A-Level and GCSE Exams will Take Extra Measures to Ensure Fairness

According to the ministers, additional measures will be used next summer's GCSE and A-level exams in England to boost fairness and support students.

Extra measures

More generous grading will be given, advance notice of exam topics will be sent, and the Department for Education promises additional papers to make up for the disruption that is faced by students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Students who can't sit exams because of self-isolation rules will still be given a grade. Heads said that it was a reasonable package of measures due to the current situation, according to The Guardian.

The DFE says that it has had extensive engagement with exam watchdog Ofqual, exam boards, and even senior leaders across the education sector.

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The measures mean that there will be more generous grading than usual, in line with the results from summer 2020, so that this year's cohort is not disadvantaged.

Students will also be getting advance notice of the topic areas covered in exams to focus on revision. Exam aids like formula sheets will be given in some exams to cut down on the needed memorizing.

The DfE says it has had "extensive engagement" with exams watchdog Ofqual, exam boards, and senior leaders across the education sector.

The measures mean that a more generous grading than usual will be given so that this year's cohort is not disadvantaged. Students can also get advance notice of some topic areas covered in exams to focus on revision.

Exam aids like formula sheets will be given in some exams to help cut down on the memorizing required. Backup exams will be held in July to give students a second chance to sit a paper if they have to miss their main exams or assessments because of self-isolation or illness.

A new expert group will monitor variation in the impact of the pandemic on students across England. In extreme cases, where a student misses all of their papers, a teacher-assessed grade will be given. Students taking vocational and technical qualifications will also see adaptations to their exams to ensure fairness.

Gavin Williamson, the education secretary of the UK, said that exams were the best way of measuring students' performance and it is important to take place next summer.

Williamson told BBC Breakfast that students have had a tough year and that as a father, he understands what the parents and students are going through.

Williamson told Sky News that he could give a cast-iron guarantee that exams will not be canceled in 2021. A-level and GCSE students in England were given grades this year. Their teachers estimated the grades after exams were canceled because of the pandemic.

This followed an uproar after 40% of A-level results were downgraded from students' predicted grades by exams regular Ofqual, which then used an algorithm based on the school's prior marks.

Primary school tests

Meanwhile, in primary schools, SATS, also known as Year 6 national tests, will continue to assist pupils who will transition to secondary schools. Teacher assessment in English reading, writing, and mathematics at Key Stage 1 will still happen.

However, the Key Stage 1 tests in reading and math, and the grammar, spelling tests, and punctuation at Key Stage 1 and 2 will be canceled for this year.