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Hokitika Guardian, 18 May 1937, Page 4

British business and commercial firms were advised in a recent speech by Mr Oliver Stanley, British Minister of Education, not "to insist that prospec-

tive employees should have passed the matriculation e»aimr«Utiou. He expressed the opinion that the school certificate was the better test, an opinion that is applicable under New Zealand conditions. “If 1 were to enter business again and be responsible for the recruitment of boys to my business,” Mr Stanley said, “l would never adopt the matriculation test again. Now, I would insist that every boy 1 considered had passed the school certificate examination, because that is a simple qualifying test and does show that the boy has got the minimum requirements in the way of academic knowledge necessary, if he is to succeed in the business. Having done that I would turn to the headmaster of the boy’s school and ask his advice. 1 would trust him because he would have the whole of •the school history of the lad and not just the result of one examination.” Mr Stanley emphasised the fact that the object of matriculation was to enable students to enter a university. Preference for matriculation over the school certificate had proved to be an extremely bad thing for the children. A larger number of them were forced into taking an examination for which they might be quite unsuited, and which was of no benefit to them at all.