To think there's another Boris U-turn fast approaching

[SackTheLotOfThem]

In view of Wales' latest decision to cancel GCSEs:

www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-54888376

I am glad I am not taking GCSEs or A levels next summer. I preferred exams, as someone who was able to myself justice in them, not become a bag of nerves. I also think that employers value exams not awarded grades more.

I would have everyone sit at least one of their subjects as an exam- logically for GCSE that would be English Language and/or Maths. Those who pull their socks up last minute can demonstrate this.

@reallyjustreally

This sort of commentary really annoys me - talks of u-turns.

I’m in no way a Boris fan. But if a decision is made to not run the exams surely that is reacting to an ever changing landscape and feedback.

If they didn’t / don’t change their minds they’d be criticised for not being flexible. If they do it’s called a u-turn.

As I said, I’m not a Boris fan but I really don’t think phrases like u-turn and criticising changes does his opponents any favours with the neutrals.

It would help if Johnson didn't categorically state things and then backtrack shortly after!

19th March - The next 12 weeks could “turn the tide of this disease”, Johnson told the daily Downing Street press conference on the pandemic, saying it was possible to “send coronavirus packing in this country, but only if we all take the steps we have outlined”

17th July - "It is my strong and sincere hope that we will be able to review the outstanding restrictions and allow a more significant return to normality from November at the earliest, possibly in time for Christmas,"

In October Johnson was quite clear his strategy was tiers as he didn't want to restrict people in areas of the country with low rates of infection & he objected to calls for a 2 week circuit breaker (despite Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland acting pre-emptively. The PM's spokesman said: “The PM continues to believe that targeted local action in those areas of high prevalence of the virus is the correct course.”We then end up with a 4 week lockdown. Should we believe his firm end date of 2nd December?!

So many needless u-turns:

They dug their heels in about not extending the school dinners over holidays.

Repeatedly for the last few months MPs asked them to extend furlough. Johnson said that extending furlough past October would only keep people "in suspended animation". At the last minute (and after people have been served redundencies) they extend the scheme.

In August Gavin Williamson said there will be “no U-turn, no change” on the grading system used to generate this year’s controversial A-level results. Then promptly had to do a u-turn after the country judged the algorithm results unfair. They caused a lot of students and parents upset.

Masks (in general and then in schools)

So, while I think you are quite right that policy changes should be expected in a fluid situation there have been some (avoidably) late changes on position; exam results, furlough extension & free school meals which have caused unnecessary distress.

As a parent of a year 11 child I hope they’re not cancelled but pass marks slightly lowered..

This is a complete disgrace that it’s not been a national thing.
I had a year 13 who went through the whole shambles last summer. The stress of the results was immense.
And here again with a year 11 who has isolated three times up to now.
Mental health at rock bottom and feels like giving up. What are we doing to these kids , it’s horrendous. No exams are worth kids feeling like this.
She has barely been in school since March and is expected to sit mocks when she returns having missed all the revision sessions.
So it just comes down to luck now whether you isolate most of this year or not as well.

@reallyjustreally

This sort of commentary really annoys me - talks of u-turns.

I’m in no way a Boris fan. But if a decision is made to not run the exams surely that is reacting to an ever changing landscape and feedback.

If they didn’t / don’t change their minds they’d be criticised for not being flexible. If they do it’s called a u-turn.

As I said, I’m not a Boris fan but I really don’t think phrases like u-turn and criticising changes does his opponents any favours with the neutrals.

My thoughts exactly!

Totally agree @Moutarde.

Who on earth cares about Boris's "position with the neutrals" (!!!) when the nation's teens are being put through all this? Other countries, including Wales and Scotland, have leaders that take difficult decisions and follow through. The English PM has consistently failed to do that.

New PM please Santa. Can't listen to any more waffle.

He never has an original thought does he? He waits to see what the other nations are doing then copies them. Or backtracks after saying he'll never do it, eg. 2nd lock down, Marcus Rashford and the school meals debacle.

Never mind the Cummings fiasco and the contracts awarded to tory friends. No matter their lack of experience.

Why anyone still praises him amazes me, but then again it always did.

God I hope so.

3 weeks postponement of the start of exams isn't going to scratch the surface vs. what they've missed.

DD is in Yr11 and her school are basically running continuous assessment on the off chance, plus there's the possibility of haf arsed exams at the end of it.

It's a a complete farce.

