The British government bowed to public pressure over its school exam grading system, ditching an algorithm that downgraded the results awarded to students in England after their tests were cancelled due to Covid-19.
The government had faced days of criticism after the mathematical model used to assess grade predictions made by teachers lowered those grades for almost 40% of students taking their main school-leaving exams.
Students will now be awarded the grade that their teachers had predicted for them based on past performance.
‘I am sorry for the distress this has caused young people and their parents,’ education secretary Gavin Williamson said
In This Story: COVID-19
Covid-19 is the official WHO name given to the novel coronavirus which broke out in late 2019 and began to spread in the early months of 2020.
Symptoms of coronavirus
The main symptoms of coronavirus are:
- a persistent new cough (non productive, dry)
- a high temperature (e.g. head feels warm to the touch)
- shortness of breath (if this is abnormal for the individual, or increased)
Latest News about Covid-19
Below are stories from around the globe related to the 2020 outbreak of novel Coronavirus – since the WHO gave the Covid-19 naming. Most recent items are posted nearest the top.