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6. The examination for the Advanced Course was held for the boys at Queen's College, and for the girls at the Belilios Public School. The questions were, with one exception, the same for boys and girls. Seven boys' schools and five girls' schools competed, the total number of candidates being 79. The first prize fell to N. J. Ezra, of St. Joseph's; the second to W. Drude, of the Diocesan School, and Orphanage; the third to Enriqueta Felices, of the Italian Convent, and to Hung Iu-chi, of Queen's College, bracketed equal.
7. Without wishing to detract in any way from the credit due to the successful schools, it will be worth while to regard the results rather closely, in order to see as clearly as possible how far each of the competing schools has succeeded in reaching the standard that might reasonably be expected of it. For this purpose I have analysed the marks, as given in Appendix D, and have endeavoured to show that allowances should be made for immaturity of years in the competitors, and for scanty numbers in the classes from which the competitors were chosen. I have disregarded in my analysis the work done by all but the three best candidates from each school, partly because some schools sent in only three candidates, but also because others sent in many for the educational advantage which those candidates would derive from the examination, and without any regard to the question whether they were not thereby pulling down the school's average of marks. Thus marked, and paying heed for the moment to nothing but the actual result, it will be seen that Ave schools-Italian Convent, Queen's College, Diocesan Boys', St. Joseph's, and Ellis Kadoorie School-obtained 70 or more marks per cent., a result which (taking into consideration the short time during which the subject has been studied) cannot be regarded as otherwise than very satisfactory. Next comes a group of 5 schools -Belilios, French Convent and Kowloon School bracketed, Diocesan Girls' and Saiyingpun with rather more than half marks, and very little to choose between them. Making the same allowances as for the first five, these on their marks must be considered to have done well. Last come the Victoria School and Cathedral School, whose papers earned exceedingly low marks of these the latter is not a strong school (see my last two Annual Reports); the failure of the former is considered in Appendix F.
8. If the figures in Appendix D are now further considered, it will be seen that there are two other factors which, while they cannot detract from the credit won by results, seem to reveal cases where the mere figures can scarcely be considered to have plumbed the efforts of teachers and pupils. Eliminating Saiyingpun, which was unavoidably late in beginning the Advanced Course, the schools in the second category, while they scored about 18 per cent. fewer marks than the first five schools, sent in competitors who were younger by 14 years, and were selected from 19 pupils instead of from 254. It may be argued that the Chinese competi- tors, if their age favours them, are hampered by their difficulty in expressing their ideas in English; and that the masters of big classes, if they have more material to choose from, have also to give their attention to greater numbers at the same time. To say that victory must go with the big battalions because it has done so. I have, however, thought it worth on this occasion, would be unreasonable.
while to draw attention to these points, in order that when, another year, the terms of the competition are considered, the facts may be accessible. There is nothing to show that the girls are at a disadvantage as compared with the boys.
9. Reference to Appendix B shows that the questions set on the Advanced Course were easy; but this was only fair, as the time for preparation was so short. Appendix D also gives a Table showing the sum of the marks gained by the three best competitors from each school on each question. Attention is also drawn to the best and worst answers. It is hoped that this Table will be of use to teachers, showing them where their weak points lie. The noticeable unevenness in the figures given for different questions in the same school can best be accounted for on the hypothesis, that the course was too long for the time of preparation, and while what was studied was studied to good effect, much has been treated in an introductory fashion only. I have divided the marks under the headings, Good, Bad and Fair, according as they exceeded 80, or fell below 40, or lay between 60 and 40 per cent. Taking the gross result, one question was well answered on this calculation, and the rest were fair.
10. The examination for the Elementary Course took the form of a competi tion between Teams of 10 members drawn from the lower Standards, the Shield, (which is to be held for one year) going to the Team earning the greatest aggregate
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number of marks. And the 2 prizes were in the same way assigned to the 2 best competitors of the winning Team, and not necessarily to the 2 best of all; the abject being to encourage a high average standard of work in the schools. Ten Teams competed, other schools were unable to send in large enough-Teams to make a fair comparison possible. The papers were worked, under proper supervision, at the competing schools. The Shield went to Queen's College, and the prizes to R. Eastlake and to Ip U-Pak.
11. In Appendix E is given an analysis of the marks. Every school obtained half marks and over, except Yaumati with 47 per cent. The marking does not strike me as lenient, and the result is very satisfactory. In this examination the performances of the schools seem to bear à less mechanical relation to the circum- stances of age and numerical strength. The low age of the field from which the Team of St. Joseph's was drawn, singles it out for commendation, in spite of the size of the field. But perhaps of those that failed to command success the Belilios Public School deserved it best. That Team, youngest and chosen from the smallest field, took the fifth place. The Italian Convent, Wantsal and the Diocesan Girls' School also did well. The Diocesan School for Boys and Yaumati took lower places than was to have been expected; and still more so the Ellis Kadoorie School.
12. Appendix E also shows the average number of marks obtained by each Team for each question in the examination. Of the 7 questions, 2 may be consi- dered to have been well done considering all things; the rest were fairly done.
III.
13. There is no doubt in my mind that a really practical knowledge of the rudiments of Hygiene has been acquired. That was my impression before the examination, the results of which only serve to confirm it. The best papers were full and accurate: the worst contained singularly little of the meaningless verbi- age which examiners learn to look for at the bottom of any considerable number of papers. On the contrary, the worst papers, with few exceptions, gave me the idea that the writers were either struggling to express a correct idea, though language failed them; or else they were in the position of one who has fully comprehended an argument but finds that he is unable to recollect all the stages thereof, when he wishes to reproduce it. Many faults also were faults of omission rather than of commission. As an example, I will quote one of the worst replies of the worst boy in the worst Team to the question on the uses of cooking. He says:-"Because food has millions of germs in it, and they make us have many diseases, so that we cook our food to destroy all germs and we can escape from diseases."
14. The papers were very fair, if I may be allowed to say so. I cannot help regretting the absence of a question on the sources of malaria. Thanks to the action of the Government, that disease is disappearing from Hong Kong: but its prophylaxis will not cease to be of vital importance to Chinese boys, as long as they continue to return for their holidays to fever-ridden homes.
15. Turning to the methods employed in teaching the subject, I do not think all the teachers taught as much by experiments as they might have done. A few seem to be unable to dissociate the word from the ideas of stoppered bottles and small explosions. A little ingenuity is indeed required. I have been asked, with rhetorical effect, whether I proposed to show Classes by experiment the effects of an excess of carbon dioxide. And yet by breathing through a straw into lime water (a preparation which no family is without) the ravages of this gas may be illustrated in the most startling manner. I wonder how many of the pupils who discoursed on damp courses had been taken to the nearest house under construction, to see one.
16. The Elementary Course is not long, and few children leave English_and Anglo-Chinese Schools before reaching the Fourth Standard. If they do, I do not think they will have been able to assimilate much of the teaching in so short a time. I am therefore of opinion that instruction in Hygiene might be deferred till Standard IV. The Handbook is really too hard for Standard III to use as a Reader.
17.
Another year, something should be done, at any rate in the examination on the Advanced Course, to put the small schools on a less disadvantageous foot- ing. It would be only fair if Queen's College treated the divisions of her Classes