As GCSEs season looms near, many exam boards are making the decision to take out parts of their exams in an effort to help students disadvantaged by two years of lockdowns and pandemic measures.
If all goes to plan, the current Year 11s will be the first group since 2019 to sit their GCSEs. And even then, these will not be the full exams for some subjects. Already, AQA has decided to remove one component from the English Literature exam. Other subjects are awaiting news from their respective exam boards – many of which will be releasing decisions in February. So why are so many exam boards choosing to omit components from the final exams? It boils down to how disadvantaged this year is already and the amount of pressure these 15 and 16 year-olds are under to deliver for the first time in 2 years. They have gone without recent past papers, missed months of in person school and have been forced to adapt to ‘blended learning’.
Most if not all students welcome these changes. The head of the English Department at Townley Grammar, Hayley Ronan, commented on the changes to the AQA English Literature exam. She agreed with how this could benefit students, saying that “this is a chance for them to focus on particular strengths” and giving the students the freedom to make individual deductions from their exam was a “level of freedom” she was able to give them. However, she did add that some students can feel “overwhelmed” especially with individual decisions, but agreed that this could be remedied by consulting teachers and parents.
Some people think that reducing the amount of content is unfair for previous years who had to face the brunt of GCSEs. However, I think that view is representative of someone who has been privileged in not having their life derailed by the pandemic and its ensuing lockdowns and cannot understand how much students’ work and mental health has been impacted. These children’s lives revolve around school. It controls when they eat, when they go to bed, and when they wake up – for five days a week. To have such an integral part of the day replaced by a lacklustre online version has been devastating for many.
These changes for the 2022 exams are welcomed by most and snubbed by few. Some think they should not even go ahead due to the risk of having that many students fit into a single space. However, the recent end of Plan B Covid measures brings new hope that the virus will not derail exams for another year.
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