Responding to plans for GCSEs and A-levels in 2021 outlined by
the Secretary of State for Education today, Geoff Barton, General
Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said:
“We are dismayed by this announcement. It has taken the
government an eternity to reach a very inadequate response to the
scale of the challenge which lies ahead for students who are
taking GCSEs and A-levels next year.
“Delaying the start of exams by three weeks is of marginal
benefit when compared to the loss of learning from the national
lockdown and ongoing disruption. There isn’t enough being done to
make the exams themselves fairer.
“Students need to be given greater choice over the topics they
answer questions on so that they can select those which they have
studied to sufficient depth. This is vital in addressing the fact
that they will have had different learning experiences due to the
Covid pandemic and ensuring that all students have an equal
opportunity to answer questions fully.
“We are also concerned that the government is only now engaging
with the sector over back-up plans in the event that students are
unable to sit exams next summer. This process should have been
started a long time before now so that it is possible to put
plans in place in good time. Instead, we will now be approaching
Christmas before there is any clarity on contingency
arrangements.
“The government has not moved quickly enough on this issue, and
its response is so weak that it is inevitably storing up problems
for the future.”
