USEFUL EXAMINATIONS SIR,—I would like to add the following arguments
to those of Mr. Shackleton Bailey for the retention of an improved system of public examinations for secondary schools.
r. My own experience in three very similar schools shows that the standard of marking varies appreciably from one to another. Consequently it would be difficult to make a fair comparison between the performances of pupils from different schools.
2. In many of the smaller schools the examining would have to be done by those who had taught the work being examined. As the examiner would know in advance his pupils' strong and weak points it would be difficult to set a fair paper.
3. A public examination is a useful stimulus to the lazy boy. The same applies to the lazy master—if there be such a person!
4. The results of public examinations over a period of years give a very fair indication of the efficiency or otherwise of the teaching in individual subjects and of the school as a whole.—Yours faithfully,
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