The Strangford MLA said: “Today’s announcement from the Minister once again demonstrates that he is failing to listen to those at the heart of our education system and pushing forward with his own plans and agenda.
“In response to the Minister’s consultation on his original proposals, 77 per cent of respondents either Strongly Disagreed or Disagreed to moving to a linear A Level structure. Only 19.03 per cent of teachers either Strongly Agreed or Agreed with this proposal, with only 9.21 per cent of pupils sharing support.
“In his statement to the House, the Minister repeatedly referenced the significant pressure that exams place on students' mental health and he has said that these reforms will reduce stress on young people. I struggle to understand how fewer exams does not just mean more pressure and higher stakes for our children and young people, all concentrated at the end of your 2 years of study.
“Decisions about ending controlled assessments for many subjects at GCSE and A-Level are also highly questionable. The Minister asserts that the growth of generative AI simply means these should be scrapped and written off as unreliable for many subjects. This feels like a knee-jerk reaction which will not help many young people.
“Software to identify AI generated content is becoming more and more sophisticated and the Minister appears to be ignoring this. Examinations should not be the only way we assess our young people's learning.
“Alliance will continue to engage with our children and young people and teaching workforce around these proposals and what direct impact they will have in the classroom. We want to ensure that all children and young people have the opportunity to thrive and enjoy learning. Their voice is vital in any reforms and it is incredibly disappointing that this has been ignored in relation to such a critical change of our system.”
“In response to the Minister’s consultation on his original proposals, 77 per cent of respondents either Strongly Disagreed or Disagreed to moving to a linear A Level structure. Only 19.03 per cent of teachers either Strongly Agreed or Agreed with this proposal, with only 9.21 per cent of pupils sharing support.
“In his statement to the House, the Minister repeatedly referenced the significant pressure that exams place on students' mental health and he has said that these reforms will reduce stress on young people. I struggle to understand how fewer exams does not just mean more pressure and higher stakes for our children and young people, all concentrated at the end of your 2 years of study.
“Decisions about ending controlled assessments for many subjects at GCSE and A-Level are also highly questionable. The Minister asserts that the growth of generative AI simply means these should be scrapped and written off as unreliable for many subjects. This feels like a knee-jerk reaction which will not help many young people.
“Software to identify AI generated content is becoming more and more sophisticated and the Minister appears to be ignoring this. Examinations should not be the only way we assess our young people's learning.
“Alliance will continue to engage with our children and young people and teaching workforce around these proposals and what direct impact they will have in the classroom. We want to ensure that all children and young people have the opportunity to thrive and enjoy learning. Their voice is vital in any reforms and it is incredibly disappointing that this has been ignored in relation to such a critical change of our system.”