Jamaica Local Examinations-Proposed Changes - The National ...

.. ./Brief Historv.. -:- -~MipiSTRY PAPER NO . . f>_ .. 7JAMAICA LOCAL EXAMINATIONS -PROPOSED CHANGESIt has been conceded for a long time that the entire structure ofthe local examinations was in need of revision in the light of the social,economic, and educational developments of recent years.2. Accordingly, the Minister of Education appointed a Representa tiveCommittee with the following terms of reference :-; 1 To examine and review the structure of the examinations(with the exception of the Common Entrance Examinationsfor entering t h e high schools and technical high schools,and the Training Colleges' examinations), and to make recommendationsfor a revised programme which would be compatiblewith the demands of the contemporary scene 1 '.was a s follows :-The Committee's Report is attached as an Appendix.Its personnel~~stingMr. R.E. Mais, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education 1ChairmanMr. P.C.C. Evans, Education Adviser, Vice-ChairmanMr . J.E. Brown, Adviser on Technical EducationHr . R. H. Bent, Chief Education OfficerMr. G.H. Owen, Principal, Hico Training College.Mr. U. C. ~ Jolf e , President, Jamaica Union of TeachersHiss Shirley Gordon 1Lecturer, U.C , W.I.Mr. Hugh Falkner, Principal, College of Arts, Science &Technology.Mr. R,C. Tavares, Principal, Vauxhall Senior SchoolHon. E. Dalton James, H.B.E., M.L.C.Mr. E.H. Cousins, Principal Education OfficerMiss E. M. Rhodd, H.B.E.Hr. J.J. Mills, O.B.E.Mr. P.A. Broderick.Local Examinations.3. The following are the official examinations which are set and markedlocally:-(i) The First, Second and Third Jamaica Local,(ii) The First and Second Jamaica Certificate of Education(iii) The Common Entrance Examinations for entry to High Schoolsand Technical High Schools.(iv) The Training College Examinations.There is no intention of making any changes in the Common Ehtranceand Training College :Zxaminations' schemes at present and the proposals inthis Paper cover the First, Second and Third Jamaica Local, and the Firs t a ndSecond Jamaica Certificate of Education only.

5 -possession of the ,first Jama_ica Certificate of Education, or. a pass certi-0 . ficate for the Second or Thitd Yea:i:- Ja~ a ica :Local Examination, or a recommenrlationfrom the Principal of a recogni s ed socond9:ry school tha t the candidatehas done good middle school work.-II. Condition~ fo~ a Pa ss: Candidates must sit and pass a t one examinationthe one .compulsory subJect - English l anguage - to-gether with any· four of the op.tioria1 subjects but may t ake as many as six optional s .cmd ari thmetic.The standard was to· be about the lev.el of the Grade II School Certi--ficate.If a candidate did not get the whole certificate, viz., Englishlanguage and four optional s,he vmuld receive a statement as to the subj ectsp assed.It is said that whensyll abuses and regul ations v.;ere drafted thepublic was made to understand tha t teachers and pupils would receive assistance:from ·Government in the following r espects:-(a) Coaching would take place during school time for under 15pupils doing the fir s t examination, and . ~n additional t e ach­. · er or two, according to the size of the . classes, wouldbe provided.(b)(c)Each school attempting botb examinations would be givena -snallgr·ant- t·ovrards acquiring some of 'the . ~'ba -~ic booksfor the examination so that at least the teachers wouldhave relevant ·material to pass on to tho children evenif they could not purchase their ovm cop;ies.The Second Jamaica Certificate of Educa,tion would bo r ecognizedby Government for entry to the Civil Service.(d) A number of cetitral classes would be set up at justifiablepoints over the island to teach successful Fir,.st JCBcandidates for tho' seoond examination on a system -somevvha tsimilar to that now qperated in tho evening i.nsti tutel3•Apart from allowing the first part of (a),viz., whole~timet eachinga t school of uncter 15 pupils, none of . the other conditions named wa s e· 'rfulfilled.( iv) Whatever may have been the reasons why wh~t ;wai" contemplated r ema inedunfulfille d ,•the fact is th.nt the Jamaica Certifica t e of Educationexaminations are becoming less p.opul ar with the passage of time.Not morethan 25• persons each y ear t ake the first Certificate examination, and . about35 take the second. There are many facto~s which contribute to their waningpopularity.Those include-(a)the introduction of the overage scholarship examip~t~onfor entry tO high schools V:rhich r e sults in fewer chil dren/remnininr;

