He's grappling with low attendance figures, calls for exams to be cancelled again and the roll out of Wales new curriculum from this September.
With school life still disrupted and far from normal in the continuing pandemic Education Minister Jeremy Miles also has to keep an eye on the road beyond Covid.
As Covid cases fall he's looking at easing restrictions in schools after half term, but is treading a more cautious approach than elsewhere in the UK.
WalesOnline asked Mr Miles what his priorities and concerns are after two years of Covid and how schools can emerge from the chaos it has caused them.
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Q: How confident are you that schools and teachers are prepared for the new curriculum when there’s been so much lost teaching and disruption to learning? Is it the right time?
“We start the roll out of the new curriculum in September and it rolls out year on year after that.
“We’ve been on the journey longer with primary schools. The level of preparedness in primary schools is further advanced, generally speaking, than with secondary schools.
“To reflect that difference, you’ll remember that I changed the arrangements last summer to give secondary schools the option of either starting the roll outs from this September or starting to roll out from September 2023.
“Secondary schools will be making their judgements in light of their feeling about how prepared they are. I think it’s also important, though, to say this is the next stage. We’ve been on this journey for about five years. September is the next milestone. It’s the beginning of the roll out, not the end of it. So I think that’s it’s worth having that context as well.
“But you know, there’s a lot of work that has been going on, and there’s a lot of work that’s coming to make sure that teachers are ready for the start in September.
“I’m very conscious that there’ll be lots of teachers who feel they haven’t been able to perhaps devote as much time as they themselves would have liked to and thinking about how they get to grips with questions of design or assessment or progression of pupils.
“So there’ll be more of that support coming forward between now and September. I’ve got a conference coming up in mid February and I’m inviting heads in Wales to that. That’ll help set out what we’ve got lying ahead.
“The work of the national networks, which started last autumn, that ought to be looking at design and progression. We’ve got the assessment toolkit being rolled out now, and there’s an awful lot of work that’s been going on for some time in terms of professional learning.
“The challenge now is to make sure that hard pressed teachers, who haven’t got lots of time on their hands to do some of the additional work that might be required, can find that really easily so they know what they need to look for and where to find it.
"I think that question of accessibility is the key thing. There’ll be lots of good things I’ll be able to say about that in the conference a couple of weeks time. ”
Q: Won’t merging the three separate sciences into one reformed science GCSE under the reforms disadvantage pupils?
“If you talk to the Institute of Physics, if you talk to the equivalent in chemistry, they are clear that doing this will actually enable all students to have access to STEM subjects. It makes it more likely that people will choose sciences.
“I’ve heard people talk about it as a sort of dumbing down. It absolutely isn’t that. What it does is it creates the ability for students and pupils to make connections between the sciences when they’re doing the GCSE which otherwise is a bit more challenging. That’s the first benefit.
“The second benefit of it is that it creates space in the qualifications to do other science related subjects, whether that’s around the built environment or engineering or manufacturing or computer science. There are some new GCSEs in that space which are applied, and I think that offers a wider range.
“We are confident that it won’t affect progression at (sciences) A level. In fact, there’s an argument that it will support that in that it brings in a greater sense of connection between those three science areas.
“I think it’s also worth bearing in mind that at the moment there are more people doing what’s currently in the new qualifications - double science. There are more people doing that than doing the individual sciences, so I think it’s just worth having that as context as well.
“As far as I’m aware, no higher education institutions specify the need for individual sciences at GCSE.”
Q: How concerned are you about school budgets and education funding after two years of pandemic spending? What are you doing to press for more funding for education and what about the effect of the 1.75% teacher pay award which the Welsh Government is not funding in full?
“We’ve been able to make sure that teachers’ pay increased even at a time when the UK Government has frozen teachers’ pay in the UK - so we haven’t had the money that comes with a pay increase in England. We found that in our budget.
“If you look at the local authority sector, which is where the schools money ends up sitting, this next year, the authority which has the lowest increase of any of them, is higher than the highest increase of any authority in any settlements for the past 17 years. “From my point of view, I’m increasing funding in my budget to support schools around curriculum reform, around ALN reforms.
“We’re still looking to carry on investing in technology. So in any of the areas which end up being paid directly from the Welsh Government rather than for the local government settlement, there is really good provision the budgets there as well.
