The first sat summer exams for three years begin in a matter of weeks. Head teachers across Wales say they are worried they will not be fair again because of continued havoc caused by Covid in schools and persistently high staff and pupil absence.
They have warned that the situation in schools is the worse it has been at any time in the pandemic and results appeals loom. Lack of staff has left some exam year pupils without a specialist subject teacher for weeks while those in other schools, or other classes, have had specialist teachers all the way through.
Although exam board WJEC and regulator Qualifications Wales agreed to reduce the content of papers to take account of Covid disruption that does not cover the widely varying situation for many teenagers, schools warned. The regulator confirmed last autumn that results in 2022 will be midway between the record high 2021 grades and those for the last sat exams in 2019 – there is debate over whether this means it will be easier or harder to get top grades.
