Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
DON’T FAIL OUR KIDS
Education Minister under pressure after Scots U-turn on grades
EDUCATION Minister Peter Weir is under intense pressure today over “no-exam” grades for pupils in Northern Ireland following Scotland’s U-turn and apology over the same process.
School leavers are expecting results on Thursday based on teacher predictions and an algorithm – the details of which remain secret.
It comes as teachers reveal their predicted grades only account for 30% of the final results – and a leading charity has demanded an urgent review of procedures.
The system last week triggered 125,000 downgraded results in Scotland and yesterday First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said her government “did not get it right”.
A-LEVEL results predicted by Northern Ireland’s teachers will account for just 30% of the final grade for students denied the opportunity to sit exams this year.
A charity has called for an urgent review of the procedures by the UK Statistics Authority to make results fairer and more transparent.
Exams were cancelled on March 20, and teachers were initially assured their predictions would create the grades, being offered indemnity from legal action over their decisions.
Now with hundreds of Scottish pupils marching in protest and an apology from First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, saying her government “did not get it right”, Northern Ireland is braced for a similar problem come Thursday.
Schools in England were told to expect downgrades in nearly 40% of their A-levels following analysis of the algorithm and data used by regulator Ofqual.
And with CCEA chief Justin Edwards claiming he remains in step with Ofqual, the question remains as to how many Northern Ireland pupils will have their grades slashed too.
Now the Royal Statistical Society wants an urgent review of the procedures to be carried out by the UK Statistics Authority.
It has seen some data and information from the Scottish Qualifications Authority about the adjusted teacherpredicted grades and expects to see similar information from CEAA.
In Scotland 25% – almost 125,000 pupils – saw their marks dropped from estimated predictions.
While Scots pupils can appeal their results on academic grounds, pupils in Northern Ireland cannot.
Here 23,800 students from 174 schools and colleges face alternative grading.
The RSS said a review “should consider the substantive issues of the data used and the adjustment algorithms of the various nations, but also whether greater transparency would have been possible and beneficial”.
They also called for Universities UK and UCAS to consider how to treat students whose predicted and estimated grades are far apart, and if they will consider previous achievements in addition to the estimated grades in making their decisions. And the RSS is concerned for the future too. It stated: “There is also a forwardlooking reason for reviewing matters now.
“None of us can be certain Covid-19 will not again disrupt next year’s exams.
“A similar situation could arise next year, although we appreciate it may be better to take steps to reduce teaching disruptions so exams can go ahead.
“There should be a full and open appraisal of what choices have been made this year about the statistical adjustments, whether different data might have allowed more individualbased adjustment, and whether it might have been possible to take uncertainty more formally into account.
“Accountability requires a range of choices are considered and public justification given for the choices underpinning any statistical adjustment procedure used.
“Otherwise, we will all be left to grade the exam qualifications authorities’ performance as ‘could do better’.”
The Mirror has learned that despite agonising for weeks over predicting grades, Northern Ireland teachers later discovered their decision would only account for 30% of the overall result.
One Co Antrim teacher with 30 years’ experience, said his colleagues have been dismayed for students who did not get the chance to sit exams.
He added: “This model being used by CCEA uses a manufactured algorithm which was basically created in secret and we still have not seen the details.
“We, the people who hold the information about our students and how they work, were not involved in it.
“As teachers, we spent a long time working on the situation and agonised over predicting these grades for our students.
“Then we were told afterwards they only counted for 30% of the decision. In other words it was a waste of time.
“Now CCEA is using previous data which will cost the Further Education colleges and secondary school whilst the grammars are in a position to inflate grades without being challenged because their historical data will stand. My colleagues in Further Education say these A-level groups are the best they’ve taught to date.
“As individuals our experience and expertise allowed myself and my colleagues to grade the pupils and we can stand over our decisions.
“But we fear they’ll be altered down leaving students penalised because it’s primarily past data that is being used.
“Guidance was slow to appear then when a lot of work was done, more guidance was issued and in some cases we were back to square one.
“The fact that teacher predictions would only account for 30% of the final grade came out at a meeting between Further Education college managers and CCEA.
“Like my Further Education colleagues, I am 99% sure of my data used. There will always be a few surprises, good and bad, but generally teachers are on the ball and the teacher prediction grades should be given much more credit.
“This whole situation is very frustrating for me, my colleagues who worked for the best and it’s unfair for the students who deserved the best.
“We believe CCEA could have decided the exams would be sat in January 2021 and avoided this whole situation. They still can.” Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has apologised after accepting her government “did not get it right” over Scottish exam results.
She said steps would be taken to “address concerns” and “ensure that every young person gets a grade that recognises the work they have done”.
She said ministers had taken “decisions we thought were the right ones” in unprecedented circumstances, but after “a lot of soul searching” had now accepted they were not right.
The Ulster Unionist education spokesperson Robbie Butler MLA said the apology from the Scottish Government will sound alarm bells for students waiting on results here.
She added: “The apology from Nicola Sturgeon over how A-level exams have been handled in Scotland will be a further cause of concern for those pupils still awaiting their results in Northern Ireland.
“The fear and exam result-related anxiety that exists among students – particularly those from working-class backgrounds – is palpable.
“They need to know that their concerns are being addressed before Thursday.”
We agonised predicting these grades then told they counted only for 30%. A waste of time
SENIOR TEACHER YESTERDAY