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| Eton teachers help set seven exams taken by its pupils, says headmaster | Eton teachers help set seven exams taken by its pupils, says headmaster |
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| Eton teachers are involved in setting seven public exams taken by their own pupils, the school’s headmaster admitted at an inquiry into exam integrity on Tuesday. | Eton teachers are involved in setting seven public exams taken by their own pupils, the school’s headmaster admitted at an inquiry into exam integrity on Tuesday. |
| Simon Henderson told parliament’s education select committee that eight of his staff set 10 exams in total, of which seven were for papers being sat by the school’s pupils. But he said he wanted to avoid a repeat of the scandal that led to a teacher’s departure from the school earlier this year, after it was first revealed in the Guardian that pupils had had access to material that later appeared in their final exams. | Simon Henderson told parliament’s education select committee that eight of his staff set 10 exams in total, of which seven were for papers being sat by the school’s pupils. But he said he wanted to avoid a repeat of the scandal that led to a teacher’s departure from the school earlier this year, after it was first revealed in the Guardian that pupils had had access to material that later appeared in their final exams. |
| And amid ongoing concern that exams are vulnerable to manipulation by unscrupulous examiners, England’s exam watchdog also told the committee that it was considering plans to crack down on classroom teachers who set public exams in the subjects they teach. | And amid ongoing concern that exams are vulnerable to manipulation by unscrupulous examiners, England’s exam watchdog also told the committee that it was considering plans to crack down on classroom teachers who set public exams in the subjects they teach. |
| The hearing is Henderson’s most substantial public discussion of the matter that took place during the summer, when pupils at Eton and Winchester had marks annulled in economics and art history papers for the Pre-U – an exam favoured by some schools as an alternative to A-levels – while the teachers responsible for leaking the material left their schools. | The hearing is Henderson’s most substantial public discussion of the matter that took place during the summer, when pupils at Eton and Winchester had marks annulled in economics and art history papers for the Pre-U – an exam favoured by some schools as an alternative to A-levels – while the teachers responsible for leaking the material left their schools. |
| Because the Pre-U exams are only taken in significant numbers by a small group of private schools – including Charterhouse, Westminster and Marlborough colleges – the episode raised fears that the Pre-U results could be easily distorted by an examiners’ cabal. | Because the Pre-U exams are only taken in significant numbers by a small group of private schools – including Charterhouse, Westminster and Marlborough colleges – the episode raised fears that the Pre-U results could be easily distorted by an examiners’ cabal. |
| Asked by Robert Halfron, the Conservative MP who chairs the education committee, if last summer’s affair was a one-off, Henderson said: “We have no evidence that this was going on previously.” | Asked by Robert Halfron, the Conservative MP who chairs the education committee, if last summer’s affair was a one-off, Henderson said: “We have no evidence that this was going on previously.” |
| Henderson told the committee that in the case of the economics Pre-U exam, it was other staff members at Eton who had blown the whistle. | Henderson told the committee that in the case of the economics Pre-U exam, it was other staff members at Eton who had blown the whistle. |
| “In this particular case it was our own teachers in the economics department who had concerns about the activity, the behaviour, of their head of department,” Henderson said. | “In this particular case it was our own teachers in the economics department who had concerns about the activity, the behaviour, of their head of department,” Henderson said. |
| “They reported it to me. I reported it to the examination board. It had been dealt with, the teacher had been dealt with and dismissed three weeks before the matter hit the public domain.” | “They reported it to me. I reported it to the examination board. It had been dealt with, the teacher had been dealt with and dismissed three weeks before the matter hit the public domain.” |
| As a result, teachers at Eton were no longer allowed to tell pupils if they were examiners, but other members of staff would be informed, to increase transparency. | As a result, teachers at Eton were no longer allowed to tell pupils if they were examiners, but other members of staff would be informed, to increase transparency. |
| Students and staff were being encouraged to report any instances of exam malpractice, Henderson said. | Students and staff were being encouraged to report any instances of exam malpractice, Henderson said. |
| Henderson confirmed that Eton has also reported Mo Tanweer, the economics teacher responsible for the exam leak, to the National Council for Teaching and Leadership’s disciplinary panel for investigation. | |
| Michelle Meadows, an executive director of Ofqual, described to MPs the measures the exam regulator was considering to mitigate the dangers of classroom teachers acting as examiners. | Michelle Meadows, an executive director of Ofqual, described to MPs the measures the exam regulator was considering to mitigate the dangers of classroom teachers acting as examiners. |
| Meadows said that “virtually everybody” who had responded to its consultation wanted to keep active teachers involved in preparing exams. | Meadows said that “virtually everybody” who had responded to its consultation wanted to keep active teachers involved in preparing exams. |
| “One possibility, of course, is that teachers continue but they are not allowed to teach the specification for which they are writing [exams]. We haven’t ruled that out but there are some really thorny issues associated with that which would need working through,” Meadows said. | “One possibility, of course, is that teachers continue but they are not allowed to teach the specification for which they are writing [exams]. We haven’t ruled that out but there are some really thorny issues associated with that which would need working through,” Meadows said. |
| “Much more likely, we might consult on the proposition that teachers can continue to be involved and teach the specification they are writing papers for. But they won’t know with certainty when the questions or papers they have been working on will come up.” | “Much more likely, we might consult on the proposition that teachers can continue to be involved and teach the specification they are writing papers for. But they won’t know with certainty when the questions or papers they have been working on will come up.” |
| Michael O’Sullivan, the chief executive of Cambridge Assessment International Education – which created the Pre-U exam and hires the examiners – said the type of cheating seen at Eton was rare. | Michael O’Sullivan, the chief executive of Cambridge Assessment International Education – which created the Pre-U exam and hires the examiners – said the type of cheating seen at Eton was rare. |
| “We are currently taking steps to further strengthen the supervision and training of any examiner who has this conflict of interest,” O’Sullivan told the committee. | “We are currently taking steps to further strengthen the supervision and training of any examiner who has this conflict of interest,” O’Sullivan told the committee. |
| O’Sullivan said that in recent years there had been a sharp rise in the number of cases of exam malpractice involving his exam board, rising from 269 in 2013 to 719 this year. But he said that might be because of better policing and encouragement of whistleblowing. | O’Sullivan said that in recent years there had been a sharp rise in the number of cases of exam malpractice involving his exam board, rising from 269 in 2013 to 719 this year. But he said that might be because of better policing and encouragement of whistleblowing. |
| Cambridge Assessment International Education is part of Cambridge University, as is the OCR exam board, one of the four main exam boards offering GCSEs and A-levels in England. | Cambridge Assessment International Education is part of Cambridge University, as is the OCR exam board, one of the four main exam boards offering GCSEs and A-levels in England. |
| Prof Jo-Anne Baird, the director of Oxford University’s department of education, told MPs that England’s exam system was one of the most robust of its type in the world, with stronger oversight than those of other countries. | Prof Jo-Anne Baird, the director of Oxford University’s department of education, told MPs that England’s exam system was one of the most robust of its type in the world, with stronger oversight than those of other countries. |