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Rating scales have demonstrated their usefulness in the elementary-school field. Although theoretically a large battery of tests and observation techniques is necessary for the diagnosis of personality, studies have shown that in practice almost as satisfactory results can be obtained with rating scales, provided the scales are specific and the judges are thoroughly acquainted with the child. The teacher who knows the interpretive background of the whole context of a child's environment and sees him in all his relationships from day to day is, after all, one of the best mediums for obtaining evidence concerning the child's personality. There have been comparatively few scales for rating the many facets of the child's personality. The Haggerty-Olson-Wickman Behavior Rating Schedule (published by the World Book Company) and the Maller Character and Personality Rating Scale (published by Teachers College, Columbia University) have been the chief devices in this field. The former scale consists of thirty-five items for rating on a five-point scale the mental, physical, social, and emotional aspects of a child's life in school. Each of the five points is described, and a "problem-tendency" score is given for each point. An illustration of the items follows. 29. How does he react to frustrations or to unpleasant situations?

The many personality tests published in the last ten or fifteen years have largely emphasized formal situations in which the child's written or behavior actions are judged. Studies of some of these tests have indicated that these formal situations may not be adequate measures of habitual atti tudes nor characteristic behaviors in formal situations. The judgment of behavior in informal situations has usually been made by means of rating scales. These rating scales have been stated in generalized categories and have often been influenced by the most recent behavior of the student rated.