Examination Reform Far-reaching changes in the School Certificate examination are
foreshadowed in a circular which was issued on Monday by the Board of Education. At present the syllabus for the examination is divided into four groups which include, respectively, English subjects, foreign languages, mathematics and science, and, lastly, practical and commercial subjects ; and to obtain a certificate a pupil must pass in each of the first three groups and in five subjects in all. The new recommendations would require a pupil to pass only in English language and in five subjects from at least two groups, of which group two or group three must be one. It would no longer be necessary, as at present, to obtain a credit in one subject. Two desirable results which would ensue from these changes would be the giving of greater importance to subjects of practical value and the reduction of the com- petitive aspect of the examination. Some 6o,000 or 70,000 boys and girls sit for the examination each year, and it is desirable that rather than being regarded as a means of selecting the most able children the granting of the certificate should indicate the attainment of a certain standard of education.
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