Peter Shreeve, Assistant District Secretary of the National Education Union, shares this comment on 2021 A-Level results. Ed
We congratulate all students and teachers on their resilience and dedication throughout an extraordinary year.
Today’s results were achieved amidst unprecedented levels of disruption and adversity, but students can rest assured that they have been judged according to the work they have actually done.
Each student has received a grade which was arrived at using evidence of their own work, rather than relative to the work of others or through a high-stakes one-off exam. We are pleased that Ofqual has been so forthright in reiterating this.
Students can have every confidence in results received
Exam boards checked evidence supporting grades at every single school and college in the country to ensure the grades were reflective of students’ work. Students and parents can therefore have every confidence in the results received, but of course an appeals process is in place which they should feel able to pursue if necessary.
Government should ensure this is properly resourced so that any uncertainty can be swiftly resolved without delay and with minimal fuss. Young people’s futures must not be stalled by a Government whose record on action has been so poor.
Calls to Childline doubled
As we move into a new school year, recent statistics rightly cause concern. ChildLine revealed the number of young people who rang with concerns about exam stress more than doubled between April and June this year compared to the same period last year.
Funding for vulnerable children in England has almost halved in the past ten years and pre-pandemic between 2017-19 there was a gap of almost three A level grades between the best three qualifications of disadvantaged students and their peers.
Online undergraduate teaching
Now post A-level students can look forward to next steps. Sadly, the virus has not gone away and many universities are concerned about safety, leading to 20 of the 24 Russell Group universities planning to continue some undergraduate teaching online.
Emerging from the pandemic should be an opportunity to reassess the established ways in which we carry out exams and award qualifications.
Independent commission on assessment and qualifications
That is why the NEU is supporting an independent commission on assessment and qualifications, chaired by Professor Louise Hayward of the University of Glasgow, which seeks to meet the future needs of students, teachers, our economy and our society.
