NEW IDEAS FOR FINAL EXAMS!
Starting with a Webinar 13 May 2020; 10.30-12.00
Join us: https://openspace.etf.europa.eu/events/etf-webinar-new-ideas-final-exams
Assessment in vocational education and training (VET) is different from academic assessment. It is essential that learners proof their competence through demonstration. There is no point in demonstrating that you can ride a bike by taking a written test or doing an oral exam. The same is true for most occupations. You have to show you are competent in the real world.
Final exams are important to show that learners are ready for the labour market. In most partner countries much has been done to strengthen confidence in final exams. Stakeholders from the world of work are often part of final exams. Sometimes final exams are organized outside the schools and carried out by independent assessors. In a number of cases exams are organized in authentic settings within companies. End of May, beginning of June is the peak period for final exams in vocational education and training.
All countries were taken by surprise by the current COVID19 crisis. The interruption of the learning processes was abrupt. Alternative solutions were not easily available. In general education, schools quickly switched to remote teaching online and introduced new applications to develop online learning.
This is not so easy in VET. Companies closed their doors to apprentices and stagiaires, before shutting down completely. For many occupations practice is impossible to perform at home. Learning now tends to be dominated by theory. There is a real risk that the discontinuation of the practical learning processes increases the number of dropouts. Learners that are close to the end of their studies ready to start their career are suddenly threatened with the prospect that they can only complete their studies “normally” once the crisis is over. No wonder countries have been looking for solutions to avoid a breakdown of VET systems and have given priority to the learners that are close to the finish line.
• How to deal with the situation?
ETF monitors the situation in partner countries. Unesco, ILO and the European Presidency also carry out surveys in different countries. This gives us an overview of possible solutions, such as trying to maintain exams, postpone exams until the situation improves, cancel exams and base the final assessment on the results obtained during the studies so far, find alternative arrangements including online assessments.
This crisis has created a situation in which we have started to look differently at assessment and the continuity of learning processes. While countries are all trying to find emergency solutions, new ideas emerge on how to deal with assessment in the future.
Our webinar on 13 May “New Ideas for Final Exams” is a first step to get grip on the situation, to focus on the emergency measures right now, to exchange experiences, share solutions and support the development of alternatives for traditional final exams.
You can join the webinar by going through the link above. The webinar is multilingual, with contributions in French, Russian and English, we will provide simultaneous translation for which registration in Voiceboxer is necessary. Participation is on invitation, but we will live stream the webinar here on Open Space. Recordings of the webinar in the three languages will be also made available. We will also share background information, provide useful links and invite you to make your contributions and ask your questions.
After the webinar we want to take this issue further and work on good solutions. Please help us and take part in developing new ideas for final exams.
Please join us and participate in our discussion on Open Space.
