A-levels: Universities dealing with locations scramble after exams U-turn

Universities are getting ready to take care of an increase in calls from college students after ministers in England, Northern Eire and Wales mentioned A-level grades may now be primarily based on academics’ assessments.

Pupils who had been rejected from universities final week on the idea of grades downgraded by an algorithm could now be capable to revisit their decisions.

However universities are warning there’s a restrict to what they will do.

Monday’s U-turn adopted an outcry from college students, academics and a few Tory MPs.

About 40% of A-level outcomes had been downgraded by exams regulator Ofqual, which used a components primarily based on faculties’ prior grades.

College students reacted by holding protests throughout the UK, calling the grading system unfair, classist and a risk to their future.

On Monday, Training Secretary Gavin Williamson and Ofqual chair Roger Taylor each apologised for the “misery” prompted.

Mr Williamson mentioned No 10 had labored with the watchdog to design “the fairest doable mannequin” after exams needed to be cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but it surely had turn out to be clear the method had resulted in “extra important inconsistencies” than could possibly be handled by an appeals course of.

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The algorithm was meant to average the method of awarding grades to stop academics awarding what the exams watchdog described as “implausibly excessive” marks to pupils.

Nevertheless it got here beneath hearth for its perceived unfairness and, significantly, the way in which it appeared to penalise vibrant kids from deprived faculties.

The federal government’s U-turn means academics’ assessments may also be used for GCSE outcomes, resulting from be printed on Thursday.

It’s nonetheless unclear what the climbdown will imply for college kids taking specialist work-related {qualifications}, often known as BTecs. Mr Williamson mentioned he hoped they’d even be topic to teacher-assessed grades, including that the federal government was working with the “awarding authorities” to make sure this occurred.

Alistair Jarvis, chief govt of Universities UK which represents vice-chancellors, has referred to as for “pressing clarification” following the coverage change and for the federal government to “step up” by supporting universities by way of the challenges it has created.

He warned that whereas 70% of scholars had been positioned with their first selection establishment, those that weren’t ought to “think twice about their subsequent steps” and search recommendation from their most popular establishments.

Mr Jarvis mentioned the change would imply there have been extra college students with the grades to match the supply of their first-choice college.

“It will trigger challenges at this late stage within the admissions course of – capability, staffing, placements and amenities – significantly with the social distance measures in place,” he mentioned.

Gavin Williamson has mentioned that the extent of issues with England’s A-level outcomes solely grew to become clear on the weekend.

However some Tory MPs are annoyed that there have been months to arrange for this and issues weren’t noticed earlier, even after the problems in Scotland grew to become clear a fortnight in the past.

Questions will not be simply being requested of the federal government although – some MPs suppose Ofqual may have accomplished extra to keep away from this disaster. Mr Williamson himself has mentioned he requested repeatedly for reassurances and was advised the system was honest.

There’s additionally the truth that there have been U-turns throughout the UK now, together with from the Labour-led authorities in Wales and the SNP in Scotland.

However training has seen issues throughout this pandemic together with the failure of the federal government to get all kids in England again within the classroom earlier than the summer time break.

Mr Williamson stays in his job for now however he faces one other important check virtually instantly – ensuring the federal government does ship this time on its pledge to open England’s faculties subsequent month.

Mr Williamson introduced on Monday {that a} 5% cap on the variety of additional college students a college can take this 12 months has been lifted.

Dr Tim Bradshaw, chief govt of the Russell Group which represents 24 main universities, mentioned assist can be wanted to assist with anticipated will increase in pupil numbers.

“There are limits to what will be accomplished by the college sector alone to handle that uncertainty with out stretching assets to the purpose that it undermines the expertise for all, to not point out guaranteeing college students and workers are stored secure as we comply with the steps wanted to struggle the Covid-19 pandemic,” he mentioned.

Some college students at the moment are anxiously ready to search out out if they are going to be accepted onto their programs now that their teacher-assessed grades have been reinstated.

Zainab Ali, 18, from London, mentioned it had been an terrible and complicated expertise – having initially been rejected from her first-choice of Queen Mary College of London. “I felt like I have been actually let down. It was actually, actually demanding,” she mentioned.

And Emily King, from Whittlesey in Cambridgeshire, mentioned being downgraded from a C to a U in her A-level biology had “actually knocked her confidence” and meant she had been rejected by the College of Lincoln.

It’s not clear if there may be any assure that admissions selections will be revisited if a course is already full, and a few universities, together with Durham, Sheffield, Bristol and Liverpool, had stopped providing locations by way of clearing by Monday.

The Universities and Faculties Admissions Service (Ucas) mentioned 193,420 18-year-old candidates throughout the UK had been positioned with their first-choice college, which is increased than on the identical level final 12 months.

A Ucas spokesman mentioned college students who haven’t received into their first-choice establishment ought to search recommendation from their mother and father or academics earlier than contacting the college.

The federal government has mentioned that college students who accepted presents primarily based on their downgraded outcomes would be capable to launch themselves if one other supply is reinstated primarily based on their up to date grades.

Prof Katie Normington, vice-chancellor of De Montfort College, advised BBC’s Newsnight there was a variety of work for universities to do and it was not but clear how they’d obtain the brand new outcomes or course of them.

She mentioned: “I feel all of us, as universities, will likely be taking a look at how we are going to deal with these college students pretty and we will likely be making an attempt to do this. It’s clearly a variety of work for us however there are a variety of alternatives on the market for college kids in the intervening time.”

‘Too gradual to behave’

Sam Freedman, who was a senior coverage adviser to the Division for Training between 2010 and 2013, mentioned he was stunned Mr Williamson had not resigned over the dealing with of A-level outcomes and mentioned it “beggared perception” that the secretary of state had mentioned he was solely conscious of issues over the weekend.

“I can not consider many different training secretaries who would not have already resigned,” he mentioned.

Seema Malhotra, shadow employment minister, mentioned the federal government had been “too gradual to behave” and the “disaster” had come at a “big price for kids, their households and for the training sector”.

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