UK NARIC Special Report

UK NARIC Special Report

The Effects of COVID-19 on International
Secondary Assessment

12th May 2020

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UK NARIC Special Report

Foreword
When UK NARIC first began tracking secondary school exam postponements and cancellations due to
COVID-19 in March 2020, few could have predicted that by early April, 193 countries would have closed
schools, impacting – at its peak – over 91% of enrolled learners1.
On 17th March 2020, UK NARIC published its first issue of Charting the impact of COVID-19 on UK
admissions and recruitment, summarising school closures and the anticipated impact on examinations inwhat were then the top four countries for COVID-19 cases – China, Italy, Iran and South Korea.
We have continued to track closures, exam cancellations, postponements and alternative assessment
announcements as they happen and it will remain an essential and up-to-date resource for those working ininternational education. As we begin to see some countries re-opening schools though, it is important toremember the inevitable impact of these closures on the secondary school exam systems worldwide.
This report – summarising the effects of COVID-19 on international secondary education and exams – isdesigned to provide a more in-depth briefing of the global approaches to upper secondary assessment
during the pandemic to date, as well as insight into the implications for qualifications and grading inselected countries.
The report also reflects on the longer-term considerations: the impact of protracted school closures will be
felt beyond this academic year, and we will continue to monitor the ways in and extent to whichinternational assessment evolves accordingly.
In developing this special report, UK NARIC seeks to support both the work of those involved ininternational student recruitment and admissions, and fair recognition for the 2020 graduating cohorts andbeyond.

Dr Cloud Bai-Yun
Head of UK NARIC

1

UNESCO, 2020

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Contents
Foreword ..................................................................................................................................................... 2
1.

Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 4

2.

Analysis of Global Approaches ......................................................................................................... 6

3.

Postponements by Region .............................................................................................................. 17
Europe ............................................................................................................................................... 17
Asia .................................................................................................................................................... 19
Africa .................................................................................................................................................. 20
Americas ............................................................................................................................................ 21

4.

Spotlight on Assessment Changes in Selected Countries............................................................ 22
United Kingdom .................................................................................................................................. 22
France ................................................................................................................................................ 28
India ................................................................................................................................................... 29
Ireland ................................................................................................................................................ 30
Malta .................................................................................................................................................. 31
Pakistan ............................................................................................................................................. 32
The Caribbean ................................................................................................................................... 33
USA.................................................................................................................................................... 34

5.

Looking Ahead ................................................................................................................................. 35

Copyright © 2020 UK NARIC
All rights reserved. Short sections of text may be quoted without express permission provided that full credit and reference are
given to the source. For any permissions enquiries, please contact UK NARIC using the address below.
Published by:
UK NARIC
Suffolk House, 68-70 Suffolk Road
Cheltenham, Gloucestershire
United Kingdom
GL50 2ED
Email: communications@naric.org.uk

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1. Introduction
The spread of Covid-19 across the world has had a significant impact on education at all levels. China
closed schools in Hubei province in January to contain the spread of the virus, and national school closures
followed on the 19th February 2020. Iran began to close schools and universities in February and Italy was
the first country in Europe to do so in early March.
By 11th March, 39 countries had announced school closures. It was at this point that UK NARIC first began
researching the impact on secondary school examinations on its blog, Charting the impact of COVID-19 on
UK admissions and recruitment publishing the first issue on 17th March.
At this point, there were already 115 countries with school closures according to UNESCO’s Monitoring of
COVID-19 Educational Disruption and Response. The chart below illustrates the growing pace of school
closures in mid- and late March, hitting a peak of 193 countries in April with school and university closureswith 1,598,099,008 learners affected (91.30% of the world’s total enrolled learners).
Figure 1: Number of countries with school closures

2

200
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
16-Feb 23-Feb 01-Mar 08-Mar 15-Mar 22-Mar 29-Mar

05-Apr

12-Apr

19-Apr

26-Apr 03-May

Some countries have begun to re-open, but at the time of publication, schools in 177 countries remained
closed.

2thBased on UNESCO Monitoring of COVID-19 Educational Disruption and Response, correct as of 8 May 2020.

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UK NARIC Special Report
UK NARIC has continued to track developments in relation to secondary school assessment, updating theblog as and where updates are available, noting that the period between April and June is when manynational examinations would ordinarily take place.
This Special Report intends to build upon the global coverage provided by the blog, capturing the different
global approaches to secondary assessment and the potential implications of these for further and higher
education admissions (Section 2). This section also presents an index of known announcements andguidance on particular countries
Section 3 details the postponements published to date, along with dates anticipated for results, where
known; while Section 4 provides more detailed information on selected countries.
Section 5 presents some potential considerations for assessment, and the evaluation of international
secondary awards moving forward.
The report is made freely available to support the evaluation and fair recognition of all qualifications
awarded or studied for during this time.
This publication is based on information available at the time of writing. If you have an update or question
for us, please contact UK NARIC. We will continue to develop and share further information as appropriate.
Please follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn or contact UK NARIC for information.

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2. Analysis of Global Approaches
Globally, there have been many different approaches to the administration of assessment at the upper
secondary level during these uncertain times. These can be broadly categorised as follows: Exam postponements Exam cancellations
 Revised (adapted or alternative) assessments.

APPROACH 1: EXAM POSTPONEMENTS
Many countries have postponed examinations that were due to take place in April, May and June until laterin the year. As well as being necessary to ensure students’ safety during the pandemic, this allows students
more time to prepare to allow for the disruption caused by school closures. In many countries, thepostponement is also intended to enable re-opening or partial re-opening of schools before theexaminations take place.
Postponing final examinations at upper secondary level will have an impact on admissions to higher
education, particularly in cases where results will not be available in time to enable admissions decisions to
be made before the start of the new academic year. In the majority of countries, the new examination
timetables will enable results to be made available to students and institutions by August at the latest.
However, there are a number of countries where the timing of rescheduled exams is likely to pose achallenge for higher education recruitment cycles.
In Europe, exams for the Maltese Matriculation Certificate Examinations have delayed until September.
This arrangement has an impact for students intending to enter higher education in the autumn of 2020,
whether in their home country or overseas. In Vietnam, the high school graduation exams will now takeplace in August, with implications for national and international universities admitting Vietnamese students.
In addition, there are a number of countries where dates have not yet been confirmed for postponed exams,
including India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Nigeria and Ghana. In India, some exams were in progress when the
country went into lockdown on 24th March and all of the remaining exams were postponed. Decisions on if /when the exams will take place will be taken by the relevant exam boards. To date, only the Central Boardof Secondary Education (CBSE) has announced new dates for the delayed examinations. The West African
Examinations Council (WAEC) has also postponed exams indefinitely, so it is not yet clear when the West
African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) will take place.

