PROFICIENCY EXAMINATIONS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3993, 23 September 1930, Page 29

PROFICIENCY EXAMINATIONS.

SURVEY BY DEPARTMENT.

CO-OPERATION OF BOARDS SOUGHT.

WELLINGTON, September 17. A survey of the proficiency examination is to be carried out by the Education Department this year, and details were set out in the following circular received by the Wellington Education Board this morning from the Director of Education (Mr T. B. Strong) :— “ As you are doubtless aware, various methods have, with the approval of the department, been adopted by the inspectors in determining the award of proficiency and competency certificates. Yon are also aware that the percentage of passes varies at times very considerably between one district and another. The department therefore proposes to make a survey of the whole position, and to this end will arrange, for a synchronous examination of the candidates to be held on the same dates, November 20 and 24 next, and under the same conditions for the whole Dominion. The teachers will, as usual, furnish their estimates of the candidates’ attainments in the examination subjects and will, independently of these estimates, give assistance in marking the tests set at the synchronous examiifation. They will not be asked to mark all the subjects, and all the marks will be assessed or reassessed, as the case may be, by the inspectors themselves, who will report to the department whether the teachers’ marking appears to be on the whole reliable or not. The inspectors will be asked to make as full notes as possible of the attainments of the candidates as evidence at the time of their own inspection visit, and will, as has always been the practice, take into consideration the teacher’s recorded estimate of each candidate’s qualifications. Every care must, of course, be taken to provide adequate supervision of the candidates when under examination.

“The co-operation of the Education Board is desired in making' the survey. Full instructions will be issued to the inspectors, but as there will be a considerable amount of clerical work involved in the scheme, the assistance of the board’s staff will be appreciated in order that the project may be carried to a successful issue. Full details regarding the scheme will presently be sent to the board and to the inspectors. The proposal will involve the arrangement by the board for assistant supervisors in the schools, the distribution of schedules and test papers to the schools, the receipt of the worked papers, and the usual clerical work in recording the marks and despatching the results and certificates to the schools concerned.”

The department also asked the board to supply it with the number of schools where there were proficiency candidates and also with the number of candidates to be presented. The board agreed to co-operate with the department in every way. It is understood that the department has no intention of reverting to the examination system. The survey" this year, when all candidates will be bound to sit the examination, is merely being made to assess the system throughout the r ominion as a whole sc as to place the proficiency examination on a more equitable basis.