Ofqual warned that the rating system would not get public support

England’s exam regulator Ofqual says it was a “fundamental mistake” to think that the public would accept an emergency grading system in lieu of test results.

President Roger Taylor said Ofqual advised ministers to take or delay exams socially distanced.

If these two options weren’t feasible, then the calculated ratings could be used, Ofqual said.

Taylor said Education Secretary Gavin Williamson canceled the exams without further reference to Ofqual.

Labor said it is “now clear” that Williamson was responsible for the test chaos and that Ofqual should not be blamed.

But a spokesman for the Department of Education said the decision to cancel the exams had been a “necessary step to combat the spread of the coronavirus.”

When did the problems appear?

Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer used the prime minister’s questions to challenge Boris Johnson when he first learned that there was a problem with the algorithm for deciding ratings.

Johnson defended his government’s record, accusing Sir Keir of being “Captain Hindsight.”

“We instituted change, we acted,” and the students got their grades, the prime minister said.

But Taylor told deputies on the Commons education select committee: “The fundamental mistake was to believe this [system] it would ever be acceptable to the public. “

Williamson made the decision to cancel exams when schools were closed due to the coronavirus and a growing number of teachers were protecting themselves.

Ofqual had to develop a system to give grades on tests that students could no longer take.

This produced a moderation process in which 40% of the A-level scores were lower than the scores estimated by their schools.

‘Mock valid?’

But Taylor defended Ofqual’s approach to calculating ratings, saying it was trying to comply with ministerial guidelines.

He argued that the grading standardization system, the so-called “algorithm,” generally would have helped disadvantaged students.

Ofqual’s chairman said that in March the Education Department had consulted the regulator about the implications of canceling exams.

At this point, Ofqual said there were four options:

• delay exams until virus crisis passes
• take socially distanced exams
• use some kind of certificate evaluated by the teacher and the school
• o combine school-based assessments with the standardization model to produce estimated scores

Mr. Taylor said that he and his officials had repeatedly warned the Department of Education of the risks of using estimated ratings.

Julie Swann, Ofqual’s executive director of overall ratings, said a May 1 document “highlighted the risk of widespread dissatisfaction” from students, schools and universities.

But after problems and inconsistencies with grades emerged, the moderation process was abandoned on a 180 degree turn and teacher grades were used instead.

Resignations

The top regulator, Sally Collier, resigned and the top official in the Department of Education, Jonathan Slater, resigned after the test chaos.

Taylor also revealed that Ofqual’s guidance on using “valid mock” test results to extend the appeals process was removed from Ofqual’s website after an intervention by England’s secretary of education.

Mr. Williamson had decided to allow mock test results to be used as evidence in grading appeals.

Taylor said Williamson phoned top regulator Sally Collier on the night of Saturday, Aug.15, after Ofqual released a new appeals guide, saying it was inconsistent with the education secretary’s policy.

Ofqual, which is independent from the government, had been trying to formulate a way for such appeals to work, while fulfilling its legal duty to ensure that the examinations were fair.

Taylor said the board later met in an emergency session to try to find a way to overcome a situation that was “rapidly spiraling out of control.”

“We informed the Secretary of State at this time that we could not be sure that this could be accomplished within Ofqual’s statutory duties to ensure valid and reliable ratings were issued.”

‘U-turn exams’

Discussions continued throughout Sunday, in which it was clear that the switch to “center-assessed grades”, which had been submitted by schools and universities, was almost inevitable.

Mr. Williamson went on to announce that the results would use these center-evaluated ratings in a major U-turn.

A spokesman for the Department of Education said that “the government never wanted to cancel the exams because they are the best and fairest form of evaluation.

“We listened to the views of a variety of parties, including Ofqual, and given the public health requirements at the time, we made a very difficult decision on the grounds that it was a necessary step to combat the spread of the coronavirus.”