- 7-(a)(b)(c)(d)the examination should be of a satisfactory standard;it should be a group examination; that is to say, theaward should be mc:.de on tho basis of attainment ina group of subject s.accompanying the certificate should be a s t atementby the Head Tea cher of the char acter and overallability of the pupil;failure to obtain the tchool l eaving certificateshould not preclude the pupil from sitting a subsequentlocal examination at a higher l ev el.(iii) Subjects for the examinationaPapers for the examin2tionshould be set in the following subjects g-EnglishMathematicsll General Pape·r.It is usually accepted tha t whil e an examination t ests the s t andard of. attainment of a candidate, it £lso helps to s hape the type of instructiongiven for preparation. Bearing this principle in mind, it i s r ecommended that.the examination should not be bookish but should be based on a syll abus fort he top forms of the senior school.ll pa ss in the examination should requirea fairly good standard of English with emphasis on expressional and interpretativeexercises.The pass mark should hot be less than 40% in the groupof :Subj eats taken together,__ provided tha t . the mark in the English papershould not be less than 50%. Mathematics should include arithmetic and el e-ments of geometry and algebra. The general paper should be set on the multiplepattern and should deal vfi th questions arising out of environmentalknowledge and an awareness of the country in which we live.-It is recommendedthat no fndication of tho subjects taken should beshown on the certifica t e, but rother that overall attainment should be signified.On the other hnnd, the oortificnte -should indicate the nature ofsuch practicalsubj eats in which the pupil showed petrticular aptitude, v1i thspecinl reference to craft, woodwork, domestic science, etc ••(iv) Standard of the Examination: Care must be taken that the certificatewill be of a standard tha t will eqrn public respect. On the other hand, itshould be within the achi'·:v:ement of the majority of the pupils who attendschool regul arly and complete the course.(v) Practical Subjectsg Pupils should also hnve the option of to.kinga certain number of practical subjects.These subjects should be assessedby the school in collaboration v-ri th Education Officers, and the school l ec:ving/ certificnto

- (.- 8 -certificate should attest to the pupil's prqficiency in these subj ect s.In dealing with the question of prnctical subjects thq following f actors0should be observed g-(a) practical subjects should be assesse d and not examined,and this should be tho ~esponsibility of the Rend Teacher ;(b) a r ecord of the performance in these subjects should bekepi in the schooi and be ma de avail abl e for examinationby those concerned with the examination.·. :/·' .... ·:.~ ..,· ...... ·.· ··-- · ._.. ,.(vi) Testimonialg As stated befo:):'e, the certificate should be nccompaniedby a statement by tho He ad Teacher of the char acter and overallability of the pupil.It is recommended tha t this testimonial should beprepared under the guidance of a formul a prepared by the Ministry.Theintention of this statement is twofold.On the one hnnd, it will providefor those who pass the examination an evaluation of qualities outside ofacademic attainment 1and on the other hand, it will give some . opportunityof recognition to those pupils who f ail t o pa s s the examination but who,in tho opinion of the Head Teacher, are considered worthy in other r e spects ,such a s character and deportment.r vii) Qualifications for sitting the examinntiom It is recomr:10ndedthnt any pupil who hns completed the senior school course \7ho is ~n tho: .~final year of school and who has attended for 70% of each of the t wo 12-month periods immediately before July _ of each year, ahd who expresses . thedesire, should be eligibl e to sit the examination.No pupil should becompelled to sit the examination, but it is expected that all VJho a r e eligiblewill do so.Requirements for AppreticeshipOrders8. The Apprenticeship (Motor Mechanic Trade) Order, 1959~ . provid e stha t for entry to apprenticeship the applicant should be"in possessionof a School Le aving Certificate of a Senior or All-Age School or ha s r cnchedan equival ent standard of education as certified in each _ca se by tho HeadTe acher and an Education Officer of· the area" • .. Your committee is of opinionthat the examination propose d fer pupils a t ~he end of their senior schoolcourse described above, would bo a satisfactory q_ualifica tion for :persons·, _... ..entering apprenticeship. It is r e commended also t k .t those p_upil s ·whofail t o qualify in this examination should be allowed by moe.nsof any formof further education availabl e to them, to enter apprenticeship if t ho yare able to prove to the satisfaction of tho Hinistry of Education tha t they/have since

