The selective school exams in NSW, Australia, descended into chaos at Canterbury and Randwick Racecourses. The event at Canterbury was cancelled due to overcrowding and logistical issues, prompting police intervention. Parents and students reported inadequate organization, leading to significant stress and inconvenience.
Parents voiced concerns about the suboptimal testing environment, citing reports of students being told to be quiet or risk failing the test. Education Minister Prue Car issued a sincere apology for the disruption and ordered an urgent review of the testing process.
The use of racecourses as testing venues drew criticism. Parents described significant logistical challenges, including long queues, lack of parking, and difficulties reaching the venues from various parts of Sydney. One parent detailed their arduous journey using multiple forms of public transport.
The president of the Northern District of P and Cs, David Hope, advocated for a return to local school testing venues, emphasizing the need for a calmer environment to avoid stressful situations similar to large sporting events.
When the announcement was made that the test had been called off at Canterbury Racecourse, those in the crowd started jeering.
“We’ve been working with the police to try and find a way to conduct this test, and unfortunately we’ve had to cancel today’s event,” an event organiser told the crowd. “Excuse me, we’ve also got a number of children who are here by themselves.”
One mother said the treatment of the students in the opportunity class test at Canterbury was suboptimal. “My son told me they were repeatedly told to shut up, otherwise they were going to get a zero on the test.”
The public order and riot squad was called in for assistance. NSW Police said in a statement that officers were told about 1300 students had finished exams and were trying to leave with their parents, while another 1300 students plus parents attempted to enter.
“Police assisted with movement of crowds and traffic to ensure safety at the scene,” they said.
Education Minister Prue Car said she sincerely apologised to the families and students who turned up on Friday for what was an important day in their lives. “Taking an exam is stressful enough as it is, and this isn’t good enough. I have asked the Department of Education for an urgent review, and it is working quickly to address the situation.”
Northern District of P and Cs president David Hope called for a return to sitting the tests at a local school.
“It needs to be a more placid environment,” Hope said. “I think it is ill-advised, and they shouldn’t do it again.
“It clearly hasn’t worked this time. It is like crowds at sporting events. You don’t want students who are sitting a test subjected to that.”
At Randwick Racecourse, lines of hundreds of students alongside their parents snaked around the car park as they waited in the rain to be allowed to enter.
Among those was Renee Shackle, who travelled with her daughter Callie across Sydney from Narrabeen. She said it was inconvenient, challenging and stressful.
“Logistically for parents, it’s really, really difficult, and it’s also stressful for the kids. If you have got an anxious child, or one that can predispose to anxiety, this sort of situation can be quite stressful,” she said.
“There was sort of no pre-warning that this was going to be the case ... it just doesn’t make any sense,” Shackle said, to hold an exam “in a facility where there’s no parking”.
After complaints from parents across Sydney, additional testing centres were opened by the Education Department in more locations in western Sydney last week.
But that seemed not to have made life easier for parents. Hon Yap took a bus, then a train, then the light rail so he could get his daughter Rochelle from Miranda to Randwick.
“The thing is, coming from Miranda, it’s not the most convenient place in the world,” he said.
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