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Senate

Registrar

.31)

Founding Conference: Service on Ad-

May 20, 1966.

mission to Universities and Colleges,

Ottawa, April 26-27, 1966.

The President was invited to send representatives to this Conference. The

Registrar was asked to attend as a delegate, Dr. Lorne Kendall, Head, Department

of Psychology went as an observer. (Unfortunately, Dr. Kendall became seriously

ill on arrival and was hospitalized and therefore was unable to attend any of the

meetings).

The Conference was called under the auspices of the Standing Committee of

Ministers of Education of the Provinces and the Association of Universities and

Colleges of Canada. Its purpose was to consider a recommendation to establish a

Canadian Admissions Test Service similar to the College Entrance Board in the

U.S.A. The Conference, which was attended by 85 delegates and 50 observers,

representing every group interested in admissions problems, endorsed the recommend-

ation of the planning committee.

The Conference then elected a Board of Directors and instructed it to proceed

with the incorporation of the Service

The Service intends to develop standard aptitude tests and achievement tests,

both in the English language and in French, which can be administered to any

student in any part of Canada and the results of which will be given to the Univer-

sities subscribing to the Service

It is

not at all clear what the development of these tests will mean to Simon

Fraser. The Universities and the Department of Education in B.C. have been cool to

the idea ever since it was first raised in 1962.

The advantages of the Service over the present system of Departmental examin-

ations for University Entrance are claimed to be as follows:

It will make the admissions decision on out of Province students much

easier as there will be a standard test for all of Canada. (Some ask - for what

Universities is this a problem, and what are they doing to solve it now?).

The Departmental examination results are coming out so late in the summer

that Universities cannot process the applicants fast enough; the standard test results

would be available much earlier.. (Some ask - if it is possible to give standard tests

earlier, why can the departmental tests not be given earlier; what is inviolate about

a September to June school year?).

It will provide an additional criterion to be used in the selection of

students for admission to University. (Some ask - granted, it is an additional

criterion; but so is the length of the student's foot, but nobody has advanced that

as a good criterion- what does the test result predict?).

...2

Senate.

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May 20, 1966.

There are a number of additional questions about the Service, such as,

how 1.s i: to be a national test when the Provinces vary in the number of years

required for Senior Matriculation (Grade 13 in B.C., grade 12 in ALber':,?

V; effe;t will a. standard test have on the curriculum in each Provnc.e(will.

-rd up with a standard curriculum?)? Is the idea of one big test going

r.st the trend in education to innovate, to create and experiment, to diverge

fr, F

otier institutions? Will the test be too expensive for the st:uden. to take

Qke Om is a $15.00 cost for the student)? Will the administration of the test.

Kvn to be done by "experts" in central locations which will mean travel monies

for the stu.derts in outlying districts of B.C.? If the tests are not cent:raU2ed

wlic will adrInster the test and wi.1l they be competent? If the tests are adc'p.:ed

as che criterion, or even as the of the criteria for admission to Kimersittes,

will the Department of Education pull out of the testing field altogether?

All these quesic'rLs are related to indicate that we will be taking a

hard look at the development of the proposal and working closely with the other

Universities and the Department: of Education through the B.C. Board of Examiners

before a. r:e.:omrr.endat:ion is brought: before the Senate to adopt or reject the use

of these tests as a requirement for admission to Simon Fraser University.

9An y

member of Senate who wishes more detailed written information on the

tes'.s and the Service, n'ay obtain it from my office..

D. P. Robertsor!