TEACHING TRENDS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22524, 15 September 1936, Page 10

TEACHING TRENDS

HARM OF EXAMINATIONS CRITICAL MINISTER FINANCE OF THE UNIVERSITY AN ARGUMENT RESENTED "One reform which should have the support of all sensible educators is the abolition o'f the proficiency examination,". said the Minister of Education, the Hon. P. Eraser, speaking at the Parnell School yesterday. "We should insist that education in its widest sense shall have full scope, and that children should ' not merely be hurried on through tho year to pass an examination.

"Internal'examinations are useful as a guide to teachers upon how best to help a child, but we do not want them to exercise tyranny. Children should not be stuffed' with information as their mothers stuff chickens for the table. The Government's ideal is to give the child a chance from the kindergarten —for which, we are planning extensions —onward, to become fully educated. We. do not want to place a hurdle which will deny or postpone the post-primary education of any child; it should be allowed to go on naturally to secondary, technical or any other form of education, as' the case may be.

Matriculation Test "This is a matter for serious consideration by college councils and the University Senate. • Those pupils who feel that it is their-function in life to go on to the university must have an opportunity to do so. The matriculation examination is oh trial to-day. It is an undoubted fact that very few matriculated students actually enter the university; the examination has become, not a test for university education, but a standard of commercial efficiency."

Addressing himself to.Mr,. T. U. Wells, president of Auckland University College and chairman of the Auckland Education Board, who was present, Mr. Fraser continued: "Apparently matriculation is a way of getting some revenue, sub rosa, for the colleges, so that we havfi to deal with a vested interest. The colleges will need to find some means of getting the revenue without it," "Cinderella" Appeals

The Minister added that ;there was too much tendency at present on the part of educationists to declare that their particular branch was the "Cinderella" of the education system, and this applied particularly to the university. It was not a helpful approach and was contrary to the idea of education as a continuous whole. The question was not what share each bx-anch of education should be given, but what were its actual requirements. "There is nothing of which I will take less notice than arguments in the 'Cinderella' strain," added the Minister. "or references .to how much is spent in Britain. The sooner the documents containing that sort of thing are burned, the betteir.' The question is, how much is required to place university education and Auckland University College on a proper footing, and how much is available?"