FOR MOST OF US, the next eight weeks spell sun, sand and lots of fun. However, for those applying for a secondary school place in March next year, this summer holiday marks the beginning of an intense period of cramming.
Two years ago, the Government cancelled the Academic Aptitude Test (AAT), which was used to gauge Primary Six students' academic standards before allocating them to different secondary schools.
The reason for scrapping the test was to reduce pressure on young children.
However, without AAT, some secondary schools feel they have lost a useful assessment tool. Schools now have to depend on a 15-minute interview to evaluate a student's personality, attitude towards learning, language skills, strengths and weaknesses.
As a result, other certificates and qualifications are replacing the ATT as a performance indicator.
According to the British Council, the number of people taking Cambridge English exams has doubled from around 2,000 last year to 4,000 this year.
