Kids awarded grades by teachers after GCSE and A Level exams scrapped over coronavirus
KIDS will be awarded grades by their teachers after GCSE and A Level exams scraped because of coronavirus.
Final marks will be based off of mock exams and non-exam assessments after all tests were cancelled earlier this week.
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Teachers will help decide teens’ grades so that they can be a fair reflection of the work they have put in.
Exam boards will then combine all this information about past achievement to generate students’ results.
The Department of Education said the grades will “fairly reflect the work” that students have put in and will be calculated using coursework, assessments, mock exams as well as previous grades.
Grades will still be handed out by exam boards, but those who disagree with the results will be able to sit the tests again in the autumn, or next summer.
Around a million youngsters in England were left in limbo after the Government dramatically axed all exams as part of the unprecedented coronavirus shutdown.
Ministers have drawn up emergency measures – expected to be announced tomorrow – to make sure kids can go on to university or college.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: “Cancelling exams is something no Education Secretary would ever want to do, however these are extraordinary times and this measure is a vital but unprecedented step in the country’s efforts to stop the spread of coronavirus.
“My priority now is to ensure no young person faces a barrier when it comes to moving onto the next stage of their lives – whether that’s further or higher education, an apprenticeship or a job.
“I have asked exam boards to work closely with the teachers who know their pupils best to ensure their hard work and dedication is rewarded and fairly recognised.”
The leading Russell Group Universities yesterday issued a statement to anxious students and said: “We understand and universities are here for you.”
The statement added: “Universities are committed to doing all they can to support students and applicants and ensure they can progress to university. This will involve being flexible and responsive in their admissions processes.
“We want to reassure students who have applied to university, or are thinking of doing so through clearing, that every effort will be made to ensure they are not disadvantaged in any way by the decision not to go ahead with exams this summer.”
Geoff Barton, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said they felt “desperately sorry” for students.
“Teachers are experts in their subjects, they know these qualifications inside out, they know their students, and they have the professional skills to assess them accurately.
“We do not subscribe to the notion that exams are the only credible way of assessing qualifications, and this is an opportunity to at least point the way to a less brutal system.
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Meanwhile, Downing Street confirmed schools running a skeleton service will dish out meals or food shop vouchers to 1.3million kids.
The vouchers can be sent straight to families and will be worth more than what the government currently contributes to free school meals.
Mr Williamson said:“Our school leaders and teachers are central to the country’s response to these unprecedented challenges, and I want to thank them for their calm resilience in the face of adversity.”
In Scotland, where school exams have also been cancelled for the first time ever, pupils will be taught online instead.
Mr Johnson told the nation that the spread was “slowing” – but he would go “further and faster” if he needed to in the coming days.
He added: “We’ve always said that we are going to do the right measures at the right time,” he said, when asked when the capital will be shut down.
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