THE EXAMINATION SYSTEM.

Otago Witness, Issue 2368, 20 July 1899, Page 44

THE EXAMINATION SYSTEM.

Mr J. M. E. Garrow, the retiring president of the Educational Institute, took the examination system as the subject of his presidential address at the evening sitting of the institute, held in the Normal School on Uio 11th inst- Mr G-. M 'Donald occupied tho chair, and there were about 60 teachers present. The Hon. J. MacGregor and Mr J. J. Ramsay were present, representing the Education Board. Mr Garrow, who was loudly applauded on rising, said that when he started to plan out his address he noted down four subjects which were burning ones at the present time. They were (a) the examination question, (b) the syllabus, (c) technical education, and f (d) the modern ideal of education. "When* he got the first finished he • found that if he dealt with the whole four there would be no chance of those present getting home till the next day, so he had stopped with the first one, which he read as follows : — " The present is a time of transition as well in the realm of education as in almost every other department of art and science. The age is utilitarian. Everything has to justify its existence or be swept away. The pulse of life beats quickly. The struggle for existence that forms the subject of so much discussion as to its purpose and utility and that is ceaselessly carried on in the vegetable world and among the lower animals (finds itrf counterpart in the fierce competition among human beings for all that makes life pleasant, nay, for the very means of keeping body and soul together. The great majority of the teeming millions that throng the civilised countries of the world have to- use every means they can find to keep pace with the demands made on them as individuals ; while nations also, in order to maintain their State existence and further their State life and development, are compelled to study more thoroughly than ever before what tends to preserve the health and to increase the strength of the body politic. The time spoken of by an ancient sage when kings should be philosophers and philosophers kings seems near at hand ; for more than at any previous period in the recorded history of the race do we appear to need wise and good rulers ; and at no previous time have able men had such opportunities to come to the front in political affairs. The democracy of ancient times has become the democracy we -may almost say of the civilised world. Whether it were "better to have an educated governing class separate as of old from the governed, and ruling kindly but firmly, or to have a government *of the people, by the people, for the people may be a subject for academical discussion ; but there can be no doubt whatever that, in these days, the people, the majority of tiie many, are, or soon will be, for good or for ill, the rulers of the nations. " Looking, then, al the conditions of tho life of a State both as regards its internal development and as regards its existence in its competition with other States, we cannot fail to see that a national system of education has become a political as well as a social necessity — that the problem of national education is one that no statesman con afford to pass by untouched ; for we must not forget that, with all our progress in educational matters, we have not yet solved the problem, havo not yet attained the ideal education, have as yet .set before ourselves neither a definite.educational ideal, nor, let me say, a national ideal. The difficulties attendant on effprts to attain such ideals are increased by the circumstances of -the lime. The • swift advances in science and art and the rapidly changing social and industrial conditions of the modern, world render it impossible to have a cast iron system that will remain unaltered "through tho changing vicissitudes of the coming time. It is a sine qua non of a stable system that it be flexible hi the highest degree, so that, without injury, it may be adapted to ever-varying circumstances. " Just now there seems to be among the leading nations of the world a rivalry in regard to education as well as to armaments. Each is striving to outdo its neighbour in the provision it makes for the education of its people. This is a fact of great significance. It is clear proof that the national importance of the education of the individual is fully recognised by modern statesmen. This rivalry in education has led to a comparison of the different national systems, to a fuller examination of the reoeived principles of education, and, in some cases, to a thoroiigh revision of educational methods. The wave of reform ha,« reached us. Already has a Technical Education Bill been brought forward; the individual standard pass is thought to be tottering to its fall ; even the examination system in general is being subjected to searching criticism ; while the claims of the different sciences to a place in our educational curriculum are steadily kept before us by everyone with a scientific hobby. In short, the old currents and the new are at a point of confluence, and there is a noise as of mighty waters ; but when these currents have blended we may hope to see the stream of progress sweep on with fuller tide towards the great ocean of the unattainable, the ideal education. " There is not time to-night to deal even in a cursory manner with the multiplicity of questions that might be discussed under the heading of education reform, and it is tho examination question alone with which 1 shall deal to-night. Examination is to-day probably the most prominent feature of our education system. Were a Martian educational reformer to visit our planet to extend his knowledge of educational practice v.nd theory, the first thing that he would notice in our education system would probably be the all-pervading influence of the examination — examinations everywhere, on every conceivable subject, for everybody, from the children in the infant rooms of our primary schools to men in the prime of life. " This universal use of examinations shows that they are believed to servo some useful purpose and to serve this purpose, if not well, at all events better than anything we can put in their place. Let us .see what examinations do and how they do it. after which we may be in a position to say whether they should be retained as a part of the sducational machinery or be laid on the shelf along with other useless lumber boon to be hidden by the dust of oblivion. If there is an examination, this presupposes that there is also a syllabus or code prescribing the nature and amount of work to be prepared by those who are expected to pas-; the examination. There is thus placed before the student ii definite goal to be readied in a definite time. This fact alone gives to his studies a coherence and purpose that would otherwise be wanting ; while the dislike or fear of failure acts as a btimulant to urge him on. With the examination in view he has to concentrate his energies on his given work with all the power lie can command. Attention to detail must be combined with breadth of view: find a grasp of principle-

