2. To determine the elements which require and permit of testing. In other words, can men be graded in it according to degrees of skill? In some trades it was found that the trade required simply the performance of a single set of operations and there were no gradations among the members of the trade.
3. To determine the kinds of tests that can be used. Some trades, such as truck driving and typewriting, are mainly matters of skill, and for them performance tests are better than oral tests. Other trades, such as interior wiring and power-plant operation, are mainly matters of knowledge. For these trades oral and picture tests are best.
After having discovered by inquiry that the trade is a recognized trade and can be tested, information is collected from all available sources. In the Army’s preparation of trade tests experts in the trade, trade union officials, the literature of the trade, trade school authorities, employers, and the like were consulted. In this way it was discovered what are the elements of the trade and what constitutes proficiency in it.
As a result of this collection of information it was possible to compile a number of questions, usually from forty to sixty, each of which called for an answer that showed knowledge of the trade. Experience in the formulation of such questions has shown that a good question meets the following requirements:
1. It must be in the language of the trade.
2. It must be a unit, complete in itself and requiring no further explanation.
3. It must not be a chance question that could be answered by a good guess. The extreme example would be a question calling for the answer “yes” or “no.”
4. It must be as short as possible and must be capable of being answered by a very short answer.
5. It must not be ambiguous; the meaning must be unmistakable.
After the large number of questions originally formulated has been sifted down by application of the requirements stated above and others of less importance they are used in a preliminary sampling on a number of artisans engaged in the trade, usually from nine to twelve, whose answers indicate the merits of the different questions and their grades, from easy to difficult. In this sampling, tradesmen from different shops or plants are tried in order to guard against specialized methods or modes of expression confined to a single locality. At least two examiners worked on each set of questions at this stage, in the Army’s work, to get the benefit of more than one point of view for revision.