~ 9-have since le i:r~ingschool improved their educntion . to a clegree thnt vvould· 6nabl e • them t o · profit -by a porioci of apprenticoBhip in any perticul :.r t r ndG.Examination to r~eplace the J amaica Local Examination and tho JamnicnCertificnte of EducntiongThe committee is of tho opinion that the name of the new exnminationshould be "Jnmaicn Intermediate Certificate "conducted on the b::tsis ofa new syllabus, and ther e should be one examinntion inst ead of two.Inconsidering tho question of the new J amaica Intermediate Certificate thefollowing factors form the basis of tho findings of the committee:-(a)the choice of subject should be very wide and shouldcover all the needs of students in Jamaica, and thesewould be used in determining what courses should be takenin· evening inititute s;(b) the standard of the examinntion should be somewhat lowe rthan that of the G.C.E.Ordinnry Level, and should prQvidea general education satisfactory for the requirements ofthe lower rungs of commerce, industry, tradES and otherservic es (e.g. postmen, police ranks, etc.);(c)(d)(e)(f)students would prepare for this examination through parttimestudy aft er . the nge of 15 ye ars and not during anyperiod of their attendance at a senior school or a seniordepartment of nn all-a ge school;since there may be eventually a s many as 17,000 oddpupils per year in a~prenticeship, industry, commerce ,_agriculture , etc. s oaking further education for betterequipping themselve s to play their part in the new industrialactivitie s of tho island, it is desirnble thatthey should do practical as well a s academic· studio s;it is comtempl nt ed tha t much of the work will have t o bedone on a part-time basis by meo~s of day rel ease or evening classes, or in short holiday courses and pre- empl oymentcourses in t echnical institutions, opportunities f or whichvvill increase as tho development ofevoning institutes, etc.become s mor e Ylidespread;while it will be necessary, particularly in the e nrlyyenrs, to continuo t ~:: uresent system of coaching byteachers outside the s,qhool1 hours, it is de sirabl e thntstudents should be a ssisted in the future by moans of thedevelopment of correspondence courses on a wide scal e.(i) Standard of tho now J amaica Intermediate Certificate: It i srecommended that there. shoul d be .£.:2£ examinc.tion at a level somewhere betweentho Third Jamaica Local Examination and the Cambridge School Cortificat0 •. It. is proposed tha t _ it .s houHl be in specific groups a s follows g-a Technical Groupb Commercial Groupc llgricul·tured Pre-nurs-inge General (of wide scope and many options)1 (ii)

