Headteachers have demanded to know if exams will go ahead when the coronavirus peaks as a petition urging Boris Johnson to close schools soars to 445,000.
Association of School and College Leaders general secretary Geoff Barton has asked for clarity from the Government on whether GCSEs and A-levels will take place.
He said: ‘Parents and pupils are worried about being the victim of something out of their control and are asking, ”Will I get into college or university”?’
But Education Secretary Gavin Williamson replied: ‘We’re doing everything we can to make sure it’s fair for students, we’re having regular discussions with Ofqual.’
Concerns have been raised over what students who have had to self isolate will do when exams begin, but there is a system for marking in exceptional circumstances.
And other questions today remained over:
- Problems schools face in losing staff and pupils, and potentially having to close;
- How revision and exam preparations for GCSEs and A-levels will be affected;
- And what this could mean for university admissions if A-levels are cancelled.
Mr Williamson has also said schools and universities ‘shouldn’t be closing’ as he urged education leaders to follow medical advice amid the coronavirus outbreak.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson arrives at the Cabinet Office in London yesterday
The Education Secretary said teachers were considering how to provide lessons with distance learning technology amid fears the virus will affect schools.
But concerns remain over exams potentially being postponed, with the first GCSEs due to take place on May 5 and oral tests starting even earlier in some schools.
Teaching leaders added that schools would probably authorise pupil absences if concerned parents had made a personal choice to keep their child off lessons.
Mr Williamson said the Government was also working with exam boards, through regulator Ofqual, teaching and schools bodies to make sure there was ‘stability’ in pupils’ education, whatever happens.
He added the Department for Education (DfE) would not be ‘penalising’ schools if pupils are taken out of lessons by parents concerned about coronavirus.
Amid announcements of cancellations of face-to-face lectures and exams at some universities, he said: ‘I would urge any educational establishments, whether a school, a childcare or early years setting, whether it be a college or a university, to actually look at what the medical and scientific advice is.
‘And the medical and scientific advice is we shouldn’t be closing educational settings at the moment.’
Mr Williamson said he was also discussing a range of measures to ‘support children who may be outside of school’ as the coronavirus outbreak continues.
The Secretary of State is meeting with the ASCL, the National Association of Headteachers (NAHT) and the Confederation of School Trusts (CST) on Monday.
Speaking on the first day of the ASCL conference in Birmingham today, Mr Williamson thanked 1,000 delegates for their ‘incredible leadership’.
Afterwards, he said the DfE had already started discussing how schools go about delivering GCSE and A-level exams during the coronavirus outbreak.
Mr Williamson added he was also looking at options to make sure disadvantaged children, currently in receipt of free school meals, continued to get unbroken support in the case of any school’s ‘temporary closure’ or if advice on a full closure changed.
Boris Johnson has refused to close schools amid the coronavirus pandemic, but advised schools not to take trips abroad
He added it was ‘a very rapidly changing situation’ but that any changes to current Government policy would be ‘communicated early’ with teachers.
Association of School and College Leaders general secretary Geoff Barton has asked for clarity from the Government on whether GCSEs and A-levels will take place
Earlier, the ASCL described the announcement yesterday to keep schools open as ‘absolutely the right decision’.
ASCL general secretary Geoff Barton also said he felt schools would probably authorise pupil absences, where concerned parents had made a personal choice to keep their child off lessons, likening it to snow-day absences.
However, he added it was likely to be a ‘small scale’ issue, as the Government’s decision, taken together with scientific advice, was ‘legitimising children staying in school’.
Asked about how pupils might be supported from home, through distance learning technology, Mr Williamson said: ‘At the moment we’re doing a lot of work.
‘The first thing is making sure schools can continue to provide for vital education service within the school setting, which I think we all agree is the best place for the young people to be able to learn.
A petition, started by Sami Attout, urged Boris Johnson to shut down schools and colleges ‘in the coming weeks of as soon as possible’, to prevent the spread of Covid19
‘We are looking at different ways that we can support children who may be outside of school, for a couple of weeks – making sure they continue to be in a position to be able to learn.
‘That is something the department is looking at, together with other organisations.
‘How we support children who are not in a position to attend school, and how schools are able to deliver it.
‘There are pupils that aren’t going to be able to attend school but it’s really important they continue their education in the best way possible.’
Regarding the possibility of GCSE and A-levels having to be done outside school, he said the ‘integrity of the exam system’ was ‘vital’.
‘But we recognise this is a very rapidly changing situation.
Mr Williamson added: ‘This is why we’re working with Ofqual, the exam boards, with schools, to ensure that if changes do need to be made they will be communicated early so that teachers and most importantly students are in the best possible place to be able to exceed and excel at these exams.’
He would not be drawn on exactly what issues would be discussed with school chiefs on Monday, but added: ‘It will be a very full agenda.’
Teachers at Bishop Hedley Catholic High School in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, told BBC Wales that they were worried about students preparing for GCSEs.
Headteacher Sarah Hopkins said: ‘I’ve asked staff to make sure that there is a bank of resources readily available should we be in a position where we have to have enforced closure.’
‘Staff are used to setting work remotely for learners, especially if they’ve got an illness and they can’t get to school, or they’re using it for revision purposes for key stage four [GCSE] classes, and also any holiday sessions that learner might need. The learners all have revision packs already.’
