ABSTRACT
In choosing which ‘subjects’ of the Primary School curriculum to test, I had to consider the availability of standardized tests. There was no lack of these in reading and arithmetic and I decided to assess the children’s writing by presenting assessors with a standardized handwriting scale against which they could compare the writing of each child. There were, however, no tests available at the time of the Infant School study which were designed to measure achievements in other subjects at so early an age. I decided to obtain drawings from the children on a subject of their own choice (the tests for neatness and for ingenuity had already covered two aspects of handwork), and to attempt to obtain assessments from observers of their skill in performing physical exercises. I also arranged to take as many children as possible individually for tests in oral language.
