
be ascertained, and then if the excess of errors either way be determined for each pupil, 
.t will be found that many more than half of all the pupils have an excess either way of 
ess than five errors ; that about ninety-four per cent. have an excess either way of less 
han ten errors when fifty-two figures were written. Nevertheless it is important to 
‘emember that there were some who did show extreme eye-mindedness, and others 
who showed extreme ear-mindedness. 1 should not be safe in saying how many out of 
sen thousand there would be ; but in those that I have examined I should say that there 
were between five and ten pupils who were so strongly inclined one way or the other 
shat they should have special attention given them, unless the individual pupil is going 
0 be sacrificed to the exigencies of system. I should say that there are about five per 
cent. of the pupils who will make almost no errors, perhaps none, with ore of these 
senses, and a very great number of errors with the other. 
The question has been raised as to whether or not there is a tendency from the lower 
grades to the higher grades in favor of one of these senses. Allow me to read a very 
few figures on this point. In the third grade the eye-span errors were 200 and 
201 per cent, that is twice as many errors for the eye as for the ear. In the fourth grade, 
140 per cent; in the fifth grade, 107 per cent; sixth, 111 per cent; seventh, 111 per cent; 
eight, 104 per cent; ninth and High Schools taken together, 99 per cent; a class of train- 
ing girls, 96 per cent; twelve adults recently examined, 80 per cent. These last 
numbers, of course, are taken on very few individuals. These figures taken alone would 
seem to constitute, if they were representative of that which should be found anywhere, 
a tremendously strong support of the position that we are making everybody eye- 
minded. Some modification, however, must be made with respect to this. I think it 
may be shown by a study of the results which I got, that the great advance made from 
the third to the fifth grade is to be accounted for by the fact that children are learning 
at that period very rapidly to recognize digits. That is to say, if we study the shade- 
discrimination, and shade-memory tests, no such enormous advance is made, indeed a 
very slight advance is made in those things ; but of course, at this period, the children 
are learning very rapidly to recognize digits by the eye. I think the advance can be 
>xplained in that way. 
Now I wish to read only one other list. The last which I gave took account of all 
arrors of all kinds, errors of ear, omission, and errors of insertion—the method being 
the same as that used by Mr. Boulton, with the advice of Dr. Boaz. Now I wish to read 
tke list with the errors of ear alone, which considers possible deficiencies of eye-sight or 
confusion of sense perceptions. In the third grade the eye errors are 233 as compared 
with 100 in the ear ; in the fourth grade, 128; in the fifth, 92; sixth grade, 94; in the 
seventh, 98 ; eight, 88; ninth grade and High School, 86. In the training schools, in 
a class of twelve, 86; in the case of twelve adults, 65 per cent; in the case of these 
adults examined, who were students of the summer school of pedagogy of Indiana, 
the test was made with a high degree of care. I have spoken of these things. but I