- 7
-
Until now, Government has only bought places in
Forms 1-3 from this sector and has been steadily phasing
out its use of bought places in the less satisfactory
schools as new public sector schools come on stream.
This policy stems directly from the 1978 White Paper on
"The Development of Senior Secondary and Tertiary
Education", and the present time-table aim at complete
elimination of these Form 1 bought places in 1988. When
this is achieved, there will only remain bought places
in private independent schools whose "facilities and
operating standard are satisfactory and that their
places are required to meet approved targets". These
words are taken from the 1978 White Paper (Para 4.5).
In its considerations the Commission felt that
to start buying places again that were less satisfactory
would be a retrograde step educationally
<
and indeed
-
in effect - a reversal of present policy as set out in
the White Paper. While the buying of less satisfactory
places was perhaps tolerable for a limited period in
Forms 1-3 to achieve universal junior secondary
education, the same cannot be justisfied educationally
at the much more demanding level of
Forms 4 and 5 which require a sufficiently broad
curriculum to cater for the full range of student
ability. The less satisfactory schools are not in a
position to provide the standard of education required.