"Syllabuses now demand skills and knowledge which were once the exclusive preserve of the university sector, examined through sophisticated and well researched assessment techniques which give more information about the overall abilities of our young people - in this modern day - than was ever the case through the hit-or miss one-type-fits-all essay approach of years gone by."

"And as to that Golden Age of yesteryear when standards were unquestionably high - as rumour would have it," she continues, "then that period is purely a figment of fading memories - as evidence shows in the following examples:"

1952 JMB O-level English Language Examiners' Reports:
There was ... much inferior work arising, it would seem, not only from incompetence but from an absence of respect for written language. Colloquialisms, on occasion, enliven narrative but their frequent use and crude forms, noted by all examiners, reflect poor quality of mind and of taste ... The abuse of punctuation suggests that most candidates are ignorant of its function in determining structure and meaning, or are not impressed by its importance.

Times Educational Supplement of 5 February 1954, under the heading Illiteracy in GCE it is stated:
It must be held disquieting that all eight examiners, independently, reported that a very high proportion presented the fruits of their study of acknowledged English classics in a written form that was, to some serious degree, illiterate. The word is not used lightly. The widespread ignorance or indifference about the most elementary points of reputable English usage was distressing in itself; in the context of the candidates' reading and their pretensions to discuss it, this evidence was frightful and frightening...

Don't expect perfection in our young people, we never had it in the past and we are unlikely to get it in the future," she said. "But do expect them to work relentlessly throughout their school career for the success that they achieve. Congratulations, is the order of the day - for them, their teachers and the examiners - not criticism based on a false pretext."

Notes to Editors
1. Further information from George Turnbull on 01252 623561 or 07889 320830.