APPROACH 2: EXAM CANCELLATIONS
In some countries, examinations have been cancelled and students’ performance will be based on
performance in assessments undertaken to date.
In some education systems, students are assessed throughout their studies and the grades achieved
through continuous or internal assessment always contribute to their final grade. Authorities in somecountries have opted to base the final grade entirely on these elements this year. This approach has beentaken in the Netherlands, where both school and national examinations contribute to the final grade for the
Voorbereidend Wetenschappelijk Onderwijs (VWO); this year grades will be based solely on schoolassessment. Similarly, in Norway, written and oral examinations for upper secondary students have beencancelled. The Vitnemål for videregående opplæring (Leaving Certificate from Upper Secondary School)
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UK NARIC Special Reportwill be awarded based on student performance in coursework and internal assessments throughout theyear. Slovakia has also cancelled external Matura examinations.
Although students will still receive certificates and grades in these cases, there may still be an impact on
admissions where universities would usually have given particular consideration to results achieved inexternal national examinations as part of the admissions decision making process.
In other systems, the grade achieved is based solely or primarily on performance in examinations at theend of the course. In these instances, the cancellation of examinations has led to a range of other evidence
being used to inform the grades awarded to students, in line with national policy. School qualifications in
the UK (A level, AS level, GCSE, Scottish National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher) are assessed throughexternal examinations, with externally marked or moderated coursework contributing to the final grade in asmall number of subjects. Following the decision to cancel all examinations, the relevant authorities acrossthe UK have developed a process for awarding these qualifications based on estimated grades submitted
by schools and colleges. The Baccalauréat in France will be awarded on the basis of continuous
assessment conducted by schools throughout the programme of study, as the final examinations for all
streams (général, technologique and professionnel) have been cancelled.
Since the beginning of May, examinations have also been cancelled for the Irish Leaving Certificate and
the Pakistani Higher Secondary School Certificate. Students in Ireland will receive calculated grades
based on teacher assessment. Students in Pakistan will be able to use the results of examinations taken ingrade 11 to progress onto higher education within their home country.
To date, the number of countries that have taken the decision to cancel national examinations is fairly small.
For qualifications for which the final grade usually comprises an element of internal or continuous
assessment, the weighting of this component can be increased to compensate for the cancellation of
external examinations. However, for qualifications for which external examinations are the sole means ofassessment, it is necessary to develop an alternative process for awarding grades, ensuring that outcomes
reflect students’ ability and performance in a fair way and will enable progression onto higher education or
entry into employment.

APPROACH 3: ADAPTED OR ALTERNATIVE EXAMINATIONS
Many countries have made changes to the examination requirements to ensure that students are able totake their examinations safely and to mitigate for the disruption to studies.
Reduced number of examinations
In a number of countries, the number of examinations that students are required to take has been reduced.
In many cases where students are usually required to sit oral examinations, these have been cancelled. An
exception is Italy, where only an oral examination will be completed.

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Qualification

2020 format

Austria

Reifeprüfung / Matura

Written examinations in three subjects
No oral examinations.

Hungary

Érettségi Bizonyítvány (Secondary
Education Graduation Certificate)

Written examinations only.

IsraelMatriculation Certificate

Examinations in five subjects.

Italy

Esame di Stato

Oral examination only.

PolandŚwiadectwo Dojrzałości (Certificateof Maturity)

Written examinations only.

In Croatia, examinations for compulsory subjects will go ahead between 8th and 29th June. A decision has
not been taken on whether examinations will be held for optional subjects yet; the results of these subjects
are considered for admission to higher education.
Optional examinations
In order to reduce the number of students sitting examinations in this summer’s session, an approach
adopted in a small number of countries has been to make examinations optional or only required for certain
students.
In Portugal, it has been decided that the Diploma Nível Secundário de Educação / Certificado Nível
Secundário de Educação can be awarded on the basis of school assessment and students will not be
required to take national examinations. The examinations will only be taken by students intending to enter
higher education.
In Estonia, the state examinations (Riigieksamid) will be optional and will not be required to access higher
education.
Adapted examinations
An online test has been developed for the Advanced Placement (AP), a US qualification that is taken by
students in many different countries. The format of the examination has been adapted to enable it to be
conducted online.
The Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) intends to offer examinations for its qualifications, including
the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) in a revised format to ensure that results forpostponed examinations can be marked within a reduced timeframe.

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The images below present an interesting contrast of the school closures (Figure 2) and announcements inrelation to examinations (Figure 3). Countries still included in grey in Figure 3 may fall into the following
categories: Examinations for the current cohort had taken place before school closures, as is the case incountries like the Philippines Examinations are still some time away, such as in New Zealand where examinations are scheduled
for November3
 To UK NARIC’s knowledge, no formal announcements have been made yet. In many cases, thetiming, format and volume of the exam will depend on the date of re-opening of schools.
Figure 2: Global map of school closures

Figure 3: UK NARIC’s summary of global responses to date in relation to upper secondary assessment

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In the case of New Zealand, a large number of examinations will also be available digitally.

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The table below provides an index of known approaches to academic upper secondary awards, asavailable at the time of publication:
Country

Qualification

StatusAlbania

Diplomë e Maturës Shtetërore

No change.

Anguilla

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

Antigua andBarbudaCaribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

ArmeniaՄիջնակարգ (ընդհանուր) կրթության
ատեստատ
(Certificate of Secondary General
Education)

Cancelled.

ՎԿԱՅԱԳԻՐ
(Certificate of Unified Examination)

Postponed.

Senior Secondary Certificate of Education –exact titles vary by state/territory

Varies.
Approaches may vary by state/territory. It
was announced by the Minister of
Education that all students would receivea Senior Secondary Certificate of
Education in 2020, but states have yet toannounce decisions on individual exams.
On 27th April, the Australasian Conference
on Tertiary Admissions Centres
announced that the ATAR would be
calculated in all states, though statespecific approaches and timelines mayvary and it is important to refer to theindividual Tertiary Admissions Centre.

Australia

Australian Tertiary Admission Rank

Austria

Reifeprüfung / Matura

Reduced.
Written examinations in 3 subjects. No
oral examinations.

Bahrain‫ال عامة ال ثان وي ة شهادة‬(General Secondary Education Certificate)

Cancelled.

