NO ACCREDITING

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 272, 12 August 1932, Page 12

NO ACCREDITING

Senior Free Places REVISED REGULATIONS Test Not More Stringent In view of the decision of the Minister of Education, Hon. R. Masters, to limit the accrediting system for the senior free place in secondary and technical schools this year to a minimum, revised regulations have been prepared for the intermediate examination which must be taken by practically all pupils. Particulars of the new regulations were published in yesterday’s Gazette. It is stated that the intention of the Minister is to conduct the examination this year chiefly for the purpose of checking the accrediting system throughout the schools where accrediting for the senior free place has been in operation for a considerable time. The department Is stated to be of the opinion that the accrediting system, like any other, requires occasional checking, and that there is-no desire* to make the test more stringent. Actually, an arrangement has been made whereby a pupil will be able to make the most of his best subjects. At the end of this year’s school course, a general examination will be carried out at post-primary schools for the senior free place. Previously there has been no complete, uniformity in accrediting, and pupils who have not been recommended have taken the examination. It has been found that about 15 per cent, of those not accredited have passed the examination. Uniformity of Tests. On account of the wide variety of courses .and the difficulty in having general examinations, the method in technical schools has been to take the result of the internal tests of the schools together with the recommendations of the principals. This is, to all intents and purposes, a form of accrediting. The new examination will provide a more or less, uniform test for all schools. In view of the wide variety of courses, the number of subjects has been enlarged, and arrangements have been made whereby subjects not on the list can be taken by pupils in specialised classes such as those in some technical schools for boys entering the printing or engineering trade or taking up an art career. The examination papers will be set by general examiners who. will be mostly drawn from the staff of departmental inspectors, but the actual examinations Will be supervised for the most part'in the schools by the teachers. Teachers will mark the papers and forward them to the department, where they will he checked by inspectors. ' Jt la hoped that the results will be available by early in January, the examinations being held in November or December, whichever is more suitable for the schools concerned.* Non-State schools will send their candidates in the ordinary Way to the examination centres. Senior Free Place Only. Under the new arrangement the Public Service entrance examlnataion is done away with. This examination has not been used to any great extent by the Public Service Commissioner in recent years owing to the number of candidates who have qualified by the university entrance examination. The senior national scholarship examination has also been abolished in accordance with a recent decision,. and the new intermediate examination will serve as a test for the senior free place only where in the past the two examinations mentioned were conducted contemporaneously. Certain alterations have been made in the compulsory subjects and the values in marking attached to them, in order to make conditions as equal as possible for all candidates.. There will in future be no subject in which a candidate must pass, although there are subjects which must be taken, and the result in judging a pass will depend, upon the average number of marks gained. , English maximum marks have been reduced from 500 to 400. There is now an alternative to handwriting, lettering being admissible in order to suit those entering printing, engineering and other trades, while practical mathematics is now an alternative to arithmetic. ; In order to pass the. examinaation a candidate must gain not less than 40 per cent, of the totaf assignable marks under the new regulations. ‘