The UK government has just announced a series of measures to make GCSEs and A-levels easier next year, as a result of teaching lost due to COVID. These include more generous grading, advance notice of topics to aid revision, and the option of sitting exams in July if they are missed for illness or self-isolating….
News
UEA introduces ‘safety net’ for students
UEA has announced a ten-point plan for undergraduate assessment in summer 2020 after concerns the coronavirus pandemic may affect students’ grades. This comes as close to 1,800 students signed a petition calling for the University to “implement a no-detriment policy for end of year exams”. Harriet Davies, 21, is a third year Chemistry student at…
News
Government approve ‘accelerated’ two-year degree proposals
The government have agreed to the introduction of ‘accelerated’ two-year degree courses, although this is still subject to parliamentary approval. This follows a consultation in which the government found that shorter courses will be able to offer more choice and flexibility, particularly for mature students. The department for education has suggested that under the plan,…
Comment
Are exams pointless?
Some exams are archaic reflections of a ‘one size fits all’ system of streamlining. People may vilify them as an unnecessary cause of stress among students. I mean, what’s the point of finding out a person’s ability to memorise a volume of information that will be forgotten at the end of two hours? However, it…
Comment
Comment Box: Sam Gyimah misses the mark with ‘grade inflation’
More students achieving first class degrees is not a bad thing. At least, it shouldn’t be. With education standards in the UK generally improving and year-on-year more students getting into Britain’s world-class universities, should it not be a success story to have so many leave higher education with such a fantastic degree classification? The fact…
News
No exams failed at top UK universities
Concerns have been expressed for education standards at UK universities after an investigation by The Sunday Times newspaper found no students failed an exam at a selection of top universities. According to data given to The Sunday Times or released under freedom of information laws, eleven UK universities, including Durham and Oxford, recently admitted that…
News
Students given paws from deadlines
Students met therapy puppies to shake off the winter blues and relieve the stresses of university work last week. The event was part of the library’s Winter Checkup event. On Wednesday 6 December, the national charity Pets As Therapy (PAT) brought four dogs for students to pet and play with. The event included other relaxing…
Features
Exam stress saviours
Exams and deadlines are stressful. When the dates and essay questions get announced you think that you still have plenty of time to get everything done, but then suddenly you realise you wasted two months doing nothing, and here you are. The most important thing to remember now is that you will not get any…
Comment
Is the Oxbridge reputation deterring state school applicants?
They’ve written their personal statements; endured the nail-biting wait for a response; been through the gruelling interview process. Now, the results are almost in. It’s the time of year where students who have applied to Oxford or Cambridge find out if they’ve secured an offer – and two years ago, I was one of them….
Latest Comments