“The picture at the moment in schools across Wales, is that because of the experience of the last couple of years, the reserves position in schools gives heads a little bit more flexibility that otherwise they might have.
“The last thing is I saw, which I think was as of March of last year,showed that there were, I think from memory, about £180m in reserves across the school system in general. Obviously, that will vary between schools, about 140 of that (sic) was higher than it had been previously in the year before. So for obvious reasons because schools have been operating differently in the last couple of years and we wanted to make sure that funding from US continues.”
Q: What’s the reason for tougher Covid restrictions in schools? Why do they still have to wear masks in secondary schools? Why are children still not able to meet friends from outside contact group to play and learn with?
“Even at alert level zero there are requirements and face coverings. So if you’re in the bus sat next to somebody you’re asked to wear a face coverings, if you’re in the supermarket, you’re asked to her face coverings.
“The advice we’ve had, very clearly, is that we need to allow another couple of weeks, so the week after next, probably, we will have a clearer picture of where the numbers are in terms of transmission that enables us to see what effect the change of policy around PCR testing would have.
“And we’ve also always been able to provide schools with a bit of time to plan and I think that went well over Christmas, I gave schools three weeks notice of the planning for the start of the new term. And then we have those two days planning at the very start. I think experience from the school is tells us that was a positive thing. We need to be able to do it smoothly. So that’s the rationale.
“Now as you say, as you say in England, obviously the government there has said that face coverings aren’t required in schools, but an awful lot schools actually are still operating on the basis faces that pupils are wearing face coverings.
“But we’ve also seen, I think in the last couple of days, is Covid related absences in England’s schools at the highest of this academic year.
“It’s a significant challenge for all parts of the UK to make sure that attendance levels get back to where they need to be. No part of the UK has got there yet.
“I want to make sure that everyone’s clear that we’re doing everything to keep schools functioning as normally as possible in difficult circumstances. It isn’t normal in school at the moment. It’s still very far from that.
“But I’m hopeful, if the data justifies it, that we can get to that position by the end of this half term. So we start the new half term back on the framework with schools making their judgements reflecting their local situation.”
Q: When you talk about data, what has to happen for things to be relaxed in schools? Is there an exact figure or is it just the general data?
“No, there’s not an exact figure but you know, if the pattern continues as it is now and that doesn’t change because you know, the PCR policy hasn’t affected the data, if I can put it like that, then we’ll be on a good path. So that’s what I’m hoping.
“I’m expecting as we get to the 10th of February if the data is heading in the same direction as it is now, that we’re going to say (to schools) start planning to introduce your framework arrangements and make sure they’re all in place by the start of the new term.
Q: One in 10 children still aren’t attending school and even fewer in exam years. How concerned are you about absence rates and when might penalties for parents not sending their children to school be reintroduced?
“I don’t think we’re in that place now (to re-introduce penalties) . I think it’s still a situation where we’re encouraging pupils back to school.
“I think the picture is broadly the same in all parts of the UK, so it’s a set of common challenges.
“What I’ve said is that fining should only be used in extreme circumstances and not for Covid related absences. I think our task is to make sure that learners, their parents and carers are confident in coming back to school. I think that’s the better road for us to take.
“I’ve been very anxious about attendance levels. Before Christmas I commissioned a piece of work which I am about to have presented to me, which goes beyond the kind of numbers and tries to establish what the patterns are and why people have made the choice not to come to school.
“So that will gives us some good information for planning in a couple of weeks. I think the UK government’s just another something similar in England.
“But you know, it’s a particular concern in exam years, for obvious reasons, and that’s really been a key reason why we’ve been very, very keen to make sure that there are as many adaptations to the GCSE exams as possible. So they will look very different exams in 2019 to reflect obviously the last learning time. That’s been taken very much into account in reducing the content that will be examined, for example.”
Q: Why did you decide to go ahead with exams this summer when the same conditions are in place that saw then cancelled last year? What what makes it fair this year?
“There are a range of views on this just to be honest. So there are teachers, parents and learners who say, we don’t think exams should happen, but there are also those who say absolutely, let’s exam have exams. It’s a mixed picture. My view is that they are the fairest way to assess learners.
“What we’ve been able to do this year, which wasn’t possible last year, was to build on the experience we had last year. So from last summer from on the WJEC examination board and Qualifications Wales, who makes all the decisions independently, have worked on reducing content telling students what will be examined, moving the grade boundaries so they reflect the level of disruption. If there’s non examined assessments the grade from that is still relevant.
