Benjamin D. Wood

American educational psychologist (1894–1986)

Ben D. Wood
1917 graduation portrait University of Texas
Born	Benjamin DeKalbe Wood (1894-11-10)November 10, 1894 Brownsville, Texas, U.S.
Died	July 8, 1986(1986-07-08) (aged 91) Westchester, New York
Nationality	American
Other names	Ben D. Wood
Education	Brownsville Area Schools
Occupation(s)	Psychologist and educator
Employer	Teachers College, Columbia University
Known for	Modern educational psychology
Spouse	Grace T. Wood
Signature

Benjamin DeKalbe Wood (November 10, 1894 – July 6, 1986) was an American educator, researcher, and director / professor at Columbia University and an expert in the educational field.

Early life

Wood was born in Brownsville, Texas, on November 10, 1894.^[1] He attended the Brownsville area schools, Mission High School, and the University of Texas.^[2]

Career

Wood was a Phi Beta Kappa and a member of the New York Academy of Sciences, the American Psychological Association, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.^[2]

In 1928, he met IBM's leader Thomas J. Watson and joined the company as a consultant; IBM helped Wood to fund the Columbia Statistical Bureau and provided equipment. Their collaboration was also beneficial for IBM, as Wood helped IBM to develop more capable machines. This success led to further academic projects, including the Harvard Mark I, and Columbia invited Watson to join their board of trustees in 1933.^[3]^[4]

In academics, he was a curator of Stephens College, and the chair or director of 20 national education committees.^[2] He was a director of Eastman's teaching film experiment, the American Council of Education test service, and the Commonwealth Fund for research on measurement of achievement in college courses.^[2]

Wood served on the New York state board of regents' examining board, and on committees for the American Institute of Accountants.^[2]

Later life and death

Woods retired in 1960^[5] but remained active. In 1969, he was given the Teachers College Medal for Distinguished Service.^[5]^[6] He received a honorary doctor degree from Union College in New York, from Lawrence College in Wisconsin, and from Colorado State Teachers College.^[2] Wood died at the age of 91 of a heart attack on July 8, 1986.^[7]

Legacy

Wood established the Elbenwood Fund for Education Research, the Ben D. Wood Fellowship Economic Fund and the Institute for Learning Technologies Fund.^[8] Twenty-six students had qualified through 2009.^[6]

Works

Books published by Wood are:

The Measurement of College Work (1921)
The Measurement of Law School Work (1924)
Columbia Research Bureau American History Test (1926)
Motion Pictures in the Classroom (1929)
Study of the Relations of Secondary and Higher Education in Pennsylvania (1938)
Our Air-age World: A Textbook in Global Geography (1945)
Geography of the World (1959)

References

^ Baker 2006, p. 48.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Valley Native Son Gaining Honors in Education Field". The Brownsville Herald. Brownsville, Texas. August 20, 1950. p. 26. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved March 24, 2016 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "The Columbia University Statistical Bureau 1928-1933". www.columbia.edu. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
^ McElvenny, Ralph; Wortman, Marc (2023). The Greatest Capitalist Who Ever Lived. PublicAffairs. pp. 173–177. ISBN 978-1-5417-6852-9.
^ ^a ^b Buck, Jerry (March 8, 1967). "Task Is To Get The Student To Learn By Thinking: Teachers Spend Too Much Time Teaching, Expert Says". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Associated Press. p. A-3. Retrieved February 3, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b "Leaving a Legacy". Teachers College Newsroom. Columbia University. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
^ "Obituaries - Ben D. Wood". The Monitor. McAllen, Texas. July 20, 1986. p. 4. Retrieved August 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "The Ben and Grace Wood Legacy". TC Media Center. Columbia University. 2002. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.