Labour demands “credible” exams plan as 8m children face entering Tier 2 or 3

Labour has demanded that the government bring forward a “credible plan” for GCSE and A-Level exams taking place next year as data has shown that over 8.7 million children face entering Tier 2 or 3 Covid restrictions.

Responding to new figures published by the House of Commons library, Labour’s Kate Green has called for the Education Secretary to ensure that children who see disruption to their education are not disadvantaged in the 2021 exams.

The Shadow Education Secretary wrote to Gavin Williamson earlier this month, urging the minister to “recognise the scale of the challenge facing pupils and teachers”. The party has called on the Education Secretary to ensure:

• Greater optionality in exam questions to ensure pupils are assessed on what they have been taught;
• Reserve papers are made available in all subjects so that self-isolating students do not lose out;
• A level playing field for every region of the country; and
• A credible plan B so pupils can get their grades even if exams are cancelled.

Commenting on the Tory record on education in the Covid crisis, Green said: “The government’s failure to get a grip on this pandemic has meant thousands of pupils off school, missing out on essential learning.”

Her call for a plan follows data published by the Department for Education earlier this month, which showed increasing disruption to education in the second wave of the pandemic with more than 600,000 pupils missing school due to Covid.

The department has explained that non-attendance was “mainly due to the continued increase in the number of pupils self-isolating”, and has estimated that between 9% and 11% of all pupils did not attend school on November 19th.

The Shadow Education Secretary added: “Instead of bringing forward a clear plan for next summer’s exams the government has dithered and delayed, creating huge stress for pupils, teachers and parents.

“To ensure 2021 exams are truly fair to all pupils the government should adopt Labour’s plan for greater optionality, reserve papers, and regional adjustments to ensure no child misses out.”

Attendance in state-funded primary schools fell to 87% on November 19th, down from 90% the week before. 78% of students were present in state-funded secondary schools on the same date, representing a fall from 83% in the previous week.

The proportion of schools with 30 or more children self-isolating, due to potential contact with someone who had contracted Covid within the school, stood at between 25% and 27%. This figure has increased for two consecutive weeks.

Labour has also highlighted that while students have been forced to self-isolate due to the virus, the government has cut its previously pledged allocation of laptops and equipment to disadvantaged pupils by up to 80% for some schools.

UNISON urged the government to “rescue Christmas” earlier this month by allowing schools to switch to an online format for their lessons to reduce the risk of families being required to self-isolate over the holiday period.

The union argued that schools, working with local authorities, should be allowed to provide a mix of in-classroom and home-based learning immediately to keep staff and students safe and minimise disruption to learning in the pandemic.