EXAMINATIONS
(To the Editor.)
■ Sir, —Early in December thousands of boys and girls in New Zealand will be sitting for the annual examinations conducted by the New Zealand University. In the belief that in the present circumstances many of them will be at a serious disadvantage, I am writing to suggest that the authorities should this year adopt a more liberal attitude in the marking of the papers than in the past.
I make this suggestion for two main reasons. The first has a particular application to boys. During recent months the staffs of secondary schools for boys have undergone considerable changes, mainly owing to masters volunteering for service with the armed forces. This has had a serious effect on many candidates for matriculation and other examinations. Boys who were making good progress under these masters have suffered a serious break in the continuity of their studies. I make no reflection on the ability of masters who have replaced those who have joined the armed forces, but it is a well-known fact that changes in staffing have an unsettling effect on pupils, especially in a: vital year. Shortage of masters has resulted in a merging of classes and a consequent reduction in efficiency. Changes in staffing are no doubt inevitable in time of war, but it would be unfortunate, to say the least of it, if they resulted in the chances of boys and girls in vital examinations being affected detrimentally.
The other reason, is one that has general application. The war has placed a severe strain on everybody, no less on youth than on adults, and this is certain to affect boys and girls sitting for examinations this year. Entrants for University examinations are at an age when their physical and mental machinery is easily thrown out of gear, and it is reasonable to suggest that the strain of war may accentuate this disability.
I do not suggest that matriculation passes should be handed out indiscriminately. Obviously there must be some standard, but in present circumstances there does seem to be a case for a modification of that standard. Under the present educational system failure in matriculation and other examinations may have a serious effect on the future of many boys and girls. —I am, etc.,
PARENT.
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Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 94, 17 October 1940, Page 10
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378EXAMINATIONS Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 94, 17 October 1940, Page 10
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