Summary of Conclusions and Recommendations
154. The main conclusions and recommendations of our Report may be summarised as follows:
A. GENERAL CONCLUSIONS
Chapter I.
1. The history of the development of external examinations shows that for a century or more these have been found to have an important influence on the curriculum and the development of secondary education generally. Public commissions have repeatedly drawn attention to the dangers to the schools of an excessive and unco-ordinated growth of such examinations. The Secondary School Examinations Council itself owes its origin in part to the need to meet this problem (paragraphs 7-19).
2. The Education Act of 1944 gave rise to major new problems with regard to external examinations. With the great development of secondary education resulting from the Act, large numbers of children began to receive secondary education up to 15 years or over, for most of whom the traditional "grammar school" examination was not necessarily appropriate, even in the revised form proposed by the Norwood Committee (paragraphs 20-22).
3. The new G.C.E. examination planned by the Secondary School Examinations Council and brought into operation from 1951 did not provide a satisfactory answer for children in the ability range below those normally admitted to selective schools or streams. Though organised on a subject basis, the new examination, even at O level, was designed primarily for children aged 16 pursuing a "grammar" type of course. The Council's intention was that the examination requirements of schools catering for pupils in the ability ranges below these should be met by internal examinations, perhaps with some external assessment, together with objective tests and the extensive use of school records (paragraph 23).
4. But from the outset there was a demand for external examinations for the new kinds of non-selective schools. The growing evidence of this demand led the Minister in Circular 289 of July 1955, to state his objections to any
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form of systematic external examination for secondary schools, whether nationally or privately organised, other than the G.C.E. This policy was modified in Circular 326 of July 1957, in the light of comments received on Circular 289, but only to the extent that the Minister agreed not to discourage regional examinations for 16-year-olds, where needed for selection for courses of further education (paragraphs 24-28).
Chapter II.
5. The G.C.E. O level examination, being regarded as the main route to higher education or professional status, has attracted a steadily increasing number of entrants, not only from grammar schools and streams but from all kinds of secondary schools and institutions of further education. By 1959 about one-third of all O level entries were from establishments other than grammar schools; entrants from modern schools have increased rapidly in recent years (paragraphs 29-32).
6. Nevertheless, G.C.E. O level is widely regarded as unsuitable for all but a very limited group of pupils in non-selective schools and streams. There has been a parallel growth in entries for other kinds of external examinations, some organised locally by local groups of teachers or local education authorities, others organised regionally or nationally by independent Examining Bodies. Many of these developments have occurred in face of the Minister's discouragement (paragraphs 33-52).
7. Our review of the examinations of some of the more important of these Bodies leads us to conclude that, while some of these examinations may have advantages for the schools and valuable work is being done, many of them exhibit important defects, and, taken as a whole, they are likely to have undesirable effects on the teaching and curriculum of the schools (paragraphs 53-63).
8. The numbers taking these examinations are growing rapidly, and there is every indication that they will continue to grow, and that the individual Bodies conducting them will also grow in size and influence. A position is likely to be reached before long in which the work of external examining below G.C.E. level will be almost exclusively concentrated in the hands of a limited group of Bodies, in danger of becoming increasingly remote from the schools, and able to pursue their own policies without reference to the long-term needs of the schools or of the educational system as a whole. This situation contains very real dangers for the schools (paragraphs 64-66).
Chapter III.
9. Almost all the arguments of the Norwood Committee both for and against external examinations can be shown to apply in the present context. The arguments against external examinations appear to apply with special force to those taken at the age of 15 or under (paragraphs 67-84).
10. Assuming that it is not feasible to prohibit all external examinations other than the G.C.E., the Minister is confronted with the choice either of allowing the existing examinations to develop unchecked, or of taking the initiative in providing or stimulating the provision of examinations conforming to stated requirements (paragraphs 85-90).
11. Our study of the arguments has led us to the conclusion that, despite the dangers, external examinations below the G.C.E. level can make a can-
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structive contribution to the educational process provided certain conditions are fulfilled, and we are convinced that the right course is for the Minister to take the initiative (paragraphs 91-95).
12. Moreover, we believe that nothing would be gained, and much might be lost, by allowing a further waiting period for further inquiry and experiment. Our unanimous recommendation is that the Minister should take the initiative at an early date in stimulating and if necessary assisting the formation of Examining Bodies to provide suitable examinations (paragraphs 96 and 97).
Chapter IV.
13. We are agreed that the needs of the present situation would not be met by:
(a) external examinations designed for 15-year-old pupils (paragraph 98);
(b) examinations conducted by local Bodies (paragraph 99);
(c) external examinations designed for students attending part-time courses of further education (paragraph 100);
(d) a widely extended use of the G.C.E. O level examination at its present standard, or the introduction of a new sub-O level of the G.C.E. examination (paragraphs 101-106).
