NEU comments on Gavin Williamson letter on Exams

Commenting on the Education Secretary’s letter to Ofqual, setting out further detail on the arrangements for replacing exams in 2021, Dr Mary Bousted, Joint General Secretary of the National Education Union, said:

“The principle of trusting teachers rather than algorithms is absolutely the right one to take. The fact that the government originally did not do so last summer was what caused upset and chaos for students. However, there is little detail as of yet as to how this trust will actually manifest itself - and actions speak louder than words.

“Had the government listened to the NEU and put in place a contingency plan sooner we would be in a better position now to make sure grades could be awarded reliably and without creating severe workload issues for education staff and students. We will continue to talk with Ofqual, DfE and awarding bodies to make sure education staff’s voices are heard but we need to see the full details of the process as soon as possible in order to be assured that grades will be fair for all and that it will be manageable for school and college staff, and students.”