Students at LSE received an email alerting them to the dramatic decision
The school already helps pupils learn at home with Google Classroom, which also gives them immediate feedback online.
A pupil called Jack, 15, who is preparing for GCSEs this summer, added: ‘I’m already stressed enough as it is, and then added on to this they might close the school which could damage learning and it’s not the best.
‘Some of my friends are panicking… it is very uncertain. The teachers are doing a lot to help. We’re learning as much as we can.’
It comes as a petition calling for the PM to send students home nears 500,000 signatures amid the killer virus threat.
The petition, started by Sami Attout, urges the PM to shut down campuses ‘in the coming weeks or as soon as possible’, to prevent the spread of Covid19.
It comes as the official number of cases in the UK today reached 798, with 10 deaths.
But the Government’s chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said the true number was probably up to 10,000.
Hundreds of thousands of worried parents are demanding MPs step up measures to allow them to take their children out of school.
The PM has held off the drastic measure – which has been enforced across Europe – saying washing hands for 20 seconds remains the most important step.
Chief medical officer Prof Chris Whitty said children appear to have a milder response to the virus compared to adults
The petition has garnered more than 440,000 signatures, surging past the 100,000 needed to secure a debate in Parliament.
It states: ‘We would like the government to at least consider closing schools/colleges down in the coming weeks or as soon as possible, in addition to taking necessary actions to prevent further spread.
‘We would like the Government or Parliament to enforce this action due to the growing fear among parents and students that attend school.
‘The ability to focus or concentrate is affected in addition to the growing fears of the Coronavirus.
‘In our view, the government and health officials around the world are more ”reactive” rather than ”proactive”.
‘This will result in more spread as time is given for the virus to do so. We hope to come to an agreement as soon as possible in a timely manner.’
School leaders fear students’ GCSEs will overlap with the predicted peak of the coronavirus in the UK.
The ASCL said its members are answering tough questions from anxious parents.
The Department for Education in England has set up a Covid19 hotline for school staff, while exam regulators urged them to continue preparations for tests.
Chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said you cannot expect children not to come into contact with each other for 16 weeks
Yet major universities have taken precautions, with the London School of Economics saying all teaching, taught exams and other assessments will be moved online for the rest of the academic year.
A university spokesman said: ‘These actions are taken as a precaution and to provide clarity and reassurance to the LSE community in exceptional circumstances.
‘The LSE campus and halls of residence will remain open. Guidance from Public Health England maintains that there is presently low risk for LSE and that buildings, services and facilities can run as usual.
‘We will take any additional necessary steps, such as a campus closure, if we are advised to do so in the future.’
Durham University previously announced classroom teaching, including small groups and one-on-one meetings, will cease from March 16.
The university and its library will remain open, but all lessons will be delivered online as much as possible.
Manchester Metropolitan University said it will end in-person teaching from March 27, for the final week of term.
Meanwhile Michelle O’Neill, Northern Ireland’s deputy first minister, has urged the immediate closure of schools and colleges to slow coronavirus,.
The Sinn Fein member said: ‘People are rightly concerned about the impacts on their families and their children and as a parent, I share those concerns and I have been contacted by many parents who did not send their children to school this morning.
‘To protect the public, schools and colleges should now be closed. There has been contradictory medical evidence and in that context my view is that we should err on the side of caution.’
The Prime Minister yesterday faced a growing backlash after he refused to shut schools across the country as the coronavirus pandemic gripped the public.
A number of other countries such as Ireland, Austria, Turkey and Norway have taken drastic measures to stymie the spread of the disease, including closing schools, colleges and childcare facilities.
But the Prime Minister and his chief medical advisers decided to hold back these responses in an effort to delay the peak of the ‘worst public health crisis for a generation’, and instead recommended only stopping school trips abroad.
He outlined his plan in a press conference on Thursday, advising people to avoid cruises, school trips, and to stay at home for seven days if they notice any mild symptoms.
One of his advisors also said it was unreasonable to expect children to remain isolated for up to 16 weeks.
Mr Johnson said: ‘We advise all those over 70 with serious medical conditions against going on cruises and we advise against international school trips.
‘At some point in the next few weeks we are likely to go further.’
Despite the warnings, Mr Johnson said the UK would not close schools yet. He said: ‘The scientific advice is that this could do more harm than good.
‘But we are keeping this under review and this could change as the disease spreads. Schools should only close if they are specifically advised to do so.’
Chief medical officer Prof Chris Whitty later reiterated the Prime Minister’s point, saying: ‘Fortunately, and this is one silver lining in this particular infection, it looks as if children are affected much less than adults based on the early data we have at the moment.
‘Our view is not that they don’t get infected, we think they probably do, but they seem to have a much milder disease in general.’
Chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance also said schools would have to be closed for up to 16 weeks and it was not realistic to expect children to be cooped up that long.
He said: ‘It is true that there is some effect in closing schools but that effect is minimal and actually you would have to do it for 13 to 16 weeks or longer.
‘You do not have to be a very advanced mathematician to work out that the chances of keeping children not speaking to each other or playing with each other are zero.’