16
WHAT NEXT?
“Proposals that would previously have been dismissed out of hand are now getting serious consideration”
for eons. Currently, though, it feels as if the collective mindset has changed, with proposals that would previously have been dismissed out of hand, now getting serious consideration. It’s a sign of the times when keeping things the same (or close) is probably the most revolutionary thing you can do – like the decision by those in charge of the International Baccalaureate to continue offering final IB Diploma summer exams as usual in 2021 (though there is also an alternative model based on coursework and teacher-predicted grades where this isn’t possible). Thinking the unthinkable (and showing the workings behind their answers) are organisations like the Education Policy Institute (EPI). Its plan is that children who have experienced what it describes as ‘extreme learning loss’ should be able to repeat the school year. While not open to all pupils, it would help those who had fallen most behind during lockdown to
make up lost ground over the rest of their school career. This kind of flexibility has been something that many parents have dreamed of, particularly where their child is a summer-born baby who is very young for their chronological year. Though supported by the government (with further legislation planned), the final decision has always rested with schools and admissions authorities, and the complexities involved can put parents off. If this isn’t quite radical enough, how about scrapping one of the pillars of the current education system, the GCSE? There have been many critics of this venerable exam. It’s been renamed, diminished (because of grade inflation), changed from one-off exams to a modular structure, then largely back to once-and- for-all exams again. But, the fundamental notion that we need to test pupils at 16, and then again at 18, has remained largely unquestioned.
SPRING/SUMMER 2021
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