The caption of this chapter suggests the inquiry as to what are the agencies employed by the school for this purpose, and how extensively does each function? The different means employed and the number attempting in the various ways to satisfy for the failures charged are classified and stated below, but the success of each method is considered later in its turn. One might think also of time extension, night school, summer school, correspondence courses, and tutoring as possible factors deserving to be included here in the list of remedies for failures made. The matter of time extension has already been partly treated in [Chapter IV], while the facts for the other agencies mentioned are rather uncertain and difficult to trace on the records. However, they all tend to eventuate finally in one of the methods noted below.
THE DISPOSITION MADE OF THE SCHOOL FAILURES
| Total No. Failures | Repeat the Subject | School Exam. Final or Spec. | Regents' Exam's. | Discon. or Substitution | Contin. No Repet. or Exam. | Both Repeat and Exam. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8348 B. | 3695 | 821 | 1333 | 2471 | 259 | 231 |
| 9612 G. | 5001 | 1025 | 1752 | 1929 | 249 | 344 |
| Per Cent of Total | 48.4 | 10.3 | 17.2 | 24.5 | 2.8 | 3.2 |
It is obvious from these percentages that school practice puts an inclusive faith in the repetition of the subject, as 48.4 per cent of all the failures are referred to this one remedy for the purpose of being rectified, although one school made practically no use of this means (see [section 5] of this chapter). We shall proceed to find how effectively it operates and how much this faith is warranted by the results. The cases above designated as both repeating and taking examination (3.2 per cent) have been counted twice, and their percentage must be subtracted from the sum of the percentages in order to give 100 per cent.
1. REPETITION AS A REMEDY FOR FAILURES
We already know how many of the failing pupils repeat the subject of failure, but the success attending such repetition is entitled to further attention. Accordingly, the grades received in the 8,696 repetitions are presented here.
GRADES SECURED IN THE SUBJECTS REPEATED
| GRADES | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Repetitions | A | B | C | D | INC. |
| 3695 Boys | 63 | 547 | 1863 | 1003 | 219 |
| 5001 Girls | 83 | 724 | 2510 | 1337 | 347 |
| Per Cent of Total | 1.7 | 14.7 | 50.3 | 33.3 | |
Less than 2 per cent of the repeaters secure A's, while only about 1 in 6 ever secures either an A or a B. The first three are passing grades, with values as explained in [Chapter I], and D represents failure. Of the repeated subjects 33.3 per cent result in either a D or an unfinished status. It is a fair assumption that the unfinished grade usually bore pretty certain prospects of being a failing grade if completed, and it is so treated here. There is a difference of less than 1 per cent in the failures assigned to boys and girls for the repeated subjects.