NRS-17156 | Examination Books [Quirindi Public School]

Full description

The nature and function of the School Examination Book is indicated by the following passage, which, with variations, is printed on the inside front cover of each volume:

Half-yearly Examination of Pupils

1. All classes must be examined half-yearly by the head of the Department or the First Assistant, the examinations to be completed by the end of June and November.

2. The nature of each test, and, as far as possible, the actual questions set, should be indicated.

3. Pupils’ names should be, as far as practicable, arranged in alphabetical order.

4. Absentees from the regular class examination should be tested as opportunity offers.

5. The record for each class should be signed both by the Examiner and the class teacher.

6. The results of the class teacher’s tests may be taken into account, or, in some cases, may be entirely accepted for the purposes of the half-yearly examination when the Head of Department has satisfied himself as to the character and usefulness of the tests.

By examination of pupils’ written work, more, perhaps, than by any other single procedure, the nature of the tests given by the teacher, the character of the work attempted, and the effectiveness of the teaching will be disclosed.

The neatness of the written work and the standard of the writing are strong indications of the tone of the class and of the teacher’s control.

7. This record is of great importance both to teacher and inspector. The teacher will learn from it the general result of his teaching and the development of individual pupils. The inspector will take it into account in estimating the general management of the school and the work of the class teacher. It is also an essential factor in determining the fitness of candidates for the “Permit to Enrol.”


Each volume of the Examination Book typically contains copies of examination papers, normally pasted in but occasionally handwritten, with a record of the marks achieved by individual pupils in each subject, their overall results, and, if deemed appropriate, the teacher’s comments. The pre-printed format of the volumes provides for results to be recorded in Reading, Writing, Spelling, Composition, Arithmetic and two or three other subjects (with variations over time), and for the results of the June and November examinations to be recorded alongside each other. Normally one volume will be used to record the performance of pupils in the same grade during successive years, but occasionally the record may instead follow the progression of a particular class through the several grades. In the case of smaller schools, one volume may suffice for all grades of the school.

In this series the examinations and results of the 6A class during the years 1963 and 1964 are recorded. At some time subsequent to the use of the volume the name “Sawtell” has been written on its front cover in black marker-pen, but this has been corrected to “Quirindi” in pencil. The teacher who took the 6A class at Quirindi in 1963-1964 was at Sawtell Public School in 1966, which doubtless accounts for this volume's appearance amongst the records of the latter school.