Earlier this week, Stephen hosted a Q&A session for students in East Ham. He was joined by Wes Streeting, Shadow Minister for Schools, Mandeep Gill, Principal of NewVIc, and Mouhssin Ismail, Principal of The NCS. The panel took questions from A Level and GCSE students whose education had been impacted by the Government’s slow response to the pandemic.
Last summer, A Level and GCSE exams were cancelled and centre assessed grades were run through an algorithm before they were issued. Grades were much lower than expected causing the Government to U turn last minute and ask teachers to issue grades based on their own judgement. The Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson, recently announced that A Level and GCSE exams will not go ahead this summer and students will instead be awarded their grades based on teacher assessment.
At the Q&A, students raised concerns over the lack of guidance offered during this time, the possibility of grade inflation and the impact this will have on next year’s exams, as well as the impact this will have on university places and employment.
Speaking at the event, Stephen said “Whilst it is good schools and students now know what to prepare for this summer, there are still many questions about how issuing grades will look as we continue through the pandemic. The Government must ensure we will not see a repeat of last year’s exam fiasco this summer.”