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School ‘league tables’ in England face delays

The school ‘league tables’ in England are likely to face some delay this year owing to the test marking problems. Jim Knight, Schools Minister, stated he expected the problems related to marking and appeal to delay publication.

According to provisional figures, 14-year-olds did better in maths and writing national tests but less well in science and reading this year. A detailed breakdown by local authorities is yet to be released as close to half the results were still missing in some areas. The schools minister was expecting the problems regarding the delivery of the tests to push back the timetable for publication.

Mr Knight said, “I think it is likely that it will not be published at the same time as last year because we have got a review process that is open for people to submit for reviews until September. That inevitably has consequences for the timetable (publication) and also being able to publish school results.”

The National Union of Teachers stated the decision of not releasing the local figures was understandable, but then none of the results should have got published in view of the questions over the marking by private contractor ETS this year.

Provisional primary school Sats results to be released as scheduled

The government has decided to release provisional primary school Sats results next week for England as scheduled. The Schools Secretary, Ed Balls, stated his statisticians felt publication should take place in spite of ‘continuing issues regarding completing marking”.

The government’s decision of publishing the provisional results next week ‘beggars belief’, head teachers have stated. They caution that there are widespread concerns about late as well as missing results, and also the quality of marking. The National Association of Head Teachers states ministers are prematurely issuing the results.

According to the latest figures from Educational Testing Service (ETS), the contractor entrusted with the job of marking the tests, 99 per cent of Key Stage 2 results ‘are now made available to schools.’ It is not clear how many schools are still awaiting a complete set of marks. Head teachers also warned of many pupils wrongly marked absent.

The QCA testing authority states that it is ‘deeply concerned’ by the failure to return results on part of its contractor, ETS. However, the independent watchdog Ofqual has stated that there is no specific evidence of any widespread problem with the ‘quality of the marks’.

Foreign students in Britain to face greater scrutiny and restrictions

Foreign students in Britain will be fingerprinted under the new rules introduced by the Home Office, to rein bogus students and colleges. It will be mandatory for Universities and colleges, recruiting foreign students, to procure license if the proposed course exceeds six month duration. They are also required to keep detailed records related to foreign students and report to the Home Office once the student fails to attend ten lectures in a row or defers study.

Institutions failing to comply with the rule are likely to face blacklisting. The visiting students are required to be sponsored by a licensed institution and at the same time will have to furnish proof that they are financially sound to support themselves and their families.

Immigration Minister Liam Byrne said: “Foreign students wanting to take advantage of our world-class universities and colleges must meet strict criteria. By locking people to one identity with ID cards, alongside a tough new sponsorship system, we will know exactly who is coming here to study and crack down on bogus colleges.”

Higher Education Minister Bill Rammell added “I shall not tolerate the minority of individuals who seek to damage the quality of the education system through bogus colleges.” The new regulation is supposed to stem the’ bogus institution’ rot.

Cambridge University’s exam board head bemoans ‘politicisation’ of exam system

The government has secured unprecedented control of the examination system, interfered in the minutest of qualifications and inadvertently contributed to a loss of public faith in standards, according to Greg Watson, the head of Cambridge University’s exam board.

He mentioned to the Guardian that the government has got intimately involved in the current exam system, introducing rapid reforms over the past 11 years that have almost risked the GCSEs and A-levels credibility in the eyes of the general public.

Plans to form Ofqual, an independent exams watchdog, are likely to worsen the situation worse, since it has not been given ‘enough responsibilities’, according to him. Watson also claimed the ‘politicisation’ of the exam system significantly increased from 1997.

Asked what the effect on standards was, he stated: “The big impact is that the public in general is not sure any more. There is too much change too often. The reason why they are uncertain is because every change gives rise to a doubt about whether the standards are being moved.”