Heads warn of exam 'congestion'

The main exam season is looming for hundreds of thousands of youngsters

Pupils about to start sitting GCSEs and AS-levels are being put under extra pressure by timetabling problems, head teachers have warned.

The National Association of Head Teachers says as more pupils sit a wider range of subjects, candidates can face three or four exams in one day.

It is calling on exam boards to co-ordinate schedules more effectively.

The Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) said it aimed to minimise clashes but some were inevitable.

The exam season begins across England, Wales and Northern Ireland on Monday, but teaching unions fear what is already a difficult time for pupils is being made even harder.

It can't encourage the best performance by them Chris Howard, NAHT vice-president Pupils feel exam logjam pressure

Students in Scotland are already well into their exam season.

Emma Horstrup, assistant head at Rainham Mark Grammar School in Kent, said: "We are getting a bunching of exams in one day.

"Some students are sitting three exams in one day - this is causing great stress and may be affecting their results."

Chris Howard, vice-president of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: "The exam boards need to do more to best co-ordinate their efforts so that youngsters don't have this problem of three or four examinations in one day which is clearly asking too much of anybody.

"It can't encourage the best performance by them," he added.

Former chief inspector of schools Chris Woodhead said the exam boards could better co-ordinate the exam timetables.

He added: "But I also think that ministers are responsible because they've encouraged more and more subjects to be offered at both GCSE and A-level and, of course, the more subjects that are offered, the more likely it is that there are going to be clashes between different subjects and different exam boards."

Teachers' feedback

There are fears too that the so-called exam congestion will become worse next year as old and new A-level systems overlap.

The JCQ, which represents the exam bodies, acknowledges it has a difficult job trying to cram some 3,000 exam papers into 30 days of examinations.

It said the increasing number of subjects being offered to pupils and restrictions on the scheduling of examinations, including bank holidays, school holidays and religious festivals, meant some clashes were inevitable.

However, it said it sought feedback on draft timetables from teachers' groups before publishing them

A meeting is being held next week for the JCQ to discuss a draft timetable for 2009 with teaching unions.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version