EXAMINATION METHODS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 17780, 13 May 1921, Page 6

EXAMINATION METHODS.

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT.

VIEWS OF THE MINISTER. [BY TELECKATH. OWN CORHESPOKDEKT.J WELLINGTON. Thursday

The Minister for Education, Hon. C. J. Parr, had something \to say on the vexed question of university examinations at the Victoria College capping ceremony to-day.

"I think examinations are somewhat of a necessary evil," he said. "Examinations but imperfectly test the efficiency of the educative processes, but the day has not yet come when examinations may be abolished. We have not yet arrived at Utopia, nor always have we had the perfect and conscientious teacher nor the diligent student. There must still be examinations, but what sort of examinations? I fear that we have not yet reached the time when teachers alope should examine their own pupils. There must be some sort of external examination. A teacher may naturally incline to a pnpil who reproduces his own ideas. While I think there should be some sort of external examiner T cannot say that the present system of external examination appeals to me. It is a fact that on papers set by English examiners in November the ■ results are not known in New Zealand until four months later. 'This occasions the greatest inconvenience, and sometimes loss valuable time to students and teachers. We can surely do better than that. There must be in Australia, and I think in New Zealand, competent external examiners. I am inclined personally to, favour a system under which the external examiner shall set the paper after consultation with the teachers, and I think the class work of each candidate ought to be communicated by the teacher to the examiner. The external examiner should be an expert in his subject, and should examine all candidates, no matter from which college, in that subject. Some of the teachers might well be associated with the external examiners in marking the papers, but I do not think it would be well to give these teachers the principal Eay, v as has been suggested. The time certainly is ripe for a revision of our examination methods "