Ulster Unionist Education spokesperson, Robbie Butler MLA, has welcomed the decision by the Education Minister to put trust in teachers when it comes to delivering estimates for GCSE results, but has called on him to go further and apply the same level of trust in teachers for delivering A-Level results.

Mr Butler said:

“The announcement by the Education Minister that GCSE results will be based solely on the estimates provided by schools and colleges is the right decision, and one which will be welcomed by students, teachers and parents. However, it is  now time for the Minister to go further. If the Department of Education clearly trusts teachers to deliver gradings for children studying at GCSE Level then surely the only sensible decision is to apply the same level of trust at AS and A-Level.

“The Education Minister needs to make the move to address the A-Level results debacle. Peter Weir has an opportunity to swiftly rectify the unfairness of an algorithm which was thrust upon so many A-Level students last week. If use of the algorithm is unfair for GCSE students, then surely it`s unfair those AS and A-Level students who have seen their futures put on hold by standardised results which don`t reflect their previous work or the input from their teachers. A stark example are those students who were awarded ‘U’ grades. It is frankly unjust and unfair that students have been awarded ‘U’ grades without having had the opportunity to complete their studies, take final exams and the input from their teachers not considered in the same way as GCSE students.

“This is extremely urgent. The Department of Education can`t hang around any longer on making a swift move to deal with this. An appeals process which could take weeks is not the answer. Again, I would also appeal to Universities to show flexibility and understanding in how they deal with those students who have been left in a state of flux over the uncertainty and unfairness of their results. Do not slam the door on those students.”