This week students will receive exam results for the first time since 2019. A true sign that the world is back to 'normal' and I'm not stressing about the algorithms or any part of the coursework that was used to calculate my grades. This year parents, students, schools and colleges are returning to the familiar world of testing.
These students represent optimism about the new futures we can build, the choices we can make again. We owe it to these students, who have faced unprecedented challenges, to ensure that their ambitions become reality.
I will come with anxiety. Last week, they saw their Scottish counterparts perform lower than they had in the past two years, with a sharp drop in acceptance rates for students from poor backgrounds. They may have heard about grading issues, or having enough examiners available to get everything done on time, or the lack of college offers this year. not.
The return of exams is not surprising, but with tighter grade boundaries and fewer college offers, the Conservative Party's once-advocated support for student education recovery is no longer provided.
From the age of 16 to her 5 to her 19, less than 1 of them receive some form of support from the Conservative Party's unregulated tutoring programme. The government's major education revitalization proposal has wasted time and public money on outsourcing contracts that failed to reach the number of students it needed. They passed the exam and are now receiving their results. The government realized the schools were in the best place to support additional teaching and learning, but it was two years too late.
The access to education these students received during Covidwas highly variable. Whether this was due to lack of access to technology when schools were closed to most students, or due to uneven Covid and isolation rates, there was a risk to play. out in these test results. They have varying levels of learning and receive woefully inadequate government support to compensate.
In November 2020, Labor first called on the government to ensure a level playing field for students. This month, for the third year in a row, the government failed to deliver it for the summer. This is because children and young people need it, and their success underpins our nation's future success.
From the beginning they would have offered tutoring through schools and colleges. We provide funded pre-school and after-school activities to boost the social development of young people and encourage schools and colleges to provide additional targeted support by extending student premiums. so that we can provide - 16 settings to help tackle achievement gaps. Importantly, we have committed to having mental health counselors in every school and addressing youth mental health crises.
ambitions for the future. A comprehensive plan does not pretend that the turmoil and chaos of the pandemic will simply disappear.
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Since these children entered secondary school, there have been seven secretaries of state, many of whom are math teachers. did. No wonder they worry about the future when education is political football, with no clear focus on the long-term thinking needed to help their children thrive.
Even today, governments have no plans to secure the future of young people. When Labor called on ministers to work with universities, colleges and employers to provide next-step guarantees and secure a future for young people who have worked hard despite the disruption caused by Covid, they said
When Sir Kevan Collins, the government's "education catch-up tour" resigned a year ago, he warned:
The Conservatives have been in power for 12 years and have failed to understand that betraying their children is betraying themselves, their country and their future. Government is no match for the ambitions these young people have for themselves.
Bridget Phillipson is Secretary of State for Education and Member of Parliament for Houghton and Sunderland South
