Record A Level Results as North East Schools Celebrate student’s achievements
Schools North East wants to pass on its congratulations to all North East students on their amazing 2021 A Level results. A record 39.2% have achieved A* and A grades, a phenomenal achievement for our region’s students and a testament to their hard work, dedication, and determination.
These results have been achieved despite a tumultuous year for our schools and their students. The far reaching effects of the Coronavirus outbreak have created unprecedented and extremely challenging environments within our region’s schools. Despite this, our region’s young people have risen to the challenge and must be unreservedly congratulated.
We also want to congratulate school leaders and teachers for the hard work they have put in to deliver these grades. The Covid-related disruption over the past 18 months meant it was crucial to trust the professional judgement of teachers, to ensure grades were fair and reflected what students have learnt and are capable of achieving. The process this year drew on a wide range of evidence, and was the most fair way of deciding grades in light of the pandemic, however it has put huge pressure on school staff.
The severe impact of the Covid pandemic
Although there has been an increase in the number of who students have achieved A* and A grades in the North East, the increase is smaller than any other region in England. The North East saw an increase of 3.6%, compared with over 7% in London. The North East has fallen from sixth to ninth out of nine regions.
The hard work and perseverance of North East schools and their staff throughout covid is something to be celebrated, but nowhere near enough has been done to recognise or mitigate the impact Covid-19 has had on schools and students across the region. In a statement to regional and national media Director of Schools North East, Chris Zarraga, said: “We are incredibly proud of our school staff who have stepped up under unbelievably difficult circumstances to support not just their students and schools, but even their local communities. Our schools have worked to support our children with basic necessities, as well as trying to teach remotely. They have kept our vulnerable students safe, supported families in need, and allowed our critical workers to do their jobs to keep the country safe. The civic role that they have played throughout the pandemic has been second to none.”
Throughout the 2020-21 academic year, North East schools were decimated by positive cases and forced isolations. All regions saw increases in absence levels, with the biggest rise in the North East (+7%) and the smallest in the South West (+2%).
Chris Zarraga said: “Despite schools across the country relying on online learning to support students, far too many North East students and their families were unable to access relevant devices during lockdown. While schools strived to provide each student with a device, this was simply impossible to accomplish quickly on a large scale, with many families sharing devices as parents worked from home.
As a charity, Schools North East could not be more proud to serve a profession which has truly stepped up to the plate during such a challenging time, and will continue to do so in the future. They have truly been the ‘fourth emergency service’.”
National education ‘recovery’ plan urgently required
While the headlines today will be about the A Level results and the efforts of our students, it is vital that we celebrate the enormous efforts all schools in the North East have made to enable this to happen despite the most difficult year in education in generations. More importantly, this must be recognised by the Government in terms of adequate support for our region’s schools, ensuring that they have the resources to move forward confidently and successfully.
The Education Secretary now has to provide our schools with a properly thought through and resourced ‘recovery’ plan, including clear, simple, accurate and – most importantly – early guidance with regards to next year’s exams. The regional disparities in A Level results show that real urgency is required to create a recovery plan that supports our students now and in the future and that this cannot wait any longer.
Rather than bring in a ‘one size fits all’ approach, the Government must ensure that the areas hit hardest by COVID-19, particularly the North East, are supported – rather than penalised – through any difficulties the next academic year may bring.
The current recovery package of £1.4 billion is only a fifteenth of the plan proposed by former Education Recovery Commissioner Sir Kevan Collins, and amounts to an additional £50 per pupil. This compares shamefully to other western nations like the United States, which is committing an additional £1,600 per pupil, or the Netherlands which has announced an additional £2,500 per student.
We don’t yet know the full extent of the ‘learning loss’ students have suffered and policymakers should be working with school leaders to discover exactly what has been ‘lost’ and then develop long term solutions. This means looking beyond academic ‘catch-up’, supporting students with their health and wellbeing. Schools North East will continue to press for a strategic recovery plan that will properly address recovery from the pandemic as well as the pre-existing issues that it exacerbated.