10...( ii) Tho fir s t f our groups ma y be t au ght l a r gely in everjnginstitutes.The general gr oup shoul d all ow wide options so tha t pupilscould opt for the subj ects and activities which v-mul d serve them f orQualifications f or entry t o . TrainingColl eges,10. The qu estion has been r a i sed as t o v-rha t s tandard shoul d be set f ol'p~ r so n s t o be co.me eligibl e fo r entry t o trainin g coll eges, . Up t o t he presenttime c andida t es who pass the Third J amaica Loc al Examination a r e beinga ccepte d f or three-year cour ses, and ef f ort s a r e being ma de to enticeper son s with the Cambridge School Certificat e (or equival ent) to entert r aining college s and t o t ake a two-year cour sE3•It mu s t hot be overlook e dal s o t h nt the Third J a maica Local Examination i s tho minimum qualification: . r equire d f or probation e r s i:rt ~ h q:J primnr y s chool s yst em.With the introduction of t h o new J amaica Inte r me dia t e Certifica t eex amination it is r e commended tha t successful c andida t e s should beeligible fo r appointment ns prob a tioner s ~and they should nl so be all owe dt o e nter trainingcoll eges for t h e three-year course, but such entry shoul dl a r gely be sele cte d from- tho se who pas s tho gene:I;' nl paper ( group ( e ) a bove) ,and t h ese shou.ld be encouraged to, s tudy f or say feu~c:r more subj ect s a t theG. C. E. ( Ordinary)level, end thus qualify f or the ~-year course a t atraining college. It ma y be tha t h elp in this direction should b e af eature of evening. institute work, an d l

---11 '""These exaoinations are of good s t andard and have a wide recognition in theUnited Kingdom.They are loss knovm in Jamaica and probably still less soin the United States of America and in Canada.In certain trades the subject material of the examinations is not suitable to J amaican condition s;for example, the examinations in plumbing are l argely concerned with l eadpipe vvork (not used in Jamaica); those in electrical installation do notfit trades practicesand conditions in the island.Tvroplans to meot J amaican needs are possible:-(a)(b)The City and Guilds could be a sked to a ccept syllabusesprepared specially to meet locnl conditions,A series of craft examinations could be set up in Jamaicaafter consultation with employers and any associationof skilled workers. It would be for considerationwhether these examinations should include both a vrrittenpaper and practical test.Whilst the local craft examinations Vlould be valuable, it isdoubtful if there a r e sufficient trained teachers in craft subjects toimplement a local scheme. It is suggested therefore that for tho nextfive years the examinations of tho City and Guilds of London Institute beUMd and that, where necessary, tho Institute be asked t o consider a cceptanceof syllabuses appropriate to Jamaican conditions.Date on which the new arrangement should become eff< ';:..ve12. Your committee recommends that in order to allow a period oftime for making the necessary arrangeMents for the proposed School LeavingCertificate and J amaica Intermediate q.ertificate, the present arrangementshould continue for 1960 and 1961, and that these two hew examinationsbe introduced with effect from June or July, 1962,During the course ofthe waiting period steps should be taken to introduce new syllabuse s. Inthis connection, it is to be noted that with respect to the school leavingcertifice. t .;, newsyllabuses for senior schools cmd senior departmentsof all-age schools are being revised by a special a d hoc committee appointedby you for the purpo se, and it is anticipa t ed tha t the report of thiscommittee, together with the revised syll abuses recommended by th n t '~ o d y,will be ready a t an early da t e.13. SUWIW.J\RY OF RECO:MMENDliTIONS1) The Jamaica Local Examinations should be abolished (Paras.3and 4)I 2/ .

