Simple solution to exams rumpus
IN the middle of the furore concerning examinations, I saw banners bearing the words “Teachers know best”.
As one who served for a considerable time at the chalkface I fully concur. In the overwhelming integrity of cases it is so. Who better to assess the academic ability of a pupil than a teacher who very often has been acquainted with a young person for five or even six or seven years?
Yet, during my latter days in the teaching profession I had the misfortune to come across instances where a headmaster would severely reprimand a teacher for giving an adverse report on a pupil’s work and would compel him or her to give a more favourable impression of that pupil’s performance. The reason often given was that encouragement rather than a reprimand would improve the situation. While it is true that no teacher should deliberately set out to dishearten a pupil, it is also incumbent upon him to present a correct and balanced report so that both pupil and parent should know what the true position is.
In the instances to which I referred I rather suspect that the true intention for changing the reports was a desire on the part of the headmaster to show how well things were under his administration.
I rather suspect that the same tendencies are at work today and that teachers are pressured to give exaggerated estimates of their pupils’ expectations to enhance our view of the school and, of course, that of the headmaster. Yes, teacher does know best, but the pressure upon him, both from the headmaster and school governors, can be very heavy indeed.
There is no substitute for an examination to assess a pupil’s ability. No-one could have foreseen what things would be like at the beginning of lockdown. But things (so we are told) have improved. Why not, then, if this is so, hold the examinations in September (as some were before), mark and give the results before Christmas, with the college year, in these exceptional circumstances, opening in January? This would enable the situation to return to some sort of normality with pupils knowing that they have been fairly and correctly assessed.
Revd G Carey Jones Llangenner, Llanelli