GCSEs will be cancelled this summer!

[AKissAndASmile]

So the Scottish equivalent of GCSEs have been cancelled this summer.

I posted in chat about this but barely anybody responded. Seems nobody cares because it's Scotland. I thought we were a united kingdom. Seems not. I can guarantee that if GCSEs were cancelled in England my post would have had numerous posts. Nobody cares because it's Scotland, even though during these corona days Scotland seems to be showing us a sneak preview of what will be happening in England in a few weeks. So my guess is that GCSEs will be cancelled this year soon

The fact that some children haven't been able to do the work is exactly why continuous assessment is a better option than exams set by an exam board that doesn't know the circumstances of every child and what they are capable of.

But you can't assess students based on what they are capable of but haven't learned. It's based on a perception and there is no way to do that fairly across different teachers and schools. So any continual assessment has to be based on what students know not what they might acheive if they'd been taught.

Exams are going ahead with a 3 week delay according to the BBC

So any continual assessment has to be based on what students know not what they might acheive if they'd been taught

This is precisely why taking the decision this early is a good thing.

@idril and @DumplingsAndStew please explain why you think exams would be better than continual assessment right now? Do you think an exam board will be able to set an exam that would be fair to everyone?

@DizzyPigeon

So any continual assessment has to be based on what students know not what they might acheive if they'd been taught

This is precisely why taking the decision this early is a good thing.

@idril and @DumplingsAndStew please explain why you think exams would be better than continual assessment right now? Do you think an exam board will be able to set an exam that would be fair to everyone?

No but nor do I think they can come up with a fair system of continual assessment.

It's all shit but exams are the least worst solution in my opinion.

Okay, but why do you think exams, set by a board that know nothing of what each school and class have managed to get through, a better way of judging ability than assessments done by the teachers that do?

I am willing to have my mind changed on this, but I have not seen any reason to do so yet.

www.gov.uk/government/news/students-to-be-given-more-time-to-prepare-for-2021-exams

@DizzyPigeon

Okay, but why do you think exams, set by a board that know nothing of what each school and class have managed to get through, a better way of judging ability than assessments done by the teachers that do?

I am willing to have my mind changed on this, but I have not seen any reason to do so yet.

In a perfect, unbiased world, this would be fine but unfortunately teacher assessment is always going to be subject to bias and cheating.

The whole point of exams ia to compare students across the country. How do you compare students who have completed the early, easier bits of course with studenta who might have spent more time on harder bits?

If students were graded only on bits of the course they'd completed there would be a massive incentive for schools to cover only the easier bits of the course to bump up grades.

unfortunately teacher assessment is always going to be subject to bias and cheating

Which is why, with that kind of system, there are always checks in place to assess the assessor.

How do you compare students who have completed the early, easier bits of course with studenta who might have spent more time on harder bits?

Exams aren't about comparing students though? It's about assessing ability. Which you can do when you see how each student has done with everything they have completed, regardless of how many have done that.

If students were graded only on bits of the course they'd completed there would be a massive incentive for schools to cover only the easier bits of the course to bump up grades *

That's not how it would work though. If everyone was getting high marks, then they would adjust the assessments accordingly. And schools would have a helluva lot to answer for if they were all basically slacking!

This isn't about making permanent changes. This is about doing the best we can for our current school pupils in very difficult circumstances.

What a weird post why would people in england and wales worry about scottish exams , like scotland i guess won't worry too much about english exams
But looks like england isn't going scotlands way yet
Scotland has it right in my opinion but its still not going to make. Difference to english exams if we go the other way

I appreciate the whole 2 week half term lockdown is just a rumour at the moment

But if this happens the children will be another week down in the education, one assumes they’ll whack another week on to the delayed by 3 weeks exams 😶

And there are 10,000 children self isolating in Birmingham...no effect on education there then

I just want to know that the government have a plan B

I think cags should be done again

Assessed by the school so they are vaguely in line with 2019

Then if there is an anomaly either way those schools and those schools only are moderated by an external system