Bangladesh

Higher Secondary Certificate

Postponed.

Barbados

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

BelizeCaribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

BhutanBhutan Higher Secondary Education
Certificate

To be confirmed as reduced or cancelled,
based on school reopening dates. For
example, if schools open after May,
examinations will be based on a reduced,
prioritised curriculum, but if schools do notopen until after August, there will be no
examinations.
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Qualification

StatusBotswana

Botswana General Certificate of Secondary
Education

Cancelled. External examinations aredelivered in collaboration with Cambridge
Assessment International Education.

British Virgin
Islands, theCaribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

Brunei

Brunei / Cambridge GCE A Level

Cancelled.

BulgariaДиплома за средно образование
(Diploma of Completed Secondary
Education)

Postponed.

Cambodia

Diploma of Upper Secondary Education

Postponed.

CanadaHigh School Diploma (exact titles vary byprovince)

Varies – a number of provincial Ministriesof Education have announced thecancellation of Grade 12 examinations.

Cayman Islands

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

China

高中毕业证书

Postponed.

(Senior Secondary School Graduation
Certificate)
普通高等学校招生全国统一考试 (高考)(Gaokao – National College Entrance
Examination (NCEE))

Postponed.

Croatia

Svjedodžba o maturi / Svjedodžba održavnoj maturi / Potvrda o položenim
ispitima državne mature(Matura Certificate / State Matura
Certificate)Compulsory subjects – postponed.
Optional subjects – TBC.

CyprusΑπολυτήριο Λυκείου
(Apolytírio Lykeíou - Upper Secondary
School Leaving Certificate)

Postponed.

Czech
Republic, theVysvědčení o maturitní zkoušce(Secondary School Leaving Certificate)

Likely to be postponed (dates TBC).

Denmark

Bevis for Højere Forberedelseseksamen(Higher Preparatory Examination
Certificate)

Reduced.

Dominica

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean

Egypt‫شهادة ال درا سة ال ثان وي ة ال عامة‬(Certificate of General Secondary
Education)

Postponed.
Examinations to be held in June / July.

Estonia

Gümnaasiumi lõputunnistus with theRiigieksamitunnistus(Secondary School Leaving Certificate with
the State Examination Certificate)

Postponed and reduced.

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Qualification

StatusFinland

Ylioppilastutkintotodistus /Studentexamensbetyg(Matriculation Examination)

No change.

FranceDiplôme du baccalauréat général

Cancelled.

Gambia, theWest African Senior School Certificate

Postponed.

Georgiaსრული ზოგადი განათლების ატესტატი
(General Education Diploma)

Cancelled.

Unified National Examinations

TBC.

Germany

Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife /AbiturNo change / postponed (varies by state).

Ghana

West African Senior School Certificate
Examination

Postponed.

GreeceΑΠΟΛΥΤΗΡΙΟ ΓΕΝΙΚΟΥ ΛΥΚΕΙΟΥ
(Upper Secondary School Leaving
Certificate)

Cancelled.

Panhellenic Examinations

Postponed.

GrenadaCaribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean

GuyanaCaribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary
Education

Postponed.
Oral examinations have been cancelled.

Hungary

Érettségi Bizonyítvány(Secondary Education Graduation
Certificate). Also known as: Matura

Written examinations only.

India

Standard 12 (exact titles vary by board)

Varies by board.
Examinations scheduled for late March
onwards have been postponed.

Indonesia

Ijazah - Sekolah Menengah Atas /Madrasah Aliyah (SMA / MA)(Certificate of Graduation from Academic /Islamic Secondary School)

Final national examinations (Ujian
Nasional) cancelled.

International

International AS & A Levels

Cancelled. See Section 4 – International
GCSEs, AS and A Levels.

International Baccalaureate Diploma
Programme

Cancelled.

Ireland

Leaving Certificate

Cancelled.

Israel‫בגרות תעודת‬(Matriculation Certificate).
Also known as: 'Te'udat Bagrut' or 'Bagrut'.

Reduced. Examinations in 5 subjects.

Italy

Diploma di Esame di Stato

Reduced. Oral examination only
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Qualification

StatusJamaica

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

Kenya

Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education

No changes as yet – the examinations are
currently scheduled to take place in
October and November.

Kuwait‫شهادة ال درا سة ال ثان وي ة ال عامة‬Postponed.
Examinations will take place in August.

(General Secondary Education Certificate)
LatviaAtestāts par vispārējo vidējo izglītību
(Certificate of General Secondary
Education)

Adapted.

Liberia

Senior School Certificate

Postponed.

Lithuania

Brandos Atestatas (Secondary School
Leaving Certificate)

Postponed.

Malaysia

STPM (Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia)(Malaysia Certificate of Education)

Postponed.

UEC (Unified Examination Certificate)
Senior Middle Level

Postponed.
Examinations will take place in December
2020.

Matrikulasi (Matriculation Certificate)

Cancelled.

Malta

Matriculation Certificate Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – Malta

Montserrat

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

Morocco‫شهادة ال ب كال وري ا‬

No announcement as yet. Examinations
are due to take place at the beginning of
June.

(Attestation du Baccalauréat)
Namibia

Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate

No announcements as yet. Examinations
are typically held in November.

Nepal

School Leaving Certificate Examination(Grade XI & XII)

Postponed.

Netherlands,
theHoger Algemeen Voortgezet Onderwijs(HAVO) diploma

Cancelled.

Voorbereidend Wetenschappelijk Onderwijs(VWO)

Cancelled.

New Zealand

National Certificate of Educational
Achievement (NCEA) Level 3

No change as yet – exams are scheduled
for November currently.

Nigeria

Senior School Certificate

Postponed.

West African Senior School Certificate

Postponed.

NorwayVitnemål for videregående opplæring
(Leaving Certificate from Upper Secondary
School)Cancelled.

Oman‫دب لوم ال ت ع ل يم ال عام‬(General Education Diploma)

Cancelled.

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Qualification

StatusPakistanIntermediate / Higher Secondary Certificate

Cancelled. See Section 4 – Pakistan.

Philippines

Senior High School Certificate / Diploma

Exams have already taken place for thecurrent academic year.

PolandŚwiadectwo Dojrzałości
(Certificate of Maturity)

Postponed and reduced. Written
examinations only.

Portugal

Diploma Nível Secundário de Educação /Certificado Nível Secundário de Educação

Postponed but possible to graduate oninternal assessment alone. Students canchoose to take exams at a later date.