12· · · - 2) ··The J amaica Certifica t e of Educ ation examination's' should b e· ,_; ~po li sl:;le d, (Para.5} - ·... ·:. J) · A S9l:;looL -Le avtng ex-amiru1tion to be t ak en a t the age of 15 yearsby pupils who attend senior schools and senior departments ofall~ age s chool s shoul d be introduced, (Par a s. 6 and 7),4)The .School Leaving Certificate -should be regarded as satisfyingthe r equirement s of the Apprentice ship Orders, (Para , 8)5)A new ·examination t o be taken by pupils after the age of i5should be est ablished, This should b e a .single examinationa level' somewhere between the ex:i.~ting Third Jamaica Localthe .. G. C. E. (Ordinary), The new examination shoul cl b e knownthe Jamaica Intermediate Certifica te, (Para.9)year sntanda s6) The Jamaica Intermedia t e Certifica te shoul d be r egarde d as theminimum qualification for "Probationer" t eacher s and for .,.entry to training coll eges. "(Par a,lO)7) The City and Guilds of London Institute should b e asked toprepare revised syllabu ses for craft examino.tion t o suitJ amaican conditions . Thasa should be used f or five yec:rsor so, but Jam&ica shouid aim a t conducting local examinQtion sfor craftsmen. (Para,ll), ·•••••.••••• •·• •••• :, ••••• , • ·• •.•.••• ( C~1 a _ir ma n)...... . , .. , · ... ... .• o ••• ~ • · • •••••••••••••• .• , ••. • • . • . • _ (V~c.~ - Ch2irmnn). ••••••••• .•••• • . • • . ••• . , •• 0 ••••• • . •• - ~ ~ · .• • .. • • • • • • • • • 0 • ~ ...... .... 0 · •••• • ·. • • • _:,0 ••••••. •••• • . • 0 •••••• : • •••• .••••••••oeooooooe,ooo - oo~ooooooo _ ·,,,,,~, -,,···.•:•••.········· .. ····~········· ·! · · · · ··••. ~ - ·• ••.•••••••• ! • • • •. • • •. • '" .• 0 ..... ... .. .o · • ~ :o • • • o • • • • o o • o o o o o · o • o o e • • o • • • 0 • ............................,....• • • Q ;· f0ttOO ,OtfOOOOIOtOQ O Ot .000 ,000I .. O••·'••••••••••••••• .•••• 0 . ·:0 • -~ •••••••••.· . ..... . . ............................. ....~................... ~··7th July, 1960,.; .- -'·.}:: .· .. ,·· ,.

·' "·~ .. ~ .... ..The Jamaic a Local Examinations ha d their genesis in the lastquarter of the Nineteenth Century, when t hey were known as Pupil Teachers'From their inception, they were i dentifi ed with the fieldof teacher recruitment , and in the first ins t a nce confined to pupil teachers .;Volunteer 1 candidates were later allowed to sit t he examinations. Duringt he nineteen-thirties , the name was c han ged to t he Jama ica Localand since then from 11,000 t o 1 4 , 000 candidates have sat each year .Examination:':5. Be t ween 1 95 2 a nd 1954 the the n Education Department , r ealisingt he need for change , appointed a r epresentativ e committee whic h , afterdeliberating , r ecommended the introduction of the First and Second JamaicaCertificate of Education Examinations.When t hc.:>o examinations we r e introducedin 1955 and 1 956 t he int ention was that they should eventually rep l acethe Fir s t ,Second and Third J amaica Local. It is interesting to note thatproposals were made a t t he time for correcting two of the most seriousde f i ciencies in the Local examinations arrangements .Special classes shou l dbe encouraged so t hat students who had already l eft the primary s chool wouldb e affo r ded better facil itie s for obtaining ins truction, and the scheme andsyll abus were design e d to conform with modern educa tiona l thinking . What wascontempl a ted was no t f ulfi lled .Not more t ha n 250 persons sit the firstc ertificate eac h year and only a bout 35 take the second .Teaching facilitie sr emain i nadequate and , besides, there is little doubt that widened grammarschool opportunities s ince 1957 have divert e d many prospective pupils.The Hew Scheme.6. Whatever the deficiencies of the past , it is essential for thevast majority of primary, all-age and s enior school pupils to be providedwith a syst em of testing which is compatible with t he r e -organi sed educationaprogramme and the country's e conomic a nd soci a l development .considered alongside the justifiable criticisms of the Jama i ca LocalWhen this i sExamina tions as s e t out in par agraph 4 of the C01mnittee 's Repor t , the basicor fundamentalchanges whic h arc now proposed can be seen in true perspectiveDe cisions have been t al;: en which will ensure the following(a) The abolition of the existing local examina tions ,namely, t he First, Second and Third J amaica Loca l;and the First and Se cond Jamaica Certific a t e ofEducation.(b) The substitution o f -(i) a School Leaving Examina tion for p upils of1 5 years who att end Senior School s and theSenior Departments of all-ago schools;(ii) The Jamaica Ge n e r al Cer t ificate , which wouldbe at a l evel somewher e bet ween the existingThird Jamaic a Local and the General Certificateof Education (Ordinary)i(It will b e observedthat the Commit t e e's nomenclature of 11 The J amaica/TYl r . "'1'; ,, /! -i !:': + r:.

