SHOCK ATAR CLAIMS

VICTORIAN teachers are “pressuring” underperforming students to ditch the ATAR in a bid for schools to maintain top scores.

Several principals told revealed they were aware of schools persuading students to undertake an unscored VCE certificate.

They said some stressedout students – among more than a million Victorian children who endured up to two terms of remote learning – were opting out as a way of avoiding exams.

But they also said some schools were increasingly pushing struggling students to ditch their ATAR to protect their overall scores.

One principal in Melbourne’s west said more students were “being left behind by schools”.

“I am aware of some schools that will pressure students to undertake the unscored option if they are struggling academically,” he said.

“If the student doesn’t want to go on to further tertiary study then it’s a reasonable option, but we’re seeing more students being left behind by schools who should help them choose the right pathway but they are failing to do so.”

Another principal in regional Victoria said: “If you see a school which has had a really significant increase in its overall study score, you would want to look at the number of students undertaking scored VCE versus unscored.

“If you have a look at our top performing schools in the state, you would want to look at how many of them offer a VCAL program.”

Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority data reveals 4175 year 12 students ditched the ATAR last year, compared with 3811 in 2019.

The data also reveals a steady climb of students opting out of VCE exams from 4.9 per cent in 2015 to 8.3 per cent last year.

The option of completing a VCE certificate without a study score has always existed but until recent years was taken up by a small number of students.

Students complete their VCE but do not sit final exams and are not given an ATAR, which is the main tool used to gain a spot in a university course.

Wantirna College principal Kevin Murphy said while he didn’t have specific numbers on students undertaking unscored VCE this year, he expected it to be more than last year.

“The unscored option does come with benefits in terms of taking the stress and pressure off a score and exams but equally it might limit their options as well,” Mr Murphy said.

A VCAA spokeswoman said completing VCE without study scores was a valid alternative for some senior secondary students, including students who didn’t need a study score for tertiary admission and had chosen alternative pathways such as TAFE or were going straight into the workforce.