I As the work to be done is 'usually anything but small in amount in comparison with the time available to do it in, the student has to pay great attention to method, for by method a methodical -man doubles his power. As a rule, haphazard work avails .little in the i examination room. The student, then, is .compelled to concentrate his energies; to be methodical, exact, painstaking, and thorough; and to combine an intelligent grasp of general principles with due attention to detail. What has just been said of the pupil applies with as great if not greater force to the teacher. He has to see all the bearings of his work, to cast aside the superfluous and single out the necessary, to bring principles to light and show their application to particular cases. Thoroughness, method, accuracy are as necessary in the case of the teacher as in the case of the pupil. The examination compels teacher and pupil alike to work towards a definite end and to concentrate their efforts upon attaining that end. "The examination serves also as a test of the pupil's acquirements and of the quality of the teacher's work. It is the only immediate test we have of the acquirements of the student. It is the onfy practical test that can be applied quickly and uniformly to large numbers of students. * Its results are perfectly definite — in fact, mathematical in their precision. The work of different pupils and of different classes can be readily compared with great exactitude. Percentages are quite easily understood by anyqne, no matter how ignorant he may be of educational methods or of right educational ideals. The ease with which examination results can be understood when expressed 'in percentages commends the examination system to all those who would nob otherwise be in a position to express an opinion on a teacher's work or a pupil's acquirements. -Every teacher examines his own pupils from time to time, and I do not think there is any teacher present who will say that he places a very low value upon his own tests. The X^robability is that he thinks his examinations serve well the purposes he intends them to serve. He tests his pupils to see whether or not they are all working and are comprehending his teaching. By means of the examination , the teacher finds out the lazy and the idustrious, the weak and the clever. The results serve as a guide to him in his future teaching. Often it happens that an examination reveals to the teacher faults in himself he never suspected. Even his own examinations c]o this if his questions are wisely and the answers thoughtfully corrected. The examination, then, tests the work both of pu])il and of teacher. It reveals to the student his knowledge or his want of knowledge ; too often, alas, the latter. Many a student thinks 1)6 knows all about his subject; but, when asked to express some of that knowledge on paper, he finds that he does not know &o much as lie thought he did. The examination helps the teacher by increasing his knowledge of his class and showing him errors in his It is also a check on the teacher. It shows that a certain amount of a certain Jcind of work has been done, and is thus a rough index of the thoroughness of the teaching. Whether " die work done be worth the labour spent in doing it is another question. " Besides the use of examinations in put- ' ting a definite aim before teacher and pupil, and compelling them to concentrate their efforts to reach the assigned goal, we see that they act as a check on the teacher and also test the acquirements of the pupil. From their obvious convenience as tests examinations are universally used as a means of selecting the brightest students in school and col* lege. There must be some method of selection, and il seems to me that examination of some kind is the only method available. No matter how we try to get round the question, we co-mo back at, last to some kind of examination. Candidates must be compared in some way. If in some subjects they are nearly alike, means must be taken to dis- . criminate between them, and how can this bo done except by examination? Examination is the method universally adopted for' the purpose, and though what everybody says and does is not necessarily right or necessarily the best, we must allow some weight to the general practice of experts in this matter. " Let us look now at the other side of tho examination question. The examination, we have said, sets a definite goal before teacher and student. It is the syllabus rather than the examination that does this, the examination compelling adherence to the definite plan laid out in the syllabus/ As passing the examination is looked upon as an achievement in itself, this cornea to be regarded as the final aim of tho student. Without the stimulus of examination he does not work ; when the examination is passed he is satisfied. The course oi instruction he has undergone has not necessarily encouraged, or even tended to encourage, in him a love of study and' research, or cultivated in him a power of independent thought. The student is apt to consider his education fiuiehed when ho has passed his examination and been ' hall-marked. So, 100, tho teacher comes to look upon the examination as an end. Ho aims solely at putting his pupils through the examination. If he succeeds in this he considers he has done his work thoroughly, and strangely enough everybody else peems to think so too. The teacher is thus led to place undue importance upon examination results and to subordinate true educational methods to the methods that will enable his pupils to ' pa6s well.' The teacher can hardly be expected to do otherwise. There is always the temptation to ' play to the gallery.' The teacher's work is judged by outsiders largely, if not altogether, by examination results, and for the sake of his reputation lie has to make the examination his goal. Written examinations, especially in subjects that lend themselves to literary treatment, or in subjects that are got up mainly from books, have a strong tendency to encourage cram. Memory work takes the place of original work. Owing to the excepsive amount of work often demanded from pupils, they are compelled to learn by heart a great quantity .of useless detail to be kept in mind till ' exam.' day, and forgotten very soon after. Knowledge acquired hastily for examination purposes iB, in many cases, unassimilated knowledge. It is hurriedly packed into the mind, and as quickly goes out. The rapidity with which it has been acquired usually prevents its becoming a permanent mental notsession ; and even if this examination knowledge were remembered it would, in most cases, be comparatively useless tc those who learn it. The preparation for written examinations thus tends to develop the verbal memory at the expense of tho judgment. The learning of other people'a opinions is by no means a valuable mental gymnastic. . (To be continued.) — — r— — w— -w— in n iii .mm

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