• Disrupting Power Since 2015
  • Donate
  • Login
Saturday, May 17, 2025
  • Login
  • Register
Canary
MEDIA THAT DISRUPTS
  • News
    • UK
    • Global
    • Analysis
    • Trending
  • Editorial
  • Features
    • Features
    • Environment
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Money
    • Science
    • Business
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • Sport & Gaming
  • Media
    • Video
    • Cartoons
  • Opinion
No Result
View All Result
MANAGE SUBSCRIPTION
SUPPORT
  • News
    • UK
    • Global
    • Analysis
    • Trending
  • Editorial
  • Features
    • Features
    • Environment
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Money
    • Science
    • Business
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • Sport & Gaming
  • Media
    • Video
    • Cartoons
  • Opinion
No Result
View All Result
Canary
No Result
View All Result

‘Incensed’ school head accuses Gavin Williamson of ignoring teachers’ judgment

The Canary by The Canary
13 August 2020
in News, UK
Reading Time: 3 mins read
168 4
A A
6
Home UK News
319
SHARES
2.5k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has been angrily accused by a school head of ignoring the professional judgment of teachers over their students’ A-level results.

Williamson was confronted by Christine Cunniffe, the principal of LVS Ascot, during an uncomfortable appearance on ITV’s This Morning.

Cunniffe said she had seen some of her top students downgraded by two grades as a result of the system put in place by the government for moderating exam results in England.

She urged the education secretary to follow the example of Scotland and abandon the system, saying students had “been through enough”.

However, Williamson said that without “checks and balances” to ensure consistency across the country, some schools would simply have assessed all their pupils as achieving the top grades.

Cunniffe said there was no longer a “level playing field” across the UK and demanded to know how Williamson could justify the system for awarding results after the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic meant actual exams had to be cancelled.

She said she was “quite incensed” that some students would not now be able to go to the university of their choice.

“I have seen some of our students go down two grades where they are at the top of the school. So there are inconsistencies,” she said.

“Is this really the right time for checks and balances when we don’t know what they are? They have been through enough, let them move on.

“We as professionals have given those grades in good faith, been very robust, and we have followed the consultation to a tee.”

Williamson said the government had put in a “robust” appeals system for those students who were unhappy with their results but that it was essential to ensure there was consistency across the country.

“As a father myself, as someone who always does the absolute best for all the children right across the country, it is about trying to put as much fairness into the system as possible,” he said.

“If you effectively rip up a whole book and say you are not having standards, not having the same sort of consistency, you will have had some schools who would have literally put in every child as either an A or an A* or a B.”

Share128Tweet80
Previous Post

Turnover slides at majority of UK businesses, ONS survey finds

Next Post

Lebanon parliament grants sweeping powers to military in Beirut

Next Post
Lebanon parliament grants sweeping powers to military in Beirut

Lebanon parliament grants sweeping powers to military in Beirut

‘Ludicrous’ testing system needs to be more localised, says health official

A group of refugees crammed into a small dinghy that's travelling across the Channel

Until you've drifted a mile in their tiny dinghy, don't even think about criticising the Channel crossers

Iran brands UAE-Israel deal a stab in the back to ‘all Muslims’

Iran brands UAE-Israel deal a stab in the back to 'all Muslims'

Beirut blast death toll rises to 178, with 30 still missing

Beirut blast death toll rises to 178, with 30 still missing

Please login to join discussion
Disabled people set to take to parliament en masse to oppose DWP cuts
Analysis

Disabled people set to take to parliament en masse to oppose DWP cuts

by The Canary
16 May 2025
Southern Water are threatening a journalist with defamation for asking difficult questions
Analysis

Southern Water are threatening a journalist with defamation for doing their job

by HG
16 May 2025
FIFA face human rights questions over upcoming world cups in Saudi Arabia and the US
Analysis

FIFA face human rights questions over upcoming world cups in Saudi Arabia and the US

by Maryam Jameela
16 May 2025
Plaid Cymru Commons leader just hit a nerve with this biting question to Keir Starmer
Analysis

Plaid Cymru Commons leader just hit a nerve with this biting question to Keir Starmer

by James Wright
16 May 2025
DWP failures have led to hundreds of deaths - but these are just the tip of the iceberg
Analysis

DWP failures have now led to hundreds of deaths – but these are still the tip of the iceberg

by Steve Topple
16 May 2025
  • Contact
  • About & FAQ
  • Get our Daily News Email
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy

The Canary
PO Box 71199
LONDON
SE20 9EX

Canary Media Ltd – registered in England. Company registration number 09788095.

For guest posting, contact [email protected]

For other enquiries, contact: [email protected]

The Canary is owned and run by independent journalists and volunteers, NOT offshore billionaires.

You can write for us, or support us by making a regular or one-off donation.

© Canary Media Ltd 2024, all rights reserved | Website by Monster | Hosted by Krystal | Privacy Settings

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • UK
    • Global
    • Analysis
    • Trending
  • Editorial
  • Features
    • Features
    • Environment
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Money
    • Science
    • Business
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • Sport & Gaming
  • Media
    • Video
    • Cartoons
  • Opinion

© 2023 Canary - Worker's co-op.

Before you go, have you seen...?

Disabled people set to take to parliament en masse to oppose DWP cuts
Analysis
The Canary

Disabled people set to take to parliament en masse to oppose DWP cuts

Southern Water are threatening a journalist with defamation for asking difficult questions
Analysis
HG

Southern Water are threatening a journalist with defamation for doing their job

FIFA face human rights questions over upcoming world cups in Saudi Arabia and the US
Analysis
Maryam Jameela

FIFA face human rights questions over upcoming world cups in Saudi Arabia and the US

Plaid Cymru Commons leader just hit a nerve with this biting question to Keir Starmer
Analysis
James Wright

Plaid Cymru Commons leader just hit a nerve with this biting question to Keir Starmer

ADVERTISEMENT
Business
Nathan Spears

Smart Delivery Positions Mr Nang as a Leader in Australia’s Cream Charger Market

Lifestyle
Nathan Spears

Social Media Activism: How Grassroots Movements Are Gaining Power Online

Travel
Nathan Spears

Best Destinations In Spain For A Couples Holiday