Coronavirus restrictions: CCEA not planning to reduce fees for exams

Teachers are being asked to predict grades due to the coronavirus pandemic

The Northern Ireland exams board CCEA is "not considering" reducing fees to schools for GCSE, AS and A-Level exams in 2020.

That is despite the exams being cancelled and "calculated grades" being awarded to pupils instead.

Some post-primary schools pay over £100,000 each year to enter pupils in exams run by CCEA.

According to its accounts, CCEA's income from examination fees was almost £9.5m in 2018-19.

Some principals who contacted BBC News NI said that exam fees were one of the most substantial bills they faced aside from staffing costs.

They queried why schools could not be refunded some fees due to the cancellation of exams.

The Welsh exam board WJEC has told schools that entered pupils for its exams that it would reduce its fees this year.

"For the relevant qualifications which have been impacted by the cancellation of this summer's examinations and reduced assessment activities this year, we are pleased to be able to reduce the entry fee by 23%," WJEC said in an email to schools.

Some principals who contacted BBC News NI said that exam fees were one of the most substantial bills they faced aside from staffing costs

However, a spokesperson for CCEA (the Council for the Curriculum Examinations and Assessment) said that it would still incur "significant costs" even though exams had been cancelled in 2020.

"In May 2020, the Department of Education advised schools of their 2020-21 budgets and highlighted the expectation that schools would continue to meet CCEA's charges for the summer 2020 series of exams," it said.

"CCEA, at this point, is not considering a reduction in fees for awarding the current cohort of examinations."

With exams cancelled, teachers and schools have calculated the grades they think pupils would have received had exams gone ahead.

Schools have also ranked pupils in each subject from top to bottom.

That data has been supplied to CCEA who will then moderate the results provided by schools using a statistical model, which includes predictions for pupils and data including the previous performance of each school.