2021 GCSEs to take place in July?

[Theduchessstill]

Someone at my school has mentioned having seen this as a rumour. I know we're still getting grips with this year's cohort but Y10 and 12 are more of a worry really. Has anyone else heard this and what would you think of it as an idea?

I'm not sure myself - it would mean reorganising the whole year and how would they get marked in time for September entry to colleges/unis? What about holidays?

Any thoughts?

I would be stunned if this happened

The entire NHS system has completely changed the way it works and the whole structure and workings of hospitals and staff.

I don't see why it would be difficult for the education system to make some big changes to working practice, like this kind of thing, due to the unprecedented situation the world/country faces.

The turn around on marking would be so so tight.....it's already tight with exams starting in May. The only way they could do it would be to reorganise all the terms times and holidays...changes to teachers pay and conditions. Unions would have heavy involvement.

As a one off? Possibly, but issues with holidays. I personally think they will need to sit some kind of reduced in size GCSE which will vary in how it looks from subject to subject. Possibly more question choice so if there are five units to study, you only now need to complete 3 and they make sure there are questions on all of it. I don’t know, back of a fag packet ideas!

@Howaboutanewname Reducing number of papers sat for some subjects could be considered.... we sit three for mine but could be reduced to two with additional provision within those remaining papers for skills examined in the discarded paper.

@Howaboutanewname I totally agree.

Yes that was the kind of thing I'd been thinking- July exams has got to be one of the most logistically difficult options for these year groups. There are definitely more straightforward options available.

Lecturer here - we could cope with a later start to term as there is quite a delay between A level results and the start of term. We are one of the later starts but it's quite variable so we'd all cope as a sector.
I imagine sixth form colleges could start a bit late as a one off?

It is a long exam season as it is. It starts mid May and runs to the end of June.

The issue will be the exam boards rescheduling it all and the coordination that entails.

Plus coursework moderation

I'm not marking in July. I've lost a big chunk of my income as an examiner this year with no furlough pay. Not a chance that I'll be marking through the holidays next year, then straight onto reviews and resits.

I'd love to not do admissions at the same time as doing resits (normally the resit season comes after the admissions season). But I fear that is what may happen next year - fingers crossed it's a one off.
Of course we've all been talking for years about how to get admissions done without this mad August scramble and nobody has done anything about it. What's the betting nobody will do anything this time, either?

I think a reduction in content is not only kinder and fairer to students who have been through so much but also far far more practicable.

This isn't about changing ways of working. This is about the important logistics of robust, fair and careful marking of exams in a given time frame for progression to the next stage. I am not sure the NHS has those specific kind of issues to overcome.

But I don't understand how moving exams to July would obviously help? It's not like we all know a cure's coming in January 2021 and we'll all be "back to normal" by May, is it?!

This says July 2021!

I'd like to think they would cut content or even cut down the number of exams by bringing in coursework as a one off, but I don't think they will. I don't think we will get an answer any time soon because they will probably wait and see if we get another long closure from a second wave.

Some subjects already have coursework of course! The big chat in those subjects, ironically, is cutting the coursework to save time!