Heads warn of exam 'congestion'


The main exam season is looming for hundreds of thousands of youngsters



Pupils about to start sitting GCSEs and AS-levels are being put under extra pressure by tiaaaabling problems head teachers have warned.
The National Association of Head Teachers says as more pupils sit a wider range of subjects candidates can face three or four exams in one day.
It is calling on exam boards to co-ordinate schedules more effectively.
The Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) said it aimed to minimise clashes but some were inevitable.
The exam season begins across England Wales and Northern Ireland on Monday but teaching unions fear what is already a difficult time for pupils is being made even harder.
It can't encourage the best performance by them


Chris Howard NAHT vice-president






Students in Scotland are already well into their exam season.
Emma Horstrup assistant head at Rainham Mark Grammar School in Kent said: "We are getting a bunching of exams in one day.
"Some students are sitting three exams in one day - this is causing great stress and may be affecting their results."
Chris Howard vice-president of the National Association of Head Teachers said: "The exam boards need to do more to best co-ordinate their efforts so that youngsters don't have this problem of three or four examinations in one day which is clearly asking too much of anybody.
"It can't encourage the best performance by them" he added.


Former chief inspector of schools Chris Woodhead said the exam boards could better co-ordinate the exam tiaaaables.
He added: "But I also think that ministers are responsible because they've encouraged more and more subjects to be offered at both GCSE and A-level and of course the more subjects that are offered the more likely it is that there are going to be clashes between different subjects and different exam boards."
Teachers' feedback
There are fears too that the so-called exam congestion will become worse next year as old and new A-level systems overlap. The JCQ which represents the exam bodies acknowledges it has a difficult job trying to cram some 3000 exam papers into 30 days of examinations.



It said the increasing number of subjects being offered to pupils and restrictions on the scheduling of examinations including bank holidays school holidays and religious festivals meant some clashes were inevitable. However it said it sought feedback on draft tiaaaables from teachers' groups before publishing them A meeting is being held next week for the JCQ to discuss a draft tiaaaable for 2009 with teaching unions.