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Most prep school boys take the Common Entrance Examination for admission to public (exclusive private) schools. The boys also take scholarship exams at the same time. I'm not sure if this is a separate test or the scholarships are awarded for good especially good results on the basic exam. Public schools use to have their own individual examination. A few still do. Most now accept the results of a common examination. This is a test of the basic foundation knowledge, required to enter a public school. There is a minimum pass mark (it's slightly flexible.) Fail miserably and you will not get into the school of your choice. some boys will end up applying to several public schools, before being accepted or not. It can be one of the most traumatic times in some boys lives. All the boys, taking this exam, will have some nerves, and in some cases this will affect performance. I am not sure where the boys take these examinations. The boys here look to be from several diffeent schools with different uniform regulations. Some boys had to wear their formal chool uniform. Other schools allowed the boys take the exam in casual clothing.
The CEE was instututed in the early 20th century. It soon became used by most boys and co-educational senior schools. A special 11+ exam was instituted in 1947, primarily for girls by a different testing group. Gradually the distinction between the 'girls' and the 'boys' exams disappeared as many formerly boys' scchools became coeducational as girls began staying at these schools likec the boys tom age 13. In addition many boys began taking the 11+ exam, including boys in full term colleges and boys from the state sector. Also boys began taking the 11+ exam as a practice for the 13+ exam. The Common Entrance Examination Committee (Boys) and the Board of Common Entrance Examination for Girls' Schools Ltd merged in 1989 to form the Common Entrance Board which is now known as and the Independent Schools Examinations Board. The Board is made up of members from the Headmasters' Conference, the
Girls' Schools Association and the Incorporated Association of Preparatory Schools.
The CEE assesses the basic foundation knowledge, required to enter a public school.Most prep school boys take the Common Entrance Examination for admission to public (exclusive private) schools. The CEE is taken when boys are between 12-13. It is an examination for admission to public schools. I had thought that this was the primary way of entering these schools. One reader reports, "I heard David Hanson discussing Common Entrance as a requirement for Independent UK School entry, he mentioned that less than 25 percent of pupils are admitted on the basis of Common Entrance. Schools often set their
own entry examinations and scholarships." I wonder if there is not a difference here between independent (private schools) in general and the public schools.
The CEE is for pupils moving from junior to senior schools, usually at age 11 or 13. The Common Entrance can be taken by girls and boys at 11+, 12+ & 13+. At many boys' prep schools the boys normally take 13+ examination. Many girls, however, take the 11+ examination. This is because many girls' public schools accept girls at age 11. I am not sure why this is, but probably relates to the generally greater maturity of girls at this age. Boys at full term colleges may also take the 11+ examination, because at theseschools the junior school is often thriugh age 11 and not 13clike a prep school.
The 11+ exam uncludes English, Mathematics and Science. It is designed so that children fromm either the private prep schools or the state primary schools can take it. Most schools encourage parents who want to shift from the state to private sector to do so at age 11 and not 13. The 13+ exam includes English, Mathematics and Science. There are also optional tests in French, History, Geography, Religious Studies, English as an Additional Language (EAL), German, Spanish, Latin and Greek. Most of the children taking the 13+ exam are from the private prep schools. The prep schools place an emphasis on teaching for the CEE and thus their pupils are at a great advantage over children of similar age from the state sector taking the test.
Children start preparing for the Common Entrance Examination 2 years before they sit it.
The boys also take scholarship exams at the same time. I'm not sure if this is a separate test or the scholarships are awarded for good especially good results on the basic exam. nOne reader reports, "I believe there is a common scholarship paper." Scholarships would be applied for prior to the day of examination. There are a variety of considerations here. Having extra ability in music or sports or academic brillience. A British reader tells us, "A boy I know called Nigel Short ( now grown up) got a scholarship to a local public school because of his academic ability and because of his gifted chess playing.
Public schools use to have their own individual examination. A few still do. Most now accept the results of a common examination. One reader tells us, "I think the picture on this page is a public school which has its own entrance examination."
While the exam is prepared centrally, the answers are graded by the senior school which the child wishes to enter. Many schools have a minimum pass mark (it's slightly flexible), but this mark varies considerably from school to school. Fail miserably and you will not get into the school of your choice. some boys will end up applying to several public schools, before being accepted or not. It can be one of the most traumatic times in some boys lives. All the boys, taking this exam, will have some nerves, and in some cases this will affect performance.
The CEE is prepared by the Common Entrance Publications, Jordan House. The children usuall take the exam at their own schools, both in Britain or overseas. The boys here, however, look to be from several diffeent schools with different uniform regulations (figure 1). Some boys had to wear their formal chool uniform. Other schools allowed the boys take the exam in casual clothing. Schools with a prep department sit the exam in their prep school at a time when all the children are having inter school exams. Boys from state primary schools who are also sitting the common entrance exam may go to public school might be sitting it in the school of thei choice. I expect that there is a flexible arrangement whereby prep school with no senior section would send boys to sit the exam at the feeder schools that their students attend.
Some public schools do not have a formal entrance examination. They take boys who have to pass a very intensive interview and being good with words puts you in good stead for being accepted as well as your academic ability. Sometimes these school are good at
attracting academic bright children who are dyslexic and would not show their true worth in a written examination.
A reader suggests that more information on the CEE is available from Common Entrance Publications, Jordan House, Christchurch Road, New Milton, Hants BH25 6QJ. They will have an up-to-date statement of the current examination.
A British reader here writes, " I’ve been looking at the image here and I have some comments to make about it. Notice the boy behind the boy in the shirt with the green sleeves. He looks to be asleep and I wonder what the boy in front of the boy in green sleeves is looking at. Judging by the clothes some of the boys are wearing, the photograph looks fairly recent and it seems strange to think that there are still schools in this country who insist on their older boys wearing grey shorts as part of their uniform, I wonder why that is? It’s very rare these days for me to see a boy wearing grey school shorts, the last time I saw a boy as old and as tall as the one’s wearing shorts like those in the photograph was 10 years ago. He looked about 11 or 12 and could quite easily have been 13. He went to a private school and yet there were younger
boys with him who went to the same school and they were all wearing long grey trousers. Perhaps the boy’s parents insisted that he went to school wearing grey shorts?" The disparity in the clothes worn by the boys is notable. We suspect that this is because that some boys came directly from boarding schools and reflect the different uniform regulations at different schools. HBC is not sure where this photograph was taken, possibly New Zealand or South Africa.
Independent Schools Examinations Board, Jordan House, Examinations: Common Entrance". Website accessed October 9, 2003.
Related Chronolgy Pages in the Boys' Historical Web Site
[The 1880s]
[The 1930s]
[The 1940s]
[The 1950s]
[The 1960s]
[The 1970s]
[The 1980s]
Related Style Pages in the Boys' Historical Web Site
[Long pants suits]
[Short pants suits]
[Socks]
[Eton suits]
[Jacket and trousers]
[Blazer
[School sandals