Qatar‫شهادة ال ثان وي ة ال عامة‬No change.

(General Secondary Education Certificate)
Romania

Diplomă de Bacalaureat

Postponed.

RussiaЕдиный государственный экзамен, ЕГЭ(Unified State Examination)

Postponed.
The examination should now take place
on 8th June.

Sierra Leone

West African Senior School Certificate

Postponed.

Singapore

Singapore GCE A level

O, N and A Level exams take place in
October. There are likely to be someadjustments, with topics typically taught at
the end of the year omitted from theexam. Mid-year exams have been
postponed and/or cancelled depending on
the subject, and some coursework
deadlines have been extended.

Slovakia

Vysvedčenie o maturitnej skúške(Secondary School Leaving Certificate)

Cancelled. External Matura exams havebeen cancelled. Internal Matura grades
awarded by schools will be based oncontinuous assessment. Internal exams
will be held in late May / early June forstudents who wish to improve their grade.

Slovenia

Aturitetno spričevalo (Matura Certificate)
Also known as: Splošna Matura (General
Matura Certificate) / Spričevalo o splošni
maturi (Certificate of General Matura(Examination))

Postponed.

South Africa

National Senior Certificate

May/June examination session for re-sits
have been postponed. The main
examination session is ordinarily held in
November.

South Korea고등학교 졸업증명서 / 고등학교 졸업장(High School Diploma / High School
Certificate of Graduation)

No change (no external national
examinations).

대학수학능력시험

Postponed.

(College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT)
Also known as: 수능 (Suneung)14
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Qualification

StatusSpain

Título de Bachiller

No change (no external national
examinations).

Evaluación de Acceso a la Universidad(EvAU) (university entrance exam)

Postponed.
Examination will take place between 22ndJune and 10th July.

Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan General Certificate of Education(Advanced level)

No change as yet.

St Kitts and
Nevis

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean

St Lucia

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean

St Vincent and
the Grenadines

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

SwedenAvgångsbetyg / Slutbetyg frånGymnasieskola(Upper Secondary School Leaving
Certificate)

Postponed.

Högskoleförberedande Examen(Higher Education Preparatory Diploma)

Postponed.

Switzerland

Maturitätszeugnis / Certificat de maturité /Attestato di maturità

Varies by canton.
Cancelled in some cantons.

Trinidad andTobagoCaribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

TurkeyYükseköğretim Kurumları Sınavı (YKS)(university entrance exam)

Postponed.
The examination will be held on 25-26th
July.

Turks andCaicos Islands

Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
Examination

Postponed. See Section 4 – The
Caribbean.

UgandaUganda Advanced Certificate of Education

Possibly postponed – registration for the2020 exams was due to start on 1st April
but has been postponed until schools
reopen.

UkraineСвідоцтво про здобуття повної загально
(Certificate of Complete General Secondary
Education)

Postponed.

Сертифікат зовнішнього незалежного
оцінювання (Certificate of Independent
External Examination)

Postponed.
Examinations will take place on 25th June
– 17th July or 17th August – 4th
September, depending when schools areable to reopen.

UnitedKingdom, theGeneral Certificate of Education Advanced(GCE A) Levels

Cancelled.

United States of

ACT

Postponed. See Section 4 – The USA.
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America, theQualification

StatusAdvanced Placement (AP)

Adapted. See Section 4 – The USA.

SAT

Postponed. See Section 4 – The USA.

VietnamBằng Tốt Nghiệp Trung Học Phổ Thông(THPT) (Senior Secondary School
Graduation Diploma)

Postponed.

ZambiaSchool Certificate / General Certificate of
Education

No announcement as yet. Examinations
are typically scheduled in November.

Zimbabwe

A Levels

No announcement as yet – examinations
are scheduled for late May and June, witha sitting also operating in November as
usual.

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3. Postponements by Region
The following tables provide details of exams that have been postponed. They include information on when exams were originally due to take place and whenresults are usually issued, as well as the re-arranged dates for this year (where these have been announced) and an indication of when results will beavailable.

EuropeCountry

Examination

Awarding bodyAustria

Reifeprüfung / Matura

University preparatory schools(Allgemeinbildende Höhere
Schulen)

BulgariaДиплома за средно
образование (Diploma of
Completed Secondary
Education) - State Matriculation
Examinations (Държавни
зрелостни изпити - Dŭrzhavni
zrelostni izpiti)

Ministry of Education andScience

Croatia

Svjedodžba o maturi /Svjedodžba o državnoj maturi /Potvrda o položenim ispitimadržavne mature (Matura
Certificate / State Matura
Certificate)National Centre for External
Evaluation of Education

Original
examination dates

New examinationdates

May 2020

25 May - 3 June
2020

20 - 29 May
2020

th

1 - 4 June 2020

12 June 2020

May / June 2020

Compulsoryththsubjects: 8 - 29
June
Optional subjects:
TBC

13 July 2020

th

th

st

rd

th

Original resultsdate

New results date

Mid-June 2020

Results andcertificates issued
by the end of June.

th26 June 2020

th

th

TBC

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Czech
RepublicVysvědčení o maturitní zkoušce(Secondary School Leaving
Certificate)

Centrum pro zjišťování výsledků
vzdělávání (CERMAT)May 2020

June 2020 (ifstudents are able
to return to schoolstby 1 June)

May / June 2020

TBC

CyprusPancyprian Examinations(Παγκύπριες Εξετάσεις)

Ministry of Education, Culture,
Sport and YouthMay / June 2020

June (date TBC)

June 2020

Late June / early
July

Estonia

Riigieksamid (State
examinations)Foundation Innove

April / May 2020

Late May / earlyJune

May / June 2020

No later than 30
June

Germany

Zeugnis der Allgemeinen
Hochschulreife / Abitur

Individual schools

April / May 2020
(written exams)
May / June 2020
(oral exams)
Exact dates vary bystate.

May 2020(written exams)
Late May / June(oral exams)
Exact dates vary bystate.

June / July 2020,
depending on thestate.

Between the end ofJune and end ofJuly, depending on
the state.

