With students all over the UK finally returning to school once more, the pressure is bound to build back up as we try to stabilise our routines for the second or third time, desperately needing to adjust to the added workload and commute in a short amount of time. With this comes the government's decision on exams, as the deadline looms closer every day.
After the first trip back to school, it is evident that going back to a regular schedule is difficult, and catching up with all the work that has been missed takes time and patience. These are both things that GCSE and A Level students don’t have. As a result of the disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the government has decided to, once again, cancel major exams this year, instead awarding grades through assessing coursework, and ultimately giving teachers full control over their student’s results. This has caused a huge amount of worry over the chance of inflation, but it seems that there is no viable option to completely prevent injustice, either putting students under a lot of stress and difficulty and risk giving deflated grades, or aiding them but at the risk of mass inflation.
Anastasia Proudnikova, a student preparing for her GCSEs next year, says “On one hand I think it’s a good thing for schools to reopen since it’s a vital part of education, especially with GCSE and A Level students. However it may also prove unreasonable, considering that vaccines have not yet been distributed and so many students take public transport to school, where they are constantly exposed to the virus. Honestly, I don’t think the government has much choice, it’s a difficult situation to be in and closing schools for much longer could make it even harder for people to return. I’m personally looking forward to seeing all my friends again, but at the same time it will be a difficult change from the relaxed atmosphere of online learning. I think overall ‘real life’ school gives off much more pressure and learning from home feels more safe - regarding both the Covid situation and in general, for most teens. I definitely think that it’ll take some time to adjust back into the school system.”
This pandemic and the effects it causes has been labeled as “the worst disruption in education since the war”. It is clear that this is going to be a difficult transition, and the school system isn’t going to go back to normal for a while. In the meantime, it’s important to stay focused and attempt to handle the situation to the best of our ability.