- 3 -Intermedia t e Certifica te 11 has beendiscarded in f a vour of the ;'JamaicaGe neral Certi ficat e" ) .(c)and provis ion for craft examinations a nd f a cil itiesf or s chool l e avers to underta k e par t - t ime s tudiestowar ds t he J amaic a Ge ner a l Certifica t e Examina tion .J_h_ :;_.:_S~ hoo l Leaving Certi fica t e .!_c_g_l: l ~!l:Y .. .?-.r:tj__c.:_?_t~lJl l E;~-~:.._S. _~ hoo l in g at the age of 15 a t .§'1-__ s e l:!:_~_

- 4 -institutes so as to ensure that all students are afforded an opportunityof being adequately prepared . This a long with correspondence coursa s 1 ascheme which has been intensified with the assis t a nc e of a specialistadviser provided by the Ford Founda tion (F.A . E) is int e nded to cope witht his v ery serious defici e ncy of inadequa t e pr eparation opportunities.11 . It shoul d a lso be not e d tha t the new scheme i s also definitiveas r egards teacher t raining r equirement s in tha t the J amaica Ge ne ral Certificatewill be accept e d as the minimum qualification fo r entry to TrainingColleges and for employment of proba tioners. It is hope d that the JamaicaGeneral Certificate will provide opportunities for studies a t a fairly goo dlev e l for the thousands of young people who have not been able to enter h i g ~or teehnical high schools . The vari e d n a ture of t he syllabus will giveopportunity for theB to achieve succ ess in a subject group for which theiraptitudes fit them. Along with the provision for t uition of candidates,t his should go a f a r way to relie ving much of the disappointment a nd frustra ­tion current among those who take the Loc a l Examinations .Introduction of the Examination.12. These proposals were r e f erred to the Education Advisory Councila nd t he JaJ.laica Union of Teachers. Both bodies in endor sin g the r e comm enda -tions stressed tha t the existing examina tions should not be abolished beforet he new ones are firmly established. With t his the Ministry of Educa tionagrees .13. The n ew syllabus es for the Jamaica Gene r a l Certificate havea lready been fra med by a Special Committ ee and are rea dy for issue. TheEducation Advisory Council and the Jamaica Un ion of Teo.c hers were given th::;opportunity of studying these propose d syllabuses and of comm enting on t hornbefore they we r e finally fra med.1~- . In o:;:_9-.-£E to give t c·a chers a nd the ge~~+-1-:mblic c:ve"E_yOJ:l)?.Ortuni t ;J' of digesting the new proposals and to allow for administrative~_r_E~-:J. g~ments , it i_~ r~osed tha t t he n ew examinations b e int rod uc ed for t~10Tho existing e x aminations will be gr a du a l ~zabolished within a r easonabl e time a ft e r tha t dat e .The Cost.15 . The cos t of implementing t hose proposals is estimate d to be asfollows1964/65Annual cost ofconducting allexisting exams.Cost of SchoolLeaving &: Inte r-­mediate Exams.Re duc ed expenditureon abolitionof existin glocal exa1:1.s .Net IncreaG ee v entually£30 , 50011,010.0i:::V7,2503,760The above assumes that in 1964 a pproximately 17,000 pupil s ~ illjsit

