GCSE/A Level will be teacher assessed again?

[Lemons1571]

Watching how this is all going, with many 14 day isolations and patchy remote provision, I can’t see next years exams happening. I don’t think the government can either. It’s not a fair playing field. At this rate the year 11/13’s won’t even cover all the content, let alone revision techniques. And this chaotic situation is going to run until at least the spring.

I suspect that’s why primaries are prioritised over secondaries in the current guidance. Keeping primaries open does at least let parents work and help the economy. Keeping secondaries open doesn't (at least short term). Bung them all their predicted grades and say “we tried”. That’s why schools are doing assessments in the next few weeks, to get some data ready.

If nothing has changed with the covid situation come spring, we won’t even be able to get the kids together in a hall to physically sit the exams. They won’t fit while keeping 2m distance. If they hire external halls they’ll need hundreds of trained invigilators (and these are often older people so understandably may not want the job!). What if they have to start a 14 day isolation the day before their first exam? Do they get awarded nothing?

I think Ofqual can’t say this yet, as the affected year groups would just stop working right now. But I am really struggling to see how these exams could fairly happen in 8 months time.

Yeah, I think so. Teachers have guidance for YR 10 and 12, not 11 and 13. I think they’ve just thought “fuck it” nothing they can do.

@Itisasecret

Yeah, I think so. Teachers have guidance for YR 10 and 12, not 11 and 13. I think they’ve just thought “fuck it” nothing they can do.

What guidance are referring to? I think everything possible will be done for exams to go ahead. Students are not required to be spaced 2m apart in schools.

The reduced curriculum and content etc, etc. The guidance for the for older years hasn’t been finalised. They still don’t know what they are doing. It’s not feasible these children can have exams with the inconsistency in schooling. Secondary doesn’t seem to be a priority on anyone’s radar so these children sitting exams would be a huge injustice.

We're teaching for November re-sits at the moment. Not a hope in hell they'll go ahead in my opinion but my students would love the opportunity to sit them!

I hope so.

Ofqual have said they will finalise the arrangements by mid September. There's still talk of the dates being pushed back by a month also. My daughter's school are preparing for exams to take place.

@Bridecilla

We're teaching for November re-sits at the moment. Not a hope in hell they'll go ahead in my opinion but my students would love the opportunity to sit them!

Agreed.

They sit next to each other in class anyway so an exam hall would actually be more spacious. I do agree that they may not happen though as there will be lots of disruption.
Though the government is keen to have exams so says Gavin.

Trouble is they can't announce this now as y11 would down tools too soon which would not be good for them for such a long time.

If it’s November resits, how does that work with moving on to sixth form? I have a yr 11 child.

I think November resits could happen as there will be few kids choosing this option. Easier to distance, find space, organise invigilators. The kids have all been given teacher assessed grades anyway so it’s just a chance to get better marks (homeschoolers excepted). The May 2021 cohort is another matter. Millions of them, hundreds of which could be isolating during the exam period.

Disrupted schooling for all years up to year 9 is a pita but understandable. Disrupted schooling and being expected to sit an exam at the end of it, the results of which will follow you for the rest of your life, is a different ball game.

Nothing helpful to add, but I also have a year 11 child and am worried about how this will (or won't!) go ahead. Following with interest.

@Lemons1571

I think November resits could happen as there will be few kids choosing this option. Easier to distance, find space, organise invigilators. The kids have all been given teacher assessed grades anyway so it’s just a chance to get better marks (homeschoolers excepted). The May 2021 cohort is another matter. Millions of them, hundreds of which could be isolating during the exam period.

Disrupted schooling for all years up to year 9 is a pita but understandable. Disrupted schooling and being expected to sit an exam at the end of it, the results of which will follow you for the rest of your life, is a different ball game.

What about those isolating though? Even if we can find rooms big enough (I'm in FE so large numbers of school leavers 'entitled' to sit them)

Teacher grades for some (based on just a few weeks of evidence for us) and exams for those not shielding... can't see it

I think the government will do everything they can to ensure exams happen next year just BECAUSE of the shit show this year.

If it means nobody BUT years 13 and 11 are in school at that time, spaced out throughout the school, they'll want that rather than a repeat of what happened.

@Bridecilla I know. I can’t see any way to navigate the mess.

We are in a good state school and the teachers have been great at sending work/marking during the lock down, but my dd is doing music gcse and hasn’t had a piano lesson since March!

@GreyBow

I think the government will do everything they can to ensure exams happen next year just BECAUSE of the shit show this year.

If it means nobody BUT years 13 and 11 are in school at that time, spaced out throughout the school, they'll want that rather than a repeat of what happened.

I agree!

I think the government will want to avoid both the same and also different shit shows next year.

They know that provision will be patchy. They can’t have sad face daily mail front pages with students saying they took the exam but didn’t recognise some of the subject matter because there was no time to teach it (or they were repeatedly isolating and missed that topic). They can’t have private schools outperforming state to a much much bigger degree than is usual. They now know the algorithm was a bad idea, but everyone seemed happy with teacher assessed grades. And also, crucially, teacher assessment doesn't cost them extra money.

Agree with GreyBow, I can’t see how exams can not go ahead after the results fiasco this year! And also what would teacher assessments be based on - Just work done up to March 2020 or include stuff over lockdown when some kids didn’t have the right equipment/no wi-fi 🤷‍♀️

@PenguinIce our school is doing year 11 assessments over the next few weeks to get some data in the bag. Presume they’d base grades on this plus historical data.

You can social distanced exams and after this years debarcle I think it’s safe to say that will happen.

Whether the kids have covered the content is a different problem and I would be very worried if I had a kid in year 11, but the teachers will have seen them for about four months in year ten if schools shut until the next exam session I am not sure they could assess in any reasonable way anyway!

Our school are sticking to the normal timetable with yr11 mocks planned for first 2 weeks of December and then again in March. As far as parents and kids have been told it's business as normal.

It sounds to me as if all will be done to ensure that exams happen next year. Report yesterday of plans to use public building to do SD exams and also back up exam papers for those isolating and ill to do at a later date
Who knows though what will happen 🤷🏼‍♀️

But teacher assessed grades which are known will not be moderated are a recipe for massive grade inflation.

Lemons1571, my year 11 dcs school has no assessments planned. Mocks to take place early Dec as normal so if schools close before that there will be nothing to base teacher assessments on. Schools definitely need more guidance so they are all doing the same thing and selfishly I wish more consideration was given to those pupils in years taking exams.

Giving the amount of attention they have paid to the final years in comparison to the year that follows. I think teacher grades will be what happens, especially with the shit show that is schools right now and closures happening all over the show. I take some comfort in the fact they may have learnt from the results fiasco last year which used CAG’s in the end. These were heavily moderated and no massive inflation. As someone who works in education, I do not see how children can be examined fairly this year and it will also cause massive disruption to uni/6 form placements. I think they haven’t told people yet because they don’t want teachers and pupils downing tools and giving up. Not that I think they would, but business as usual until the last minute. All the 6th forms and secondaries here have had closed bubbles already, that’s before winter and we are a low prevalence area. I’d happily place a significant bet they won’t go ahead.

What the government want and what they do are two different things. We were supposed to go back to school with a functioning test and trace system.