Minister attacks ‘dumbed down’ exams

DROPPING reading and writing requirements for students is ‘dumbing down standards’, the university minister claimed yesterday.

Michelle Donelan said she is ‘appalled’ that Hull University asked staff not to dock marks for spelling errors.

Earlier this week, the institution said it believed that requiring good written and spoken English could be seen as ‘elitist’.

But the minister claimed the Government ‘will act’ on the matter amid fears that youngsters could leave university unable to write properly.

The Tory chairman of the Commons education committee, Robert Halfon, yesterday called the university’s decision ‘patronising and counterproductive’. And Miss Donelan told MPs: ‘I am appalled by the decision to drop literacy standards in assessments. This is misguided and it is dumbing down standards. That will never help disadvantaged students.’

Hull University said: ‘Inclusivity is one of our core values and we believe that everyone – regardless of their background – should have an opportunity to succeed.’