Anger as pupils set to get 'dumbed down' Covid-era GCSE exams

GCSE pupils will receive ­Covid-era maths and science exam aids for another three years – sparking fears of ­'dumbing down'.

Education Secretary Bridget ­Phillipson said youngsters will get formulae and equations on sheets to save having to memorise them.

The measures were first introduced in 2022 to take into account disruption to pupils' education caused by repeated lockdowns.

Last year the previous ­Conservative government said the sheets would be scrapped in future as part of a return to ­rigorous assessment.

However, yesterday Ms ­Phillipson insisted they should stay in place because the ­pandemic 'continues to have an impact'.

The exam aids will be provided to those sitting maths, physics and combined science GCSEs in 2025, 2026 and 2027.

Those sitting their exams next year would have been aged ten and 11 in 2020, when schools first closed.

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Yesterday, Chris McGovern of the Campaign for Real Education warned: 'Continuing to lower the bar for post-Covid pupils ­undermines the integrity and ­credibility of the public ­examination system.

'It is dishonest and sounds an alarm bell for Labour's direction of travel in education policy. Exams should test knowledge and understanding and not be dumbed down to cover-up any decline in standards.

'If we are to compete with our economic competitors we should raising the assessment bar, not lowering it.' Ms Phillipson made the announcement in a letter to Sir Ian Bauckham, chief regulator at the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual).

She said teachers and officials had told her removing exam aids would be 'premature'.

She added that evidence shows the pandemic 'continues to have an impact on students who missed out on vital years of ­education and development'.

However, Ms Phillipson went on: 'Students will continue to be expected to understand and use these formulae and equations, maintaining high standards for what students must study.'

And she said there may be 'future changes' as a result of the Government's ­curriculum and assessment review.

It comes after the Tories spent 14 years making the GCSE ­curriculum and exams more ­rigorous, spearheaded by former education secretary Michael Gove.

They argued that under New Labour, a 'prizes for all' culture had developed, leading to grade inflation and dumbing down.

Tory reforms to GCSEs included making the curriculum more ­rigorous; renewing the focus on exams; incentivising schools to get pupils to take harder ­subjects; and introducing a new system at Ofqual to stop grade inflation.

Yesterday, Ms Phillipson's ­decision was cheered by the teaching unions, which have been campaigning against the Tories' reforms.

Pepe Di'Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: 'We hope that this will lead to a permanent change.

'The exam system should not be a test of memory but of the ­ability of students to apply knowledge and learning.'

Sarah Hannafin, head of policy at the school leaders' union NAHT, said it 'affirms what our members have been calling for'.

She added the NAHT want the sheets 'kept in place for all future exam series' because 'there is no need for an additional test of memory'.