Wales to scrap GCSE, AS & A-Level exams in 2021 to “ensure fairness”

"It is impossible to guarantee a level playing field for exams to take place"

Wales's education minister Kirsty Williams has announced that students will not take GCSE, AS and  A-Level exams in 2021, in order to "ensure fairness". Williams said that the move was for the "well-being of learners". Examinations will externally set and marked, but they will be undertaken in the classroom supervised by teachers. Flexibility will also be given to teachers as to when the assessments take place. Kirsty Williams said that it was impossible to "guarantee a level playing field" for students, as the amount of time pupils will have spent in school could vary massively depending on various local lockdown restrictions. "We remain optimistic that the public heath situation will improve, but the primary reason for my decision is down to fairness; the time learners will spend in schools and colleges will vary hugely and, in this situation, it is impossible to guarantee a level playing field for exams to take place," Williams explained. "We have consulted with universities across the UK and they have confirmed that they are used to accepting many different types of qualifications. "They expect a transparent and robust approach which provides evidence of a learner's knowledge and ability." Williams also said a £50m support package has put aside for 16 to 18-year-olds in their exam years. The decision follows the controversy surrounding the 2020 GCSE, AS and A-Level exam results. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, all exams were cancelled in 2020. A grades standardisation algorithm was created by exam regulators, and was used to moderate unpublished teacher-predicted grades. However, when the A-Level results were published, they received much criticism. Nearly 36% of students results were a grade lower than their teacher's prediction, with 3% being two grades lower. This led to many missing out on university places. Eventually, following an outcry, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson announced that results would be reissued based on teachers' predicted grades, and the same method was used for GCSEs.