Just hours before thousands of British students were set to receive their A-Level and BTEC grades there was a severe disruption, as plans flipped on their heads. Students in England and Northern Ireland were told they may use their mock exam results as a basis for their appeal, while students in Wales can use their AS results from 2019 if they are higher than their new results. This has resulted in confusion, controversy, and outrage across British education.
Yesterday, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer stated “this is a complete fiasco; it was obvious this was going to be difficult, but it’s been weeks or months in the coming. It’s an 11th hour decision that has caused widespread chaos”.
One student expressed a clear issue with the plans, saying “You’ve got to bear in mind, mocks aren’t standardised tests, everyone does different mocks throughout the country”.
Williamson, the Secretary of State for Education has since apologised, saying “I apologise to every single child across the country for the disruption they’ve had to suffer”. He said he would never have expected to be in a situation where he had to close schools or “where we wouldn’t have an exam period”. Read the rest of the BBC’s article here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-53750864
Do you feel angry or upset about the news? Do you agree with Starmer that it paints a picture of government incompetence? Or do you think the criticism of Williamson is unjust?
