The Independent Assessment Commission (IAC) has reiterated its calls for fundamental reform after a new poll showed the impact of the high-stakes nature of England’s exam system on pupils and teachers.
The IAC-commissioned survey featured more than 1,000 18 to 22-year-olds and more than 1,200 teachers and found a clear majority favoured reform of secondary assessment.
The survey found that 49% of teachers and 40% of students believe the current exam system has a negative impact on student mental health.
Meanwhile, 43% of the teachers believe their mental health is affected negatively by the current exam system.
Shifting to a mixed mode of assessment combining coursework-based assessment alongside some exams would be welcomed by a majority of teachers (68%) and young people (51%). Furthermore, 72% of teachers and 63% of young people felt mixed mode assessments would be fairer.
And teachers (68%) and students (67%) agree that the focus on high-stakes terminal exams puts young people off lifelong learning.
The IAC brought together academics, parents, and students as well as the National Education Union, Chartered College of Teaching, the Edge Foundation, and the CBI.
Its final report was published earlier this year and made a number of recommendations including a call to “end high-stakes examinations as the only mode of assessing student achievement”.
It stated: “GCSEs in their present form, where the qualification is based solely on high-stakes examinations, need to change fundamentally.
It called on the government to “identify reliable, alternative, blended approaches to assessment that rigorously gather evidence of student achievement and competence”, adding that the exam system should “focus on qualifications as outcomes”.
It added: “Assessment should not be based around a fixed age of 16. Students should have opportunities to demonstrate achievements when ready throughout education 14 to 19.”
Commenting on the survey results, Dr Robin Bevan, a member of the IAC and headteacher of Southend High School for Boys, said: “This evidence from teachers and pupils throughout England is quite clear. If we do not change the way we examine our young people we will continue to put the welfare of millions of pupils and their teachers at risk.
“Teachers and young people not only recognise that our exam system is obsolete, but that additionally it is harming both pupil and teacher mental health.
“Government and policy-makers should be taking note of these results which show the broad consensus for reforming our exam system at age 16 - in particular, moving to a mixed mode of assessment would be fairer, equally reliable, and would improve mental health outcomes.”
For the full IAC report from February 2022, visit www.neweraassessment.org.uk/findings