EXAMS OFF
First ever cancellation leaves pupils in turmoil
SCHOOL exams have been cancelled for the first time in their history as coronavirus continues to cause havoc.
The extraordinary decision was made as deaths from the Covid-19 pandemic doubled to six in Scotland yesterday.
University exams have also been thrown into chaos across the country. In the latest developments: The UK death toll rose to 144 as Northern Ireland confirmed its first.
The number of positive cases in Scotland spiked to 266, an increase of 39 in a day.
Prisoners at Kilmarnock jail tested positive, prompting calls to release some low-risk inmates in Scotland.
Travel disruption deepened as west coast ferry operator Calmac stopped taking new bookings.
And Nicola Sturgeon warned “this is not a drill” as she prepared Scots for more upheaval.
Swinney, who is also Deputy First Minister, announced the exam decision in a remarkable statement to MSPs at Holyrood.
He said: “In all our history, Scotland has never cancelled the exams.
“Since 1888, they have been held every May or June without fail. In the midst of two world wars, the exams went ahead.
“It is a measure of the gravity of the challenge that we now face that I must today announce that the exams will not go ahead this year.”
Work is under way for a “credible” certification model based on previous class work. Teachers will be expected to use their judgment to mark pupils.
The move comes as schools shut their doors to the vast majority of pupils today.
In a bid to reassure parents, Swinney said children of “key workers”, including emergency services, will still have access to learning or childcare.
Councils are taking measures to protect vulnerable children who rely on schools for hot meals or a
“safe and supportive environment”. Some councils have said they will set up pick-up points for parents of P1-P3 children who get free dinners.
Swinney said: “Teaching, learning and support will continue – albeit in different ways for different groups of children.
“For the majority, this will be through distance learning and online learning, with different forms of ongoing contact with teachers rather than in school, face to face. Teachers and other staff who are well will continue to be working.
“For vulnerable children and those who have parents or carers employed as key workers, local authorities are developing approaches to support them.
“We will not cut adrift vulnerable young people who often rely on school life for hot meals or for a safe, nurturing and supportive environment.”
Swinney tried to calm anxious parents facing months of home-schooling.
He said: “Parents are not expected to be a teacher or to recreate the school day – your school will be giving you some resources and suggestions as your first port of call.”
Fiona Robertson, Scotland’s chief examining officer and head
of the Scottish Qualifications Authority, said teachers will give estimated grades to pupils, based on “the available evidence gathered throughout the year” and previous scores.
Pupils are still expected to receive their results no later than August 4.
Robertson said: “I fully appreciate that this will be an uncertain time for learners who have worked hard throughout the year and will now, with their families, be worried about what this means for them.
“Everyone here at SQA will do their utmost, with the support of the education system, to ensure that their hard work is rightly and fairly recognised, and allows them to proceed to further learning or work.”
The First Minister said she is acutely aware of the scale of the crisis and called for a “national endeavour”.
Sturgeon said: “I don’t want to scare people because, in my experience, if you scare people it’s not very productive. But I do want people to understand this is not a drill.
“This is real. This is happening. We all have to take seriously our responsibility to follow the advice. I have never been as acutely aware as I am right now of the inability of Government alone to deal with this challenge. “I, as First Minister, will do my best to lead this operation in the months ahead but I need the help of everybody across Scotland. “So what I can do is share as much information as possible but sometimes that will involve being frank where I don’t know the answer to something immediately or have to be honest that certain things take some time to be put in place.”