Eleven Plus Scores

Modern Intelligence Testing was developed by a Frenchman, Alfred Binet. He worked on intelligence late in the nineteenth century. His work was revised and developed by Lewis Terman and his associates at Stamford University. They introduced the term `I.Q.’ to education and psychology.

The term `I.Q.’ has several different meanings. If we put full stops after the letters I and Q then we are discussing `Intelligence Quotient’.

The Stanford-Binet test describes ability in the form of mental age. If a child had a mental age the same as his or her chronological age then by definition we say the child is of `average intelligence’. A child with a higher mental age that his or actual age would then be above average in ability.

In 1960 the Stanford-Binet test was revised and brought up to date. The scoring system was also changed to become the `deviation I.Q. method’. The `deviation’ suggests that scores are distributed normally with a mean of 100.

Another set of intelligence tests came along called the `Wechsler Intelligence Scale’. This was also designed to be administered by an experienced and trained examiner to one person at a time.

When our children do verbal reasoning and non verbal reasoning tests – we are given st6andardised scores based on the work done to develop a scoring system for the Wechsler tests.

Verbal Reasoning tests rely on linguistic elements. Arithmetic skills can be tested along with logic.

Non Verbal tests look at spatial relationships, manipulation of blocks or other tasks requiring dexterity and visualisation.

So then you are discussing your child in terms of scores of 125 and 105 think back to that Frenchman called Binet and the Americans at Stanford. Think too of the Wechsler family and the way they have developed and refined testing.

We hope that your child achieves scores over 120 in the eleven plus tests. Good luck!