GreecePanhellenic Examinations(Πανελλαδικές Εξετάσεις)

Ministry of Education, Researchand Religious Affairs

May 2020

June / July 2020

June / July 2020

TBC

Malta

Matriculation Certificate
Examination

MATSEC Examinations Board

May 2020

31 August - 10
October 2020

PolandŚwiadectwo Dojrzałości
(Certificate of Maturity)

Central Examination Board /regional examination boards

May 2020

Portugal

Diploma Nível Secundário de
Educação / Certificado Nível
Secundário de Educação

Ministério da Educação

Romania

Diplomă de Bacalaureat

Ministry of National Education

st

th

th

th

th

15 July 2020

6 November 2020

Between 8 andth
29 June (written
exams only)

July 2020

By 11 AugustJune 2020

July (for higher
education
admission only;
diploma can beawarded on basisof schoolassessment)

July 2020

TBC

June 2020

From 22 June
2020

July 2020

TBC

th

nd

th

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Asia
Country

Examination

Awarding body

Original
examination dates

Bangladesh

Higher Secondary Certificate

Boards of intermediate andsecondary education

1 April - 13 May
2020

China

普通高等学校招生全国统一考试(高考) (National College
Entrance Examination (NCEE)(Gaokao))

Provincial examinations
authorities

7 - 8 June 2020

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Diploma of
Secondary Education (HKDSE)

Hong Kong Examinations andAssessment Authority (HKEAA)

27 March - 7
April 2020

India

Indian School Certificate

Council for the Indian School
Certificate Examinations(CISCE)

3 February - 31
March 2020

All India Senior School
Certificate Examination / Delhi
Senior School Certificate
Examination

Central Board of Secondary
Education (CBSE)

22 February - 30
March 2020

Senior Secondary School
Examination

National Institute of OpenSchooling (NIOS)

11 March - 24
April 2020

Higher Secondary School
Certificate Examination

Chhattisgarh Board of
Secondary Education

Senior Secondary (12th Class)
Examination Certificate

Punjab School Education Board

Higher Secondary Examination
Certificate

Government of Kerala Board ofHigher Secondary Examinationsst

New examination
dates

Original resultsdate

New results date

TBC

Mid-July 2020

TBC

th

Late June 2020

Late July 2020

th

th

th

th

th

th

7 - 8 July 2020

th

th

th

24 April – 27
May 2020

8 July 2020

22

nd

July 2020rdst

TBC - a period of
6-8 days to beannounced 8 daysin advance.

May 2020

TBC

nd

th

1 – 15 July 2020

stth

May 2020

Late August (TBC)

th

TBC

May 2020

TBC

March / April 2020
(some exams took
place prior to
lockdown)

TBC

June 2020

TBC

3 – 18 April

TBC

June 2020

TBC

April 202021 - 29 May
2020

th

June 2020

TBC

th

rd

th

st

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Malaysia

STPM (Sijil Tinggi
Persekolahan) Malaysia(Malaysia Higher School
Certificate)

Malaysian Examinations Council

Nepal

Secondary Education
Examination (SEE)

National Examinations Board(NEB)

19 March - 30
March 2020

South Korea대학수학능력시험(College
Scholastic Ability Test) (CSAT)

Korea Institute of Curriculum
and Evaluation (KICE 한국교육과정평가원)VietnamBằng Tốt Nghiệp Trung Học
Phổ Thông (THPT) (Senior
Secondary School Graduation
Diploma)

Ministry of Education andTraining (MOET)Country

Examination

Awarding body

GambiaWest African Senior School
Certificate Examination

West African Examinations
Council (WAEC)

Semester 2: March
2020
Semester 3:
November 2020thSemester 2:
August 2020
Semester 3: firstquarter 2021thSemester 2:
August 2020

Semester 2: TBC
Semester 3: TBC

Semester 3:
February 2021

TBC

May 2020

TBC

19 November
2020

3 December 2020

Early December

Late December

June 2020

7 - 11 August
2020

th

July 2020

TBC

Original
examination dates

New examination
dates

Original resultsdate

New results dateJune 2020

TBC

Late July / August

TBC

June 2020

TBC

Late July / August

TBC

June 2020

TBC

Late July / August

TBC

th

rd

th

AfricaGhana
Liberia
Nigeria

SierraLeone

Senior School Certificate

National Examinations Council(NECO)

June 2020

TBC

Late July / August

TBC

West African Senior School
Certificate Examination

WAEC

June 2020

TBC

Late July / August

TBC

West African Senior School
Certificate Examination

WAEC

June 2020

TBC

Late July / August

TBC

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Americas
Country

Examination

Awarding body

Original
examination dates

New examination
dates

Original resultsdate

New results
dateAnguilla

Caribbean Advanced
Proficiency Examination(CAPE)

Caribbean Examinations
Council (CXC)

May / June 2020

July 2020

August 2020

TBC

ACT

ACT

Antigua andBarbudaBarbados
BelizeBritish Virgin
Islands
Cayman Islands
Dominica
GrenadaGuyanaJamaicaMontserrat
St. Kitts and Nevis
St. Lucia
St. Vincent and the
Grenadines
Trinidad andTobagoTurks and Caicos
Islands
USAth

4 April 2020th

13 June 2020thth

14 April - 29 May
2020

rd

th

23 June - 7
August 2020

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4. Spotlight on Assessment Changes in
Selected Countries
This section is designed to focus in on the assessment changes in a few select countries, most typicallywhere the examinations – at least in their typical format – have been cancelled and alternative approaches
to assessment and calculating grades will be adopted. UK NARIC will produce further spotlight files for its
members, providing guidance on approaches in key countries.

