Slob adjusts final exam rules
Outgoing education minister Arie Slob will adjust the rules regarding final exams in 2022 compared to the previous year. In principle, exam students are no longer allowed to cross out a subject this year. However, all diploma candidates are given two attempts for a resit and the third period remains.
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With a letter to the House of Representatives, the minister of education provides the examination candidates with more clarity about what to expect.
less flexible
Compared to the last final exam, the rules are less flexible. Last school year, final exam candidates could cross off a subject - if it was not a core subject. This was called the thumb rule: students were allowed to 'thumb' a subject so that it did not count in the pass/fail rule.
Compared to the last final exam, the rules will be less flexible in 2022
It is not possible to cross out a subject in the upcoming final exam. This lead 'to a focused effort within the curriculum and to a loss of motivation to follow education for 'thumb subjects', Slob writes. Teachers told the Education magazine last school year how students stayed away from their 'cross-out section' at an early stage. Spreading the final exams over three periods is still possible next year.
Something is also changing for VMBO students. Last school year they were able to complete their vocational profile subjects in a school exam. In this way, schools could choose themselves when they took the exam. This year, the central written and practical exam (cspe) for the vocational profile subjects will again be partially administered as a central exam.
Gigantic workload
The new rules - a third period and two resits - are expected to result in more work for teachers in practice AObdirector Jelmer Evers. It is expected that teachers will be given a bulk of marking, because more students will make use of the second resit. After all, they can no longer cross out a subject. In addition, exams can be spread over three time periods.
"Very good that measures are being taken, because we are concerned about our students. But also about the workload of the teachers," says Evers. "It is already huge and we know from last year that the workload peaked around the final exams. That will certainly not be less during the upcoming exams without thumb regulation."
The workload is already huge and we know from last year that the workload peaked around the final exams
De AObdirector also refers to the discussion about teachers in the Northern Netherlands continuing to work during the summer holidays last year because of the third period. This year that would apply to colleagues in Central Netherlands. Evers: “We are well involved in the discussions about the final exams and recognize the complexity, but as education unions we are not satisfied with the outcome. Clear agreements must be made about limiting the extra workload as much as possible. By clearly and adequately facilitating extra work and by providing alternatives for continuing to work during the holidays.”
Preference
The direction that the minister is now choosing is partly in line with what teachers of examination classes mavo, havo and vwo announced at the beginning of this month via a AOb-survey (more than 1100 respondents). Teachers would prefer that students be allowed to resit two subjects as a measure when schools remain open. 71 percent of the teachers ticked this option as one of the options where they could choose multiple answers. A lot less popular are a third time slot (almost 30 percent) and the thumb control (27 percent).
Teachers prefer to see an extra resit as a measure
Even if the schools have to close, the extra resit option is the most favorite option of teachers. In this situation, the third period (53 percent) and the thumb rule (46 percent) are a measure that more teachers see than if the schools remain open.
Do not make any adjustments to the exam at all, one in five teachers checks if the schools remain open. With a school closure, this drops to almost 7 percent.
the dupe
Several teachers point out in their open remarks that this generation of graduating students is most affected by the corona crisis. For example, one teacher writes: 'For the students who are now in VWO 6, the period of online lessons is longer than for the students of last year. They received less education at the end of class 4 and during class 5. I see those lags in study skills, concentration and mastery of the material.' Evers is also discussing this. "Together with the ministry and other educational organizations, we will see which interventions are needed to get students motivated again."
Teachers also write in the survey about the measures to be taken that it will result in more work pressure. 'I think an extra period - given that the current exam students have had to deal with corona and many sick people - is very fair. This should not continue after corona, because it creates extra work pressure.'
A teacher about eliminating a subject: 'Students have now passed below a 2 for the CE'
The thumb control is clearly less popular, the poll shows. A teacher explains why: 'Pupils already crossed out a subject prior to the CE. There should have been a minimum requirement for each subject to encourage you to do your best for everything and then be allowed to cross one afterwards. Students have now scored below a 2 for the CE.'
The education unions have also reacted jointly and believe that the current proposals of the outgoing minister take little or no account of the educational staff. Read the response.