- .- 5 -sit the School Leaving Certifica te Examination and 4,000 the JamaicaIntermediat e Certificate .16 . The Honourable House will be invite d by r esolution toapprove these proposals so t hat steps can be take n in good timeto introduce the School Leaving Certificate and Jamaica GeneralCertificate exami nations in 1964.MIN I STRY OF EDUCATION23rd February , 1962 .

t ! i ..Hori. Minister of Educ a tio~, .·'··.· ~ . . i '. B,~port of the Committee appointed by the ].finister· ·· · ·· of Education to consider Local Examinations. 'We were ~ppoint~'d ·by you to serve on a committee \7i th the followingt erms of reference ~-In the light of education. developments in tho island 1the structure of local examinations and to r eport towith particular r eference to-( al: ·~~(d)(e)(f)to examinethe l'linisterJamaica Local Examinations;Jamaica Certificate of Education;the desirability or otherwise of instituting aschool leaving CBrtificate for senior school andall-age school leavers;certificates for part-time students attending technicalhigh schools and evening institutes;what examination system is needed for students whocontinue courses after the school-leaving age on eitherfull-time or part-time basis;any other relevant matter.2. The personnel of the committee was as follov~ :-Mr. R. E. Mai s - Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education - Chairman~tr. P. C. c. Evans - Education Adviser, Vice Chairman.Mr. J, E. Brovm Adviser on Technical EducationMr. R. M. Bent Chief Education OfficerMr. G. H. Owen Principal, Mico Training CollegeMr. U. C. Wolfe President,Jamaica Union of TeachersMiss Shirley Gordon - Lecturer, U. C.; W. I.Mr. Hugh Falkner - Principal,Collogo of Arts, Science and TechnologyMr. R. C. Tav ares - Principal, Vauxhall Senior SchoolMrs. E. Dalton-James, M.B.E., ~L.C.Mr. E. H. Cousins - Principal Education Officer, Ministry of Edu cationMiss E. M. Rhodd, M. B. E. .Mr. J. J. Mills, O. B. E.Mr. P. A. Broderick.Jamaica Local Examinations3. The Jamaica Local Examinations originated as the Pupil TeachersExamination in the last q_uarter of the last century, lit that time they werethe sole medium of t eacher recruitment, and holders of the Second, Third andFourth Pupil Teachers Examinations t aught f or small salarie s as unregisteredt eo.chers.Tho se who pa-ssed tho :F'ourth Examination, or the Trird after theexaminations had been reduced to three, became eligible to sit tho entranceexaminatioh to training colleges.· Before the · end of the century there wassuch a demand for grammar school education and so few opportunities of provid-.ing it, tha t the senior sections of all-age schools began to send a l argenumber 'of pupils for theexaminations as 'Volunteer' candidates as avmt ored down substitute for secondary education,The number of pupil t eachersdiminished as rapidly as the ~umber ' of 1 volun1;e.ers 1 increased. During the(.'/1930 ' s

- 2 -1930's the name"Pupil Te a chers Examination" was changed to "JamaicaLo.cal Examination".For many years up to the present time the numberof candid~t~ .s ~~ttin-g' ,~J:+e' - e~~amin a tioris has ranged batween n,oOJ and. .._ )4.,_QOO. - Th~sE3. examinat:i,.on.swere of particular value in the rural p artsof Jamaica where there vas little opportunity ~oradolescent girls andboys on leaving primary schools to receive education beyond the levelofthe senior grades of those sch.~ols or to qualify for satisfactoryemployment. Therefore they went outon the stre~t;s to join the r anksof the umemployedand unde:r:-employed unless primary ::;;chool t e achersgot hoid of them and influenced them to return for . private lessonstowards sitting the Jamaica Local Examinations.~i)The examination is in three stages taken at the average ago of1st J. L. E.2nd 5-. L. E.. 3 rd -.T. L. E.c. 12-14c. 14-16c. 16 up to even 24There is a wide spread of purely academic subjects, v-rhich include generalscience and .arithmetic, but no practical subjects.1st and 2nd .Yearo English Lang~i'age and Literature~ . · .A:d thmeticGeneral ScienceScripturee C-eogr~phy .·· f Historj arid--Civics3rd YearAll the above plus either Teaching or oneof the followingg --. -- --- --- -';. _Home Economics· AgricultureCommercial Practice.( ~i)The Third Jamaica Local Certificate is the ch:ief passportto probationer teaching, Caledonia Junior College and training colle.gosIt. is also. used for entry to nursing, Jamaica School of Agriculture andthe Police Force, etc. Its standard .is much below that of the SchoolCertificate or the G. C.E ~'0"- level, and all the institutions and serviceswhich have .used it ~n the . pat)t are J:;lOW demanding a higher standardof entry with .-greater re}. evance to the demands of a changing J amaica •. . . ',, t ' . . : . . •. • ~ •4. For many years thy !. .amp.~ca Local Examinati9ns have . been under gruvecriticism on . severa;I. coun.t_s both by the general public and by the Jamaica-. .. • . . , ·' , _. . ' · .. :L . ~ .Uni.on of Teachers. i.ts~lf. You;r ~ommi :tte_e is of opin :~on that the timehas long come when an examination which is relevant to the needs of the/young