United Kingdom
The principal secondary school examinations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are the GCSEs(lower secondary), AS and A levels (upper secondary) and fall under three different regulators:
 The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual) Qualifications Wales The Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA).
The qualifications have, over the last few years, undergone significant reform, with the aim of enhancing
the content and ensuring that non-exam assessment is used only where necessary to test specific skills.
The qualifications regulated across England, Wales and Northern Ireland share many common features,
namely that: Assessment is primarily through examination, although the actual amount of non-exam assessment
differs by subject and by regulator
 Content requirements and assessment objectives are similar across the three jurisdictions
 AS levels are graded on an A-E scale, and A levels on an A*-E scale.
There are some differences in the qualifications regulated in each of the three jurisdictions, specifically: Ofqual-regulated secondary qualifications are all linear, where exams are taken at the end of thecourse. Qualifications regulated by Qualifications Wales and CEA may be linear or modular.
 GCSEs regulated by Ofqual are graded 9-1 whilst those regulated by Qualifications Wales and CEA
are graded A*-G
 AS Levels contribute to the full A Level for qualifications in Wales and Northern Ireland, but not inEngland.
In Scotland, students looking to access higher education take Highers and Advanced Highers. Students
can also opt to take the Scottish Baccalaureate, which is a group qualification made up of one Higher, two
Advanced Highers and an interdisciplinary project. Highers and Advanced Highers are graded A-D.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, all secondary examinations are cancelled across all four
jurisdictions. More information on how grades will be calculated for the 2020 graduating cohorts can befound in the relevant sub-sections below.
An additional section is provided on the International GCSEs, AS and A Levels.
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England – A levels, AS levels and GCSEs
A level, AS level and GCSE qualifications in England are regulated by the Office of Qualifications andExaminations Regulation (Ofqual) and awarded by the following examination boards: AQA, OCR, Pearson
and WJEC Eduqas.
How are the qualifications normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
Final examinations usually account for all, or a high proportion of, the student’s final grade, depending on
the subject. Some subjects also have a component of non-examination assessment, such as coursework.
All A level, AS level and GCSE examinations due to take place in May and June this year have beencancelled.
Ofqual has set out details of how students will be awarded grades for these qualifications in England.
Schools and colleges will provide centre assessment grades for each subject. This grade should reflect thegrade that the student would most likely have achieved if they had sat the examinations.
The school or college should use a variety of evidence to inform this grade, including: Work completed in class Any non-examination assessment, e.g. coursework (complete or incomplete)
 Results of assignments
 Results of mock examinations
 Previous examination results (e.g. AS level results for A level students)
 Any other records of student performance over the course of study.
Schools and colleges will also submit the rank order of students within each grade for each subject, e.g. if aschool has 10 students with a centre assessment grade of 5 in GCSE maths, they should be ranked 1-10,
where 1 is the most secure/highest attaining student. This ranking information will be used by Ofqual for thestatistical standardisation of grading and will not be shared with students.
When will results be available?
A level and AS level results will be released on 13th August 2020 and GCSE results will be released on 20th
August. Schools and colleges will not share centre assessment grades with students before this date.
What if students wish to appeal their results?
Students who feel that their results in a particular subject do not reflect their ability will be able to retake theexams in that subject in the autumn examination session. They will be able to use the higher of the twogrades for progression.

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Wales – A levels, AS levels and GCSEs
In Wales, these qualifications are awarded by WJEC and regulated by Qualifications Wales.
How are the qualifications normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
All A level, AS level and GCSE examinations due to take place in May and June this year have beencancelled.
Final examinations usually account for all, or a high proportion of, the student’s final grade, depending on
the subject. Some subjects also have a component of non-exam assessment, such as coursework. In
Wales, AS levels make up the first half of an A level course, so AS level grades also count towards the final
A level grade, along with A2 units taken in the second year.
Qualifications Wales have set out details of how students will be awarded grades for these qualifications in
Wales, in the absence of examinations
Schools and colleges will provide WJEC with centre assessment grades for each subject. This grade
should reflect the grade that the student would most likely have achieved if they had sat the examinations.
The school or college will use a variety of evidence to inform this grade, including work completed to dateand standardised teacher assessment grades.
Schools and colleges will also submit the rank order of students within each grade for each subject, e.g. if aschool has 10 students with a centre assessment grade of 5 in GCSE maths, they should be ranked 1-10,
where 1 is the most secure/highest attaining student. This ranking information will be used for the statisticalstandardisation of grading and will not be shared with students.
AS level grades awarded in 2020 will not count towards A level grades awarded in 2021. Students taking
AS levels in 2020 will have two options for calculating their A level grades in 2021:
 Option 1: A level grade based on A2 units only
 Option 2: Sit AS and A2 units in 2021 (results will be compared with the grade awarded under
Option 1 and students will receive the higher of the two grades).
When will results be available?
A level and AS level results will be released on 13th August 2020 and GCSE results will be released on 20th
August. Schools and colleges will not share centre assessment grades with students before this date.

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Northern Ireland – A levels, AS levels and GCSEs
In Northern Ireland, these qualifications are awarded by the CCEA.
How are the qualifications normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
All A level, AS level and GCSE examinations due to take place in May and June this year have beencancelled.
Final examinations usually account for all, or a high proportion of, the student’s final grade, depending on
the subject. Some subjects also have a component of non-examination assessment, such as coursework.
In Northern Ireland, AS levels make up the first half of an A level course, so AS level grades also count(40%) towards the final A level grade, along with A2 units taken in the second year.
CCEA has set out details of how students will be awarded grades for these qualifications in Northern
Ireland.
Schools and colleges will provide centre assessment grades for each subject. This grade should reflect thegrade that the student would most likely have achieved if they had sat the examinations. The school orcollege will use a variety of evidence to inform this grade, including work completed to date andstandardised teacher assessment grades.
Schools and colleges will also submit the rank order of students within each grade for each subject, e.g. if aschool has 10 students with a centre assessment grade of 5 in GCSE maths, they should be ranked 1-10,
where 1 is the most secure/highest attaining student. This ranking information will be used for the statisticalstandardisation of grading and will not be shared with students.
AS level grades awarded in 2020 will not count towards A level grades awarded in 2021.
Students taking AS levels in 2020 will have two options for calculating their A level grades in 2021:
 Option 1: A level grade based on A2 units only
 Option 2: Sit AS and A2 units in 2021 (results will be compared with the grade awarded under
Option 1 and student will receive the higher of the two grades).
When will results be available?
A level and AS level results will be released on 13th August 2020 and GCSE results will be released on 20th
August. Schools and colleges will not share centre assessment grades with students before this date.

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Scotland – National 5, Highers and Advanced Highers
These qualifications are awarded by the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA).
How are the qualifications normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
Final grades are usually based on final examinations and externally marked coursework. All examinations
for National 5, Highers and Advanced Highers have been cancelled for 2020 though.
In 2020, National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher qualifications will be awarded on the basis of estimatedgrades. Teachers and lecturers will submit estimated grades to SQA, based on student performancethroughout the course. Schools and colleges will also submit an estimated band within the grade (upper,
middle or lower) and rank order for students within each grade band for each subject. These grades willthen be moderated by SQA.
Coursework will not be marked and will not count towards the final grade. Any coursework that has alreadybeen completed by students may be used by teachers to help determine the student’s estimated grade.
When will results be available?
Results will be issued to students by 4th August.