B. RECOMMENDATIONS
14. Any new pattern of examinations, if they are to play a constructive role, and their potential dangers minimised, should conform to certain criteria, namely those numbered (i) to (vi) below (paragraph 109).
(i) The examinations should be appropriate for pupils at the end of the fifth year of a secondary school course, when they will normally be aged about 16, and candidates should not be admitted before the age of about 15 years 9 months (paragraph 110).
(ii) Assuming that up to 20% of the total 16-year-old age group may be expected to attempt G.C.E. O level in four or more subjects, we think the examinations we propose might be taken in four or more subjects by candidates in the next 20% below these, and should be so designed that a substantial majority of pupils within this group would obtain passes in this range of subjects. We think that up to a further 20% of the age-group might attempt individual subjects. There should be both pass and credit standards (paragraphs 111-113).
(iii) They should be on a subject and not a group basis (paragraph 114).
(iv) They should be specially designed to suit the needs and interests of pupils in the ability range concerned and should not simply provide a replica of G.C.E. examinations at a lower level (paragraph 115).
(v) They should be largely in the hands of teachers serving in the schools which will use them. General responsibility for the examinations should be in the hands of about 20 regional Examining Bodies, on whose Governing Councils there should be representatives of teachers serving in the region, local education authorities, further education institutions, Area Training Organisations and employers. Schools should normally make
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use of the Examining Body appropriate for their area; Examining Bodies should normally accept only candidates entered by schools. The conduct of the examinations should be delegated in each case to a committee composed mainly of serving teachers, who should be advised on syllabuses and papers in particular subjects by panels of teachers from schools using the examinations (paragraphs 116-120).
(vi) The Examining Bodies should act under the general guidance of the central consultative body described in sub-paragraphs 19-20 below.
15. We propose that the Minister should invite applications from intending Examining Bodies. We assume that initiatives would come from groups of teachers, local education authorities and others in the regions concerned (paragraph 121).
16. Applications from existing Examining Bodies in respect of a limited geographical area should not be ruled out if the Bodies were prepared to reconstitute themselves so as to satisfy the above criteria for the purpose of conducting these examinations (paragraph 122).
17. Fees paid to examiners should be sufficiently attractive to facilitate the recruitment of suitable examiners, and Examining Bodies should be able to look to schools and local education authorities to make a positive contribution by encouraging and helping teachers to do this work (paragraph 123).
18. To ensure that the examination results have general recognition, it should be sufficient for the Minister to satisfy himself that the Examining Bodies conformed to the criteria, that a particular examination was suitable, that marking schemes and general arrangements were fair and efficient, and the results reasonably consistent with those of similar Bodies (paragraphs 124-125).
19. There should be a central consultative body to co-ordinate the activity of the Examining Bodies and to promote research and experiment. This should be associated with the Secondary School Examinations Council, of which it might be a Standing Committee. We venture to suggest that the Council might require some measure of enlargement to deal with this extension of its responsibilities (paragraph 126).
20. The consultative body should have the assistance of a small but highly qualified research and development group (paragraph 127).
21. The Minister should be invited to subsidise the initial capital outlay of the Examining Bodies, perhaps by the payment of headquarters' grants, but when the Bodies are fully operative, they may be expected to become self-supporting. Examination fees for candidates from maintained schools would continue to be paid by local education authorities (paragraph 128).
Chapter V.
22. The examinations should normally be held in May (preceding the G.C.E. examination). The results should be endorsed on certificates awarded to candidates, in the form of passes or credits, with the signature of the Chairman and Secretary of the Examining Body. The certificates should be known as Secondary School Certificates of the Examining Body concerned (paragraph 129).
23. While the results should prove useful to employers, it is hoped that employers will pay careful attention to the information provided on the certifi-
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cates, and also that they will treat them as only one piece of evidence amongst others, notably school records (paragraph 130).
24. The results should also prove useful to principals of technical colleges and others concerned with selection for further education courses, enabling them better to decide how to allocate candidates to appropriate courses. It is hoped that these users also would regard the examinations as providing only one piece of evidence amongst others (paragraphs 131-135).
Chapter VI.
25. While the secondary school system in Wales is in some important respects different from that which exists in England, there are the same compelling reasons for introducing, in addition to the G.C.E. examination, a more satisfactory examination system: and there are no strong grounds for believing that the solution to the problem of examinations in Wales should be different from that proposed for England (paragraphs 146-152).
26. While an Examining Body or Sub-Committee which is specially constituted to conduct G.C.E. examinations is not a suitable instrument for organising the examinations now proposed, it is possible that, without departing from the criteria for approved Examining Bodies as mentioned above, the Welsh Joint Education Committee, with its flexible arrangement of sub-committees to serve different educational purposes, could provide a suitable basis for the new Examining Body, or Bodies, for Wales (paragraph 153).