This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/education/7504631.stm

The article has changed 13 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 3 Version 4
Exams chief to be quizzed by MPs Test results 'may need scrapping'
(about 1 hour later)
The head of the exams watchdog for England is to face questioning from MPs to explain the problems with this year's Sats results. The head of one of the main education unions says the national curriculum test results may need to be annulled.
Administrative problems have led to results for over a million pupils being delayed for at least a week. The "Sats" results in England have been delayed by technical and administrative problems at the company running the tests this year, ETS Europe.
Ken Boston, chief executive of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, is to appear before an emergency Commons committee meeting National Association of Head Teachers leader Mick Brookes said there were now reports of marking problems.
Ministers have already announced an independent inquiry into the affair. A House of Commons committee is set to ask the head of the exams watchdog for an explanation on Monday.
This year the tests for 11- and 14-year-olds were run by the US company ETS - and schools have complained of the problems being caused by the failure to return the results by the promised deadline. Mr Brookes said some schools had not had their children's test scripts returned, some had had them returned unmarked, some had been returned to the wrong schools.
We will be asking Ken Boston what the hell is going on Barry Sheerman, chair of children, schools and families select committee But the greater concern was that the "hot house" pressure on the markers to get the job done "is bound to lead to greater mistakes".
There have also been warnings from the National Association of Head Teachers of "widespread problems" with the quality of the marking of this year's papers. This was particularly so in English, and in the writing element of the English tests, which was far more time consuming than the simpler right or wrong answers in maths.
In response, ETS has given assurances that the quality of the marking will be at least as good as in previous years. Extent
Mr Boston's one-off session with MPs will discuss the current situation on national tests. Mr Brookes mentioned as evidence e-mails the BBC News website has been getting, reporting problems.
Barry Sheerman, who chairs the Commons committee for children, schools and families, says serious questions must be answered. The most recent of these include a report from one school that ETS has sent it boxes of unmarked test scripts belonging to another school.
"We will be asking Ken Boston what the hell is going on," said Mr Sheerman. Others say children of varying abilities have all been awarded the same mark.
"This is an emergency session called in what seems to be a fast-moving situation. Mr Brookes said it was too early to quantify the extent of the problems.
"We will ask why is it that a big business given a contract to deliver these results on time and in good form has not been able to do so." "So we are saying that if there are widespread problems in the marking and the quality of the marking then this year's tests - publication of them - should be scrapped."
The BBC News website has received many e-mails from teachers, parents and examiners complaining about the delays and warning of organisational failures during the marking process. 'Cruel'
Mick Brookes, general secretary of the NAHT, said parents should not rely on Sats results as the only indicator of the progress of their child's education. The chief executive of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA), which is ultimately responsible for the tests, Ken Boston, is to be questioned on Monday by the select committee in an unscheduled session.
Mr Brookes said: "There are stories of markers being transported up and down the country with their schools being recompensed for supply cover, and with them being given rail travel and hotel accommodation to help with marking. It really is desperate. But the committee chair, Barry Sheerman, said talk of the results having lost credibility was premature.
"There are bound to be mistakes in marking." "We will get to the bottom of this, we'll make a report and I think you'll find the delays have been sorted out.
"Let's think of the students here. How cruel would it be if your children suddenly had worked for a year and they said, these results aren't coming out, they don't count."
Have you had trouble with your children's sats results? What can be done to make the system better? Tell us about your experience by filling in the form below. England's National Assessment Agency (NAA), which now oversees the testing and is a subsidiary of the QCA, said there there is no issue with the quality of the marking.
name="say">
method="post" action="http://www.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/cgiemail/newstalk/form_all.txt"> name="email_subject" type="hidden" value="SATS 14.7.08 7504631"> name="mailto" type="hidden" value="talkingpoint@bbc.co.uk"> name="success" type="hidden" value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/help/7465538.stm"> Name
/>
Have you had trouble with the test results? Let us know using the form below.
Name