Northern Ireland schools have been banned from offering subjects through the Welsh exam board.
Education Minister Peter Weir claims that the WJEC board created “uncertainty” for pupils by changing the awarding of their qualifications this year.
But local students representatives say the move from the Balloo headquarters is illogical, limiting choices and chances for pupils in Northern Ireland.
The claim has been slammed by Cormac Savage, President of the Secondary Students Union of Northern Ireland.
He said: “Uncertainty has been a recurring theme of young people in education throughout this pandemic. And this announcement is illogical.
“It unfairly limits the choice of students and teachers, placing our students in Northern Ireland at a significant disadvantage compared to peers in England and Wales who will retain access to a range of exam boards.
“Why is the Minister asking teachers to begin to adapt to new courses in the middle of a pandemic?
“The real uncertainty will be felt by teachers who will now need to start planning to adapt to cover courses on different exam boards, often with entirely different content.”
And the Welsh government and the WJEC both reject the claim of uncertainty, pointing to the Welsh Education Minister Kirsty Williams taking decisive and timely action.
More than 1,000 pupils in Northern Ireland schools sit WJEC exams every year in popular subjects such as Sociology, Computer Science, Media Studies, PE and Drama but 2021 will be the last.
But a circular seen by Belfast Live from the Department of Education on January 26, states that from September 2022 WJEC qualifications “will no longer be approved for use in Northern Ireland schools”.
Mr Weir rounded on the Welsh government in November, saying he was “disappointed” by Wales “acting unilaterally” to scrap public exams in 2021.
He said at the time: “I am disappointed that Wales appears to be acting unilaterally, moving away from the three-country arrangement for GCSEs and A-levels”.
Student rep Cormac Savage said: “Is Mr Weir punishing now Wales with his latest decision? Wales gave clear arrangements to end the barrage of continuous assessment that had been causing anxiety to students.
“It was clear that exams could not go ahead but at the time Minister Weir planned to carry on. We continued to say that it would be detrimental to the wellbeing and mental health not only of our students, but our teachers who were struggling to cover course content.
“And of course the exams were cancelled at the last minute in Northern Ireland with Wales leading the way by sensible example.”
Signed on behalf of Peter Weir by Joan Cassells, his department’s head of qualification team, the circular states that pupils were left in a “position of uncertainty” by the Welsh exams board this year.
The letter was sent to principals and boards of governors, CCMS, CCEA, CnaG, the General Teaching Council, the Education Authority, NICIE and the Controlled Schools’ Support Council.
It stated: “Schools should be aware that from September 2022, WJEC qualifications will no longer be approved for use in NI schools.
“Changes to the awarding of WJEC qualifications in 2021, without consultation with DE, CCEA Regulation or NI centres, left learners in NI schools in a position of uncertainty.
“To avoid this recurring the Minister has decided that it is not in the interests of NI learners to continue to access WJEC qualifications.”
Schools will be able to offer approved WJEC qualification in September 2021 to complete the full A level and to “allow time for those schools that need it, to plan ahead and consider suitable alternative specifications.”
Now any school that decides to continue to offer the Welsh board exams will be subject to decisions on education by the Welsh government.
A Welsh Government spokesperson said the decision in Wales applied only to learners in Wales.
He said: “In November the Welsh Education Minister Kirtsy Williams took the policy decision to cancel GCSE, AS and A–level exams for learners in Wales, and to develop alternative assessment arrangements to prioritise teaching and learning.
“In doing so the policy direction was clear that these arrangements applied only to Wales and only to those learners taking Qualifications Wales approved qualifications.”
And a spokesperson for the WJEC responding to the decision to bin their exams in Northern Ireland, said they had not been notified of any “uncertainty” they stand accused of creating.
He said: “WJEC did not receive notification of that nature. The notice relates to our qualifications approved by Qualifications Wales to meet the Wales policy requirements. However, centres in Northern Ireland can continue to deliver our full suite of Ofqual regulated qualifications, which are delivered under our Eduqas brand.
“The decisions taken by the Minister for Education in Wales only apply to learners in Wales following Qualifications Wales approved GCSE, AS and A level qualifications.
“As an awarding body delivering qualifications in different jurisdictions under our WJEC and Eduqas brands, we work with the relevant departments to ensure our qualifications meet their specific policy requirements.
“For learners in Wales undertaking GCSE, AS and A levels approved by Qualifications Wales, their qualifications in summer 2021 will be awarded through a Centre-Determined Grade model.
“The approach for our Ofqual regulated qualifications, which are delivered under our Eduqas brand, is currently under consultation.
“WJEC is committed to delivering qualifications to meet the needs of our centres and learners, whilst meeting jurisdictional policy requirements.
“Centres in Northern Ireland can choose to deliver our full suite of Ofqual regulated qualifications which are delivered under our Eduqas brand, which includes subjects such as Media Studies, Drama, and Sociology.
“This will ensure that learners are not disadvantaged by allowing them to continue their studies in their subjects of choice whilst the teachers can benefit from the support they currently receive from us.
“It's disappointing that centres are not being provided with greater choice in selecting qualifications to meet the needs of their learners.
“But by delivering our Eduqas qualifications, centres in Northern Ireland can continue to benefit from the expert advice and guidance provided by our subject teams, our comprehensive schedule of professional learning courses and full access to our free digital resources, which have been designed to support the delivery of our qualifications.”
A spokesperson for the NI Department of Education said: “No learner currently taking WJEC qualifications is affected by this decision.
“Those completing WJEC AS qualifications and planning to progress to the full A-level in the next academic year will be able to continue with their course. Similarly, those who planning to start a WJEC AS course in September 2021 and progress to A2 in September 2022 to be awarded in the summer of 2023 are also unaffected.
“The change announced applies to full courses (i.e. an AS leading to an A2) commencing on or after September 2022.”
