Intelligence tests and school psychology: Predicting the future by studying the past

Abstract

The best way to try to predict the future of IQ testing for school psychologists is to explore the past, in this case a colorful past that extends back to the 19th century, to visionaries such as Esquirol, Seguin, Galton, and Binet. From the very beginning, issues concerning schools and practitioners were the guiding forces in shaping the development and use of IQ tests. Wechsler's impact was far more than the tests he developed, as this master practitioner and clinician introduced the clinical approach to intellectual assessment. Throughout its history IQ tests have been at the center of controversy, and that role continues to the present. The future of IQ testing for school psychology probably rests on the resolution of these controversies as well as on the ultimate interface of clinical assessment and computer technology. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.