youngpeople,and of an acceptable s t andard, should repla ce the JamaicaLocal Examinations, The main criticisms are as follovvs g-(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)The content of the syllabuses is entirely bookish andout of rel ation to the changed needs of some 14,000 young peoplewho pursue .the exnminations yearly. There Eire no practicalsubjects included, and useful subjects like mathem2tics andscience are barely t ouched upon. No foreign language is included,It is considered to be unsound that the examinE~tionbe taken in three s t ages ,shoul dTeaching for these examinations takes place for the mostpart at evening classes when pupils are tired and hungry.Methods are chiefly cramming and regurgitation.Standards set for passing have been extremely low, and Quiteoften, in order to maintain nbout a 20% pass of some 14,000pupils annually, some amount of accommodation of weakcandidat es ha s t aken plac·e.These examinations do not enjoy the respect of the employingpublic, yet the majority of young people who ar e compell ed towork at 16 or 17 have no other opportunity of getting anythingof greater value.Jamaica Certificate of Education5, Throughout 1952 - 54 a widely representative committee appointed bythe Education Department considered plans for the abolition of the JamaicaLocal Examinations and for their r epl a cement by a new examination calledthe Jamaica Certificate of Education.The examination was to be in two stages - the First and Second.The first was set f or the first time in 1955, and the second in 1956.(i) The Firs t J. c. E. -Subjects and ·GroupingsgA_. _Q _ :~mpul sory Subj oct s.g~(3)''( ))Eng2. ::_ 1 Language and CompositionSoci. =;_ Studies (two papers) (History, Civics, Geogra-. .Arl. thmetJ.c.phy)"'_•.r.' ;.B, Optional Subjects1 Gener al ~~a thematics( Algebr a and Geometry)2 He alth Science3 Biology4 English Lit~r n t u r o5 Religious Knowledge6 Woodwork1 MUsic (Theory)N, B, Students ar e r eQuire d to commence s~udies inthe follov;ing subjects during preparation f v-._tho first examination if they are being off erodin the second ex aminationgLatin,Spanish,French, ArtTo 'reach the standard reQuired in the se. subjects in the second examination atleast three years of preparation are nocossary./In addition t o

. ·f.i_"_- 4• ,i. ~ • ,·' • . i-In ad ditio~ to the three compul sory subjects,c anilidates may .offer a ma;xinrum of f our optionalsubj octs. To obtain a pass in the examinc.t tilbnas a \vhol e , · c an di dat es ll1L).st .• p3:ss in .a t •1 o ~ s tt v1o optional . subj ects, and failure in a dcl iti!bno.lsubjects offer e d above the minimum two does notaff ect c andida t o s el igi bl e for .. a . pa s:s award inthe e~amin a ti o n as a whole.0The standard v7as : set a t about the old CambricLge Junior Cer.tif i c