Summer exams would be unfair–school heads
SCHOOLS and colleges in Wales have been told to start assessing pupils for exam grades again next summer if they have to be cancelled for a third year.
Regulator Qualification Wales stressed the plan is still to run exams in 2022 but said a contingency is needed if the pandemic halts them again.
That means work towards assessed grades must start early and run alongside exam planning.
Assessments must be based on how pupils have done throughout GCSE, AS and A level courses and not their potential.
Learners should be told what areas they will be assessed on but not the exact questions they’ll be asked or given any past papers being used, the regulator said.
“It is important that the assessments used to support judgements provide a true and authentic representation of the learner’s level of attainment.
“This will be distorted if the learner has prior knowledge of the questions that will be asked,” Qualifications Wales warned.
It was announced earlier this year that the plan was to run exams in summer 2022 with reduced content to reflect learning lost during the pandemic.
But there have been calls for an early plan B in case the situation with Covid means they have to be halted for a third year.
Some headteachers want exams cancelled anyway, saying they can’t be fair given Covid disruption in schools this term.
Publishing new advice to schools and colleges yesterday, the regulator added: “Assessments carried out over the next few terms could be used as evidence of attainment, rather than relying more on assessments carried out in the final weeks of the course, if exams are cancelled.
“This helps to spread the assessments out for learners and for centre staff who will be marking assessments.
“It also reduces the risk linked to leaving most assessment until the end of the course and the public health situation at that time making this difficult.”
It said teachers should prepare for contingency arrangements by planning what assessments they will use for Centre Determined Grades, should they be needed, so that assessment evidence can be gathered as soon as possible.
“For this to be manageable alongside preparation for the exam series in summer 2022, centres should aim to integrate these assessments into usual teaching and learning and existing assessment plans.”
Assessments should be marked to allow their use as evidence for a centre determined grade, if this becomes necessary, the guidance adds.
The regulator stressed early contingency planning for assessed grades was worse case scenario and work towards exams should still continue.
“The expectation is that qualifications will be assessed by exams and/ or non-examination assessments (NEA) with adaptations.
“However, we must plan for a contingency should changes in the public health situation lead to the cancellation of the exam series,” the regulator said.
“If exams are cancelled, centres will be asked to award centre determined grades to learners.
“The centre determined grade approach would be similar to that used in 2021 but with some changes to take account of lessons learned.
“Therefore, this guidance is not identical to the guidance produced last year.”
The process will be slightly different to last year.
If exams don’t run, exam board WJEC will implement a programme of external centre quality assurance processes.
This will include sampling of learners’ work and the corresponding grading decisions made by teachers.
WJEC will only provide guidance on quality assurance processes if exams are cancelled.
What about private candidates not at school or college?
Qualifications Wales said: “Options to ensure access to qualification grades for learners who are not on a centre’s roll and who would normally enter these qualifications as private candidates are being explored.
“We will share this information as soon as possible and by the end of the Autumn Term 2021.
“We will produce a document for private candidates that details the approach.
“We will work with Welsh Government, local authorities and other relevant stakeholder groups to ensure communication is as wide as possible so that learners who enter for qualifications as private candidates know what the process will be if exams are cancelled.”
Earlier this week, some head teachers warned holding exams next summer would be unfair with so many pupils and staff off for Covid-related reasons.
A number of pupils have already been pulled out of the November series GCSES because of Covid.
More than 7,000 children missed school every day in Wales in the week before half term due to Covid-related reasons with attendance low in crucial exam years and many specialist subject teachers off.
School leaders said the data does not show the true impact of the pandemic on education because Welsh Government school data continues to clump pupils off ill with Covid in the all-illness category.
There is no fresh attendance data this week as last week was half term but the attendance figure for October 18 to 22 was revised down from 86.0% to 85.5% by the Welsh Government. That was a slight fall on the 87.8% attendance rate the previous week.
Tens of thousands of pupils and hundreds of staff have had to self isolate or have been off with Covid in the first half of this term, leaving exam planning and learning seriously compromised, said heads.
The deputy head of one secondary in Wales said his school, and others, have already had to pull pupils out of this week’s early entry and re-sit November series GCSES because of Covid.
“This should be a red flag to those in charge that exams are at risk again,” he warned.
“The message from the Welsh Government is that Covid is still with us so why are they expecting schools and exams to be business as usual?”
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “We recognise that challenges have continued for learners and for schools and education settings into this school year. We are working closely with Qualifications Wales and key partners and continue to monitor the public health situation. Qualifications Wales has confirmed plans to return to exams in 2022, with adaptations to reflect the disruption to learning, and has advised schools and colleges of the contingency plans that will be put in place.
“These have been informed through discussions with key partners, including unions.”