“I want to make sure that anyone doing GCSEs this summer is able to progress to their next stage. We will do everything we possibly can to support that.
“Some of the money I made available before Christmas - giving those students one to one advice about options, so they can progress to sixth form, FE or the world of work. whatever they want to do.
“Also, if you’re if you’re doing A levels, or you want to go to university, I don’t want Welsh learners to be at a disadvantage compared to pupils in other parts of the UK. Other parts if the UK are doing examinations. If you’re thinking of applying to university, not everyone does that, but if you are, then I want people to be treated on the same footing.
“Actually, we’ve been able to go further than other parts of the UK in making those kind of adaptations to the exams, just because of the way we structure our exams here. So it’s been easier for us to take out units of examination, or to give advance warning and so on, than it has been in other parts of the UK.”
Q: So will it just be a blanket new level because in a sense that’s still unfair, isn’t it? It might be beneficial to people who have not lost any learning.
"Well it takes account of the overall level of disruption. So, if you’ve been out of school and had a lot of learning loss the new specification will reflect that overall.
“We’ve also got alongside that the targeted support that we’ve provided to make sure that people get the extra tuition needed when they’ve been particularly badly impacted.
“So it’s a question of making sure the blend of all these ways of helping learners help get the fairest possible system.
“I also want to make certain that we’ve got the kind of appeals process in place which is accessible, easily communicated to allow that to be taken into account.”
Q: What exam results appeals process will there be this year? Will it be different?
"We are working through that now with Qualifications Wales, who lead on that. I am meeting with them and the WJEC next week to see what more we can do.”
Q: What will happen if students taking exams have Covid or have to isolate from Covid?
“The process of special consideration, which exists, in any exam year, will apply this year. If you’re not there because you’re unwell or because of self isolation.
“There’s a whole system which exists to provide you with your grade and that’ll be applied this year. So if you’re not physically able to do your exam, the system is already in place to support that.”
Q: We could see more Covid disruption ahead. What planning is being made to minimise the effect on education?
“None of us know what lies ahead. We are looking at the (Covid) numbers coming down very significantly. My task is to make sure schools have the tools to be able to respond to those challenges if they arise again.
“None of us want to see schools operating at the very highest level of mitigations unless it’s absolutely necessary.
“There are things around the kind of technology, there are things around ventilation in schools, we’ve obviously invested quite significantly in that before Christmas and in the new year. That’s the ventilation works themselves, whether that’s putting in new vents or adapting the air exchange kit some schools have. For some it’s about being able to make it easy to open doors, windows, all that sort of practical side of things.
“In addition to Covid monitors are there to help schools recognise where they need to be bringing the ventilation in.
“I had advice from our Technical Advisory Group, our version of SAGE, on purification technology. We don’t expect that much of that will be needed because what we still know is that ventilation is by far the most effective way of responding.
“The money that we’ve put into the system has helped a lot of schools, fix some of ventilation issues that they’ve had, but to those schools that still can’t do that those machines are now available to be bought and obviously I’ve provided funding at the start of this year to help schools to buy to buy that kit.”
Q: Have we learned anything from the disruption of Covid that might benefit education going forward?
“The challenges of Covid are still obviously with us, but what I would say is we’ve had a laser like focus throughout the education system on the well being of learners. I think that is going to be an ongoing priority forever, but for the next couple of years a particular focus.
“We have a particular focus on making sure that our learners’ mental health and wellbeing is supported and the workforce as well. Staff have had fairly significant challenges. We need to make sure that they’re supported themselves and also to support our learners. So that’s a whole area of focus there.
“We’ started talking about the curriculum and that is all about helping our young people to be adaptable, to make connections and to respond to a changing world.
"The last couple of years has seen the most acute sector changes, having to adapt to all of that and to become self motivated learners. They’ve learned the hard way if I can put it like that. I think there’s a lot that we’ve learnt around that as well.
“One thing I think we need to make real advantage of into the future is we’ve invested so much in technology in schools now - whether it’s in schools or kit pupils the take home - we’ve got to make that work for us now and in the future, so that we use it not just if we need to for blended learning, but in the classroom.
"How can we make the best possible use of technology to support our learners. I think there’s a real exciting opportunity for us there.”
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