We might marvel at the progress made in every field of study, but the methods of testing
a person s knowledge and ability remain as primitive as ever they were. It really is
extraordinary that after all these years, educationists have still failed to device anything more
efficient and reliable than examinations. For all the pious claim that examinations text what
you know, it is common knowledge that they more often do the exact opposite. They may be
a good means of testing memory, or the knack of working rapidly under extreme pressure,
but they can tell you nothing about a person s true ability and aptitude.
　　As anxiety-makers, examinations are second to none. That is because so much depends
on them. They are the mark of success of failure in our society. Your whole future may be
decided in one fateful day. It doesn t matter that you weren t feeling very well, or that your
mother died. Little things like that don t count: the exam goes on. No one can give of his best
when he is in mortal terror, or after a sleepless night, yet this is precisely what the
examination system expects him to do. The moment a child begins school, he enters a world
of vicious competition where success and failure are clearly defined and measured. Can we
wonder at the increasing number of drop-outs : young people who are written off as utter
failures before they have even embarked on a career? Can we be surprised at the rate among
students?