Colleges' anger over latest exam errors

Key Skills papers had errors or omissions

Colleges say the latest problems in advanced level exams taken by students in England this week show the system needs to be changed.

"There are too many weak links," said the Association of Colleges.

The association - representing hundreds of further education colleges - say problems in the Key Skills communications paper led to one college suspending the exam for a time.

Errors were partly down to the Edexcel exam board and partly down to the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA).

This has caused particular alarm because it is the body which is supposed to oversee the quality of exams, but it actually sets the Key Skills papers.

Reputation at stake

The director of curriculum and quality at the Association of Colleges, Judith Norrington, said: "The system cannot continue like this.

"We cannot have the futures of young people and the reputation of the public examination system regularly called into question by these continuing errors.

"There are too many weak links in the chain."

Her association would be calling on QCA and the exam boards to start an immediate investigation into what had happened and to work together to put it right.

The college which felt it had to stop the exam - while it sought advice on what to do - was Thomas Rotherham College in Rotherham, south Yorkshire.

The error that was down to the QCA involved a question which asked students to discuss two images but did not make clear which images.

Printer error

The Edexcel problem - with questions missing or in the wrong place - was blamed by its chief executive, John Kerr, on an "operative error" by the printing company it had used.

"This was despite our thoroughgoing quality checks on their sample random papers, which cleared the batch as accurate," he said.

"Our first concern being to minimise disruption to any candidates taking this exam, we immediately ordered a reprint to be carried out and immediate despatch of correct papers to reach as many centres as possible before the exam start time."

Where this was not possible the correct pages were sent by fax.

He added: "We sincerely regret any disturbance to candidates and centres, particularly at a time when we have been working so hard and successfully towards reducing such errors.

Employability

"We can assure all our centres and candidates that we will redouble our vigilance over the process of exam paper production, including outside agencies.

"Any student affected by this printer's error will not be disadvantaged as special considerations will be applied during marking."

Edexcel has this week replaced its head of media relations.

Key Skills are supposed to demonstrate, particularly to employers, that students with academic qualifications also know how to do things in practice.

The system was tightened up last year following BBC News Online's exposure of security weaknesses in the exams.

In theory they can count towards the points students need for university entrance. In practice universities are lukewarm on them.

Tests delayed

Edexcel also suffered the embarrassment this week of having printed "Stewarts" on a history paper about the Stuart period.

A week ago the QCA also finally admitted, in response to repeated enquiries from journalists, that perhaps more than 100 schools had not received on time the national curriculum test papers for which it is also responsible.

As a result some schools sat the tests late. Given that the papers are all supposed to be taken at the same time, and not opened beforehand, this has raised questions about the integrity of the tests.

The QCA's chief officer, Beverley Evans, apologised "unreservedly" for what had happened.

The tests have a new significance this year because for the first time schools' results are going to be included in the annual performance tables published by the Department for Education.

The authority's chairman, Sir William Stubbs, this week told the Commons education select committee he expected fewer problems with the exam system this year than last.

Then, the introduction of the new AS-level exams brought widespread timetabling problems for schools.