Testimonials Increasing Chore For Headmasters

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30880, 13 October 1965, Page 20

Testimonials Increasing Chore For Headmasters

Testimonials for pupils leaving school are an increasing chore for principals, mainly because roll numbers, competition for higher education and good jobs, and the selectivity of employers are all also increasing. Heads of schools now write hundreds of testimonials every year.

It might be thought that, with larger numbers, these reports have less intimacy and value. In fact, they are better than ever before because schools now have much better records of pupils and give good testimonials only when they are earned.

Indeed several heads said yesterday that the testimonial is often a greater “moment Of truth” than an examination result

In the school days of most of those now reading testimonials, the school head usuilly knew the pupil well, the prospective employer often knew the head, and the pupil or his family. The re-

commendation was a fairly personal affair. This situation is disappearing, but in its place there is a school record giving a much more complete picture of the pupil. Full Course Required

Most schools do not give a testimonial as of right until a pupil completes a full fifth or sixth-form course. Even then it is not automatic. One school does not give testimonials to pupils going to university because it believes the later record will be more useful. Early leavers at most schools will often receive a blunt certificate that they should continue their education longer. The method of issuing testimonials varies from school to school. Some offer a cyclostyled form under various headings for “run-of-the-mill” pupils with individual letters

for those highly regarded. In some, the headmaster writes a report on routine records.

In one, a request for a testimonial sets an elaborate machine in motion. A form goes round requiring details of years at school, course, subjects, academic performance, prizes (if any), sports and club work, ratings on progress, diligence, conduct, neatness of appearance, speech, cheerfulness, patience, sensitivity, self-reliance, courtesy, perseverance, initiative, concentration, and many other characteristics. These come from form teachers, careers advisers, and others, and from their confidential assessments the head writes his report. Taken Seriously

Principals, whatever their method, take this task seriously. They will not endanger the reputation of the school by giving a false report. They will give generous praise where it is due. Sometimes they will give such a “blister” that the pupil “pulls up his socks” and has notable success. One lad got a testimonial that he was the worst pupil in the school, but capable of being the best. Today he is the manager of a large industrial concern and says the testimonial “put him on the rails.” Testimonials are now required for specific purposes. Teachers’ colleges require full references, they are required for apprenticeships, Government departments are interested in character, and many employers now submit their own forms to be filled in. “Dream Questions”

Some principals think some employers have gone to extremes in this, requiring a lot of relatively useless information “dreamed up by management.” But requests are still met. Some employers are satisfied by a telephone call.

A relatively new kind of testimonial is that required for the increasing number of scholarships and overseas bursaries.

All schools are confident that they can give a thorough assessment of a pupil because, m spite of numbers, a closer watch is now kept. What worries them is that, even after the sixth form, young people develop and change rapidly so that a “seeming no-hoper” may do well, whereas a pupil of great promise may not always live up to expectations.