author
Théodore Simon
b. 1873
Best known as the co-creator of the Binet-Simon intelligence scale, this French psychiatrist helped shape some of the earliest modern approaches to understanding children's learning. His work with Alfred Binet had a lasting impact on psychology, education, and testing.
1 Audiobook
Mentally Defective Children
by Alfred Binet, Théodore Simon
About the author
Born in Dijon, France, on July 10, 1873, Théodore Simon became a psychiatrist and researcher whose name is closely linked with the early history of intelligence testing. He worked in French hospitals and focused much of his attention on children, especially those who needed specialized educational and clinical support.
Simon is most widely remembered for collaborating with Alfred Binet on the Binet-Simon scale, first published in 1905 and later revised in 1908 and 1911. The test was designed to help identify children who might need extra help in school, and it became one of the foundations of later intelligence tests used around the world.
Although Binet is often more widely recognized, Simon played an important role in turning these ideas into practical clinical work. His career reflects an early effort to connect medicine, psychology, and education in a way that would influence all three fields for decades.