A-level results day 2021: Children and teachers have been let down by Government - Helen Rafferty

The last 18 months has been time of immense instability and uncertainty for all of us. Our schools and teachers were asked to convert their work into a home-learning curriculum, to care for and support pupils who were no longer present in school, and to adapt their professional knowledge to an untested environment.

In a time of crisis, the instability and associated mental load can be best alleviated by robust contingency planning, clarity and consistency. In March last year, it was essential that the hurdles presented by the sudden closure of schools were tackled in a timely and communicative way.

Teachers and schools quickly realised that the most pressing issue was meeting the basic needs of many of their children and families. Schools made sure their pupils were safe and could access food daily, and grappled with the huge digital divide that means many of our most disadvantaged students in the North had no access to a device or a connection to keep them in contact with their support networks and education.

For schools, the last 18 months has been a time of disconnect and widening gaps, of disparities in experience and outcomes, a time of unparalleled pressure.

One of the biggest of these challenges was presented by the summer exams. The current examination system may be flawed in many ways – this is likely not the platform for that discussion – but we do know that a well-structured and well-administered examination system can be the best way for students to demonstrate their learning and ability, free from the disparities and unconscious biases that can arise within other assessment methods.

The contingency plan for examinations implemented in 2020 failed to adequately harness these benefits, was rolled out too late to provide the clarity needed in a time of uncertainty, and included methodologies that often unfairly disadvantaged students who were already working within the most challenging contexts.

I’m sure we all remember well the chaotic start to the year in January, when schools were plunged once more into uncertainty, with staff called upon to provide for home learning again at barely a day’s notice. It was clear then that any disruption to the 2021 exams was likely to be significant, and that the gaps between students from disparate backgrounds were at serious risk of widening yet further.

A year has passed since last year’s confused approach to assessment, but sadly, it is not clear that lessons have been fully addressed, or that the necessary consistency has been provided to schools and teachers.

A paper this month by the Institute for Government (IfG) found that the lessons of the 2020 examinations season were not learned, and contingency planning was not addressed, plunging schools and students into a further period of uncertainty and stress.

This year students will be awarded GCSE grades based on teacher assessments.

Whilst this is likely to be the fairest approach given the circumstances, the implementation of this system placed huge additional demands on an already exhausted workforce. We have yet to understand how the use of teacher assessed grades, and the months of lost learning, will impact on our most disadvantaged children.

Whether our children in the North will leave school with grades that reflect their potential and ability, how this may affect their next steps, and how it will shape their outcomes and dreams are yet to be seen.

Teachers have been under-recognised key workers throughout this crisis, and the demands placed on them to support our most vulnerable children and families have been huge. Our teachers are best placed to reduce the inequalities that have been exacerbated by this crisis, but to do that they need to feel supported, appreciated and trusted.

They also deserve consistency, stability and an examination system that is clearly communicated and does not add unfairly to the already huge burden of their workload.

Teachers and schools are experts in their fields, and know their students and communities. The missing voice in planning and decision-making around the examinations system has been teachers and schools. Many of the pitfalls and disparities could have been anticipated and worked through with clear consultation and communication.

Only through working closely with schools, teachers and the communities they serve can we reconnect our children with the opportunities and life chances they deserve.

Dr Helen Rafferty is interim CEO at the Yorkshire-based education charity SHINE.

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