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International A levels, AS levels and GCSEs
How are the qualifications normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
All examinations for International A level, AS level and GCSE qualifications have been cancelled. These
qualifications are offered by Cambridge Assessment International Education, Oxford International AQA
Examinations and Pearson for the international market.
International A levels, AS levels and GCSEs are not regulated by Ofqual, but awarding bodies will adopt asimilar approach to awarding grades to that which has been outlined in Ofqual guidance for qualifications
awarded in England.
How will grades be awarded without examinations?
Teachers will use a range of evidence to submit a predicted grade for each student in every subject and will
also rank students within each grade. This information will be submitted to the awarding body, which will
carry out a standardisation process and confirm final grades.
In the event that a candidate is not happy with their result, they will have the option to sit exams in a later
examination series, currently envisaged as November 2020 or June 2021 in the case of Cambridge
Assessment International Examinations.
For Pearson, the exact dates for Autumn 2020 International GCSEs, AS and A level exams are still to be
confirmed. There will be an additional series of International GCSE exams in January 2021 for selected
maths and science programmes.
When will results be available?
A level and AS level results will be released on 13th August 2020 and GCSE results will be released on 20th
August. Schools and colleges will not share centre assessment grades with students before this date.

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FranceBaccalauréat
Entry to higher education in France is typically based on the Diplôme du baccalauréat, a three-year upper
secondary qualification finishing after 12 years’ of schooling.
This may lead to the title of the Diplôme du baccalauréat general. An international option (the Option
internationale du baccalauréat) is also available, which is mostly followed by students with foreign language
proficiency. They will take some subjects through the medium of French, and others through a foreign
language.
A technical stream of the Baccalauréat is also available.
All students achieving a mark of 10/20 in the Baccalauréat are able to access university studies.
How are the qualifications normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
Examinations are centrally organised and administered by the Ministère de l'Éducation Nationale et de laJeunesse. This includes examinations taken in the penultimate and final years.
For this academic year, all final Baccalauréat examinations have been cancelled for each of the threestreams (général, technologique and professionnel).
Students' grades will be based on continuous assessment throughout their final year: in this case,on performance throughout the 2019-2020 academic year. Grades achieved in the first year exams will still
count towards the final grade. Assessments carried out during the lockdown period will not be taken into
account.
Grades will be moderated and reviewed by an examination panel. The same 0-20 scale will be used, where
10 reflects the pass mark.
The Baccalauréat was already undergoing reform with the first cohort due to graduate in 2021. These
reforms mean fewer final examinations and continuous assessment will account for 40% of the final grade.
Further details on the secondary school reforms are outlined on UK NARIC’s International Comparisonsdatabase.
When will results be available?
Results will be available on 7th July. Students should receive their final diploma in September / October.
Students who achieve an average grade of less than 10 but higher than 8 will be able to take remedial oral
exams in the usual way; these will be held on 8th - 10th July.

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India
Standard XII
In India, there are two principal exit qualifications in school, one taken on completion of 10 years’ of
schooling (Standard X), and another on completion of 12 years (Standard XII). Entry to higher education inIndia is based on the Standard XII.
The titles vary according to the awarding body, which could be a state education board or one of threenational boards:
 The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) The National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS).
A full list of titles is available on International Comparisons[1]How are the qualifications normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
For the Standard X, students would sit internal exams in Year 9 and external exams in Year 10, whilst theStandard XII certificate is based on internal exams taken in Year 11 and external exams in Year 12. Someof the exams had taken place in March before India went into lockdown. For example, Maharashtra stateboard Standard X and XII examinations were all completed prior to lockdown.
For Standard XII, students are usually examined in five or six subjects. Grading systems differ amongboards, so university admission requirements are usually based on the percentage scores achieved in thebest five subjects.
Standard X and XII examinations administered by many of the boards were interrupted by the national
lockdown, or by local disruption due to COVID-19. For example, the CBSE Standard XII exams in subjects
including Business Studies, Computer Science, Geography, Hindi Core, Hindi Elective, Information
Technology and Sociology, were postponed until the first two weeks of July. CISCE Standard XII exams insubjects including Biology, Business Studies, Geography, Home Science, Sociology and Psychology werealso postponed. Several of the state boards have also postponed some or all of their Standard XII
examinations until a later date. Many boards have not yet announced new dates for the delayed
examinations.
When will results be available?
State boards that have completed their examinations are due to be released in June, but UK NARIC willcontinue to monitor this.
CBSE has yet to announce when it will release results and whether this will be a single release, once all
examinations have been taken, or whether results on exams completed could be issued in the interim. The
work of marking the CBSE Standard X and XII examination papers commenced today, 12 May.
UK NARIC will provide further updated information on developments in India as appropriate.

[1]

Log-in required.

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Ireland
Leaving Certificate
The Leaving Certificate grants access to higher education in Ireland. Subjects are offered at Higher andOrdinary level, with a Foundation level also available in Irish and mathematics. There are three streams:
Leaving Certificate Established, Leaving Certificate Applied and Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme.
Students are required to sit a minimum of five subjects, though most take six or seven.
How is the qualification normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
The Leaving Certificate is usually assessed through final written examinations, with additional oral andpractical examinations in some subjects. Examinations are administered by the State Examinations
Commission.
Examinations for the Leaving Certificate have been cancelled. All students will be offered a State certificate
of calculated grades which can be used to progress to further or higher education, or for employment.
Without examinations, subject teachers will submit an estimate of the percentage mark the student would
have achieved if they had sat the Leaving Certificate examination. Teachers will also rank students withineach class based on their predicted level of achievement. These grades and ranks will be reviewed andfinalised by the school, before being submitted to the Department of Education and Skills. Statisticalmethods will be used to make any necessary adjustments to grades to ensure a national standard isapplied.
When will results be available?
The date for the release of results is yet to be confirmed. It is planned that processes for admission tofurther and higher education in Ireland will run close to original dates. Results were originally due to bemade available on 11th August.

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Malta
Matriculation Certificate Examination
The Matriculation Certificate is taken at the end of upper secondary education (grade 13) and administeredby the Matriculation and Secondary Education Certificate Examinations Board (MATSEC) of the Universityof Malta.
How is the qualification normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
Students typically sit six exams – two at Advanced level, and four at Intermediate level. These must be
taken across four subject groups to ensure students take both humanities and science subjects.
Subjects are graded on an A-E scale at both Advanced and Intermediate level.
The exams usually run in two sessions, the first during the April to June period. In light of the COVID-19
pandemic, these examinations have been postponed until 31st August - 10th October.
When will results be available?
Results will be released on 6th November. This date falls after the start of the academic year in Malta, whichis scheduled to start on 19th October, subject to advice from public health authorities. This means that firstyear students at the University of Malta will not have received their Matriculation Certificate Examination
results prior to beginning their studies.
Most first-year students will be admitted with probationary status, pending the release of their Matriculation
Certificate Examination results. Their status will be changed to that of a regular student if their results meetthe entry requirements for the programme they are enrolled in.
Students whose results do not meet the entry requirements will be permitted to continue with probationary
status, as long as they have gained a minimum of 36 points in the Matriculation Certificate. These students
must either pass all 60 ECTS credits of the first year of the programme in order to continue or alternatively,
can resit the Matriculation Certificate Examinations in December 2020.
Medical degrees will have a delayed start and begin on 9th November once the examination results havebeen released.

