Twenty four students who should have started senior school next month are being made to redo their final year of middle school after failing an exam.

Acting Education Minister Kim Wilson announced yesterday that the pupils were given three chances to pass the test but failed each time to achieve 50 percent for English and mathematics.

The children being held back a year represent about six percent of the 360 pupils in M3 (middle three) who took the exam in order to transfer to the Berkeley Institute or CedarBridge Academy.

The Ministry of Education would not disclose yesterday how many failed when the exam was first held at the five public middle schools on April 17 or how many didn't pass on their second attempt in June.

But it did admit that the first exam was held during the Annual Exhibition and there were fears that students rushed their answers to get to the show.

Shadow Education Minister Grant Gibbons said last night he was told a "significant number" of students failed the first time. "Why was the exam given on the Friday of the Ag Show?" he asked. "There is also the question of whether the importance of the exam was conveyed to students and their parents. Hopefully, next year, lessons will be learned on how the whole process is handled."

One parent told The Royal Gazette he only found out his 14-year-old son failed the transfer exam last week.

He claimed his son, who was on the graduation list at his middle school and received honours certificates, got to sit the test just once.

The father said that after his wife complained to the Ministry, she was told the boy could attend CedarBridge in September but would be put in a special class and sent back to his middle school if he was not up to standard.

"It kind of annoys me on two fronts," said the parent, who did not want to be named. "If my son was failing and wasn't doing well, then I should have known before he graduated.

"Second of all, if he failed the exam then we should have got some kind of communiqué earlier."

Senator Wilson released a joint statement with the governing boards of Berkeley and CedarBridge to all media yesterday — a month after this newspaper first asked the Ministry about the transfer exam and was told by a spokesman that there was "nothing to report".

She said the past practice of social promotion — where pupils automatically progress to the next school level each year, regardless of results — could not be allowed to continue.

The Minister said it was unfortunate that 24 of the 360 pupils who began M3 in September 2008 had not met the requirements to start their first year of senior school.

"[They] will be retained for one year at M3," she said. "The boards of governors and I want to ensure that all students who enter senior school are academically ready for the challenges that they will face."

The statement said parents were told about the exam in April and that when "not every student" passed on April 17, concern was raised that pupils had not taken the test seriously because it was during the Annual Exhibition.

The statement said students got to resit the part of the test they failed in June, when their parents were informed that if they did not pass on the second go they would have to attend a July summer school and take it a third time.

Calvin White, chairman of Berkeley's board of governors, said both senior schools had required potential S1 (senior one) students to sit a placement exam "for a number of years".

"The results of those exams have clearly indicated that there are some students who are not properly prepared for senior school and will struggle and fail," said Mr. White.

"We consistently see students who, as a result of their academic struggles, become frustrated and end up with behavioural issues which put them even further behind academically. This situation cannot be good for the student, and they are better served by repeating a year at M3 to ensure that they are prepared for the future."

CedarBridge board chairman George Scott said students were given "multiple opportunities" to pass the tests before the decision was taken to hold them back for a year.

"While we understand that parents and students alike will be disappointed by this decision, we have to ensure that our students are well prepared for the future," he said. "No one benefits when students are moved on to another level of their education without mastering what has previously been taught."

Parents can appeal the decision to keep their child back in M3 by writing to the Department of Education. A committee will hear each appeal.

• Are you a parent whose child will not be going to senior school this September because they failed the transfer exam? Share your views by emailing news@royalgazette.bm or calling 278-0133.

The Ministry did not answer a series of questions about the transfer exam before press time last night.