@Orangeblossom7777

An extra 3 weeks won't make any difference to the weeks and months of schooling some children have missed

There is a lot more than 3 weeks difference between these spring dates and the new ones proposed for England. Months...

I don't think Wales are 'just' using the externally set assessments. I could be wrong but reading a bit of it on their announcement it seems like it may have other elements determining the final grade perhaps. The will tell. It also onset read as though they will be full length exam papers - but assessments. Probably more than one, sat at different times 'from' Spring onwards. Maybe they will use some of the exam papers currently ready and break them down into smaller sections - to be done under exam conditions but in the less stressful environment of their classrooms, in shorter blocks of time.

3 weeks (and for some subjects it is NOT 3 weeks, but a few days) does nothing to match the time missed and the disruption, and especially not the disparity between students having to self isolate.

I know of some students who are on their third period of self isolation, whereas another friend I know her children have not had any. How can these be fair in the slightest?

I definitely read it was in the Spring term which is from Jan to March

My DD in YR11 will be gutted if they’re cancelled, my DS in YR on the other hand would be delighted...

Will the cohorts that have been involved in all the problems caused by the pandemic be expecting special consideration for the rest of their education?

TBH the situation changes week by week so it's only right that the decisions should change to reflect the present situation .
I don't get the obsession about u turns .

Be honest - how can they award exams when they haven't even done the work. We know last summer's were inflated by teachers. They need to come up with a better solution that pretending they did the work. It's not the kids fault but employers, universities etc expect them to actually know gcse grade 6 maths if that's what is stated. Last summer's young people had done most of their courses by the time lockdown occurred, this isn't the case now. I honestly think we need to extend the school year so they can complete their courses

I am hoping this results in a government rethink on education generally - SATS, GCSEs, A Level... The whole system needs revitalising.

Ds is doing A levels & his school have introduced termly testing weeks so that they have more proof of ability should exams be cancelled & teacher assessments needed.

I can't see why A levels at least can't proceed as normal, with an adjustment to the questions to compensate for the education missed. In most subjects the numbers taking any given exam are easily small enough to allow for appropriate distancing. In the few centres where numbers are greater it's likely that they could utilise larger halls or have students taking the exam in shifts.

@Orangeblossom7777

Em, the 'shitshow' was due to having 'teacher assessed grades' was it not?

Erm, no.

The shitshow was that the govt decided, against advice from many in the educational sector, to use an algorithm to calculate students grades, based on some teacher assessment, mock exams and weighted by average performance of the school over the previous 3 years.

Thus, bright kids going to an 'ordinary' school with a broad mix of pupils across the grading spectrum were routinely downgraded, due to the average performance of their school.

Kids at private schools particularly, which routinely post higher grade averages, maintained predicted grades OR HIGHER.

This utter debacle resulted in the govt having to perform a U turn to revert to teacher assessed grades, and as thus many of the kids in the 'ordinary' schools were re-graded.

Some A level students missed out on their uni places due to being downgraded by the algorithm, and their places were handed to students from private schools.

What on earth made you think that this was down to teacher assessed grades?????!!!

When I was at college it was continuous assessment and I like this idea. Rather than studying two years of knowledge for 8 subjects you get graded through the year. If schools close again then they have evidence of the work and trade the pupils have got rather than the results shambles we had in Scotland. It will also help to identify knowledge gaps earlier.

@bendmeoverbackwards

If they didn’t / don’t change their minds they’d be criticised for not being flexible. If they do it’s called a u-turn

I agree. These are unprecedented times and things are changing constantly. Very easy to blame the government. Who knows if Labour would have done a better job?

it doesn't matter one fucking bit if Labour would have done a better job. Why do you all keep trotting out this line? The government we have now have to do a better job. They've squandered the goodwill that 'unprecedented times' have brought on opaque and confused messaging, cronyism and bullish exceptionalism. God I hope there's an enquiry into this and they're held to account properly so that when the next crisis arrives whoever is in charge can learn some lessons.

It feels like exams cannot be fair as there is such disparity in the effect of CV and isolation on individual schools and pupils. But I’m not convinced on continuous assessment as a fair alternative. So sticky situation all round.

I hope not. My Dd's are Year 11 and Year 13. They want to do their exams. They have worked so hard and want their grades to matter. The ones from this year will always have a stigma attached to them.

Exclamation perfume surely that’s the same for all children wanting their grades to matter. Sadly it doesn’t tatter how hard they have worked some children will be at a disadvantage because they are stuck in a cycle of continuous isolation. What about those students ?