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Pakistan
Higher Secondary School Certificate
The Higher Secondary Certificate is the qualification awarded after two years of upper secondary (grades
11 and 12) that provides access to undergraduate studies in Pakistan. The qualification is offered by 30
boards administered at a regional level. The precise title of the award varies slightly between boards.
Students sit examinations in one of the following streams or "groups": Commerce Humanities
 Pre-engineering Pre-medical
 Science (general).
Other groups, such as fine arts, home economics, medical technology and pre-agriculture, are offered bysome boards of higher secondary education.
All students must take four compulsory subjects: Urdu, English, Pakistan Studies and Islamic Education(Islamiyat). Students take a further three or four subjects depending on their chosen group.
How is the qualification normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
Students sit two sets of examinations for the Higher Secondary School Certificate: Part I at the end ofgrade 11 and Part II at the end of Grade 12.
Examinations for the Higher Secondary School Certificate have been cancelled by all boards acrossPakistan.
This year’s cohort of grade 12 students sat their Part I examinations in 2019. The Part II examinations
scheduled for this year have been cancelled. In an announcement from the Education Minister on 7th May,it was confirmed that students would be able to gain admission to universities in Pakistan on the basis of
their Part I (grade 11) results.
Further details of the grading policy are still to be confirmed by the Inter-Board Committee of Chairmen(IBCC), the umbrella body for all examination boards in Pakistan.

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The Caribbean
Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE)
The main upper secondary qualification is called the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE).
Examinations are administered by the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) and are offered in 16
countries and territories across the Caribbean4.
How is the qualification normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
The CAPE is usually awarded on the basis of a final exam and school-based (internal) assessment in eachsubject. CAPE examinations would usually take place in April-June. In 2020, it is envisaged that they willtake place in July, subject to local public health guidance.
Format
The format of the examinations has been adapted: Examinations will consist of multiple-choice questions
and be marked electronically.
Final grades will be based on the results of at least one multiple-choice examination paper per subject andschool-based assessments, which will be externally moderated. Additional elements will be required forsome subjects, including languages and visual arts.
It is understood these will be marked using the normal grades – grade I-VII (1-7) for the overall subject andA-G for the individual module (“profile”) grades.
When will results be available?
A date has not yet been confirmed for the release of CAPE results. The switch to multiple-choice
examinations is intended to reduce the time required for marking and administration in order to minimise
disruption to admissions for the new academic year.

4

Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica,Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands.

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USA
Overview of Pre-University Awards
The principal secondary school qualification in the US is the High School Diploma, awarded to those whohave met their State’s graduation requirements. Those wishing to progress to undergraduate education will
normally need to take Advanced Placement exams or standardised tests like the SATs or the American
College Testing (ACT).
The May and June sittings of the SAT have been cancelled. An additional date has been scheduled for
September and additional weekend administrations may be added from August. Further dates are alsoavailable later in the year.
The ACT was due to take place in early April 2020 and has been rescheduled for now until mid-June.
The AP exams are still running but with an adapted format, as detailed below.

Advanced Placement (AP)AP courses are college-level courses available in 38 subjects. They are offered in many high schools in
the US, as well as many other countries internationally, with the final exam developed and administered by
the College Board.
How are the qualifications normally assessed? What has changed for 2020?
AP courses are typically assessed through written examinations, around 3hr 15 minutes in length,comprising multiple-choice as well as free-response questions. Some subjects also have short-answer
questions. Short-answer and multiple-choice questions typically account for 45%-60% of the final mark foreach course depending on the subject. The free-response section of the exam usually includes around twoto three- long answer questions testing essay writing skills.
AP exams would usually take place in May at designated testing centres. In response to the COVID-19
pandemic, the College Board developed an online free-response exam for each AP course enabling
students to take the exams at home. These are taking place online between 11th and 22nd May. All students
worldwide will sit the exams at the same time. Make-up exams will be held on 1st-5th June.
FormatExams are open-book and will consist of free-response questions. The questions have been designed
specifically for the adapted exam format. Each exam will last 45 minutes. Most exams can be taken on adesktop computer, laptop, tablet or smartphone; students also have the option to write their answers byhand and submit a photo. World languages are assessed through speaking tasks available on an app. Only
content covered in AP classes up until March 2020 will be included.
When will results be available?
Results will be reported on the usual 1-5 scale (where 1 is low, and 5 is considered “extremely wellqualified”). Results will be available around mid- July.

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5. Looking Ahead
This report has reflected principally on countries where the final assessments for pre-university
qualifications were scheduled for April to June 2020. With protracted school closures, UK NARIC willcontinue to monitor adjustments and changes to exams on its blog and in response to enquiries from its
members.
The impact is likely to extend beyond this calendar year though: the situation has raised a number of key
considerations for the future, and for exam boards, schools, university admissions and credential evaluation
agencies alike.

USE OF CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT
The current situation has highlighted the varying use and weighting of internal and external assessment ininternational secondary systems. In the UK, educational reforms introduced from 2015-19 were designed tominimise non-exam assessment in the GCSE, AS and A level, allowing its use only where key skills could
not be tested by written exam. During the current crisis, the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) has
announced that non-exam assessment does not need to be completed and will not be counted in thecalculation of grades this year, as a means of ensuring fairness to all students.
By contrast in Singapore, coursework accounts for 60-70% of the final grade in each subject which has
raised questions in the country on the impact of home-based learning on student performance, noting theabsence of teacher supervision. To address these, the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board(SEAB), is intending to: Extend the submission deadlines by two weeks
 Adjust task requirements where appropriate, whilst ensuring a valid assessment
 Accept evidence of learning (in-school assessment) and special considerations from the school.
Thus, on the one hand, continuous assessment provides a source of evidence in determining likely student
performance, whilst on the other, it can present an added challenge given that its scheduling and/or thetiming of school closures may not be consistent across the country.

ASSESSING PRIVATE CANDIDATESOne key question being faced in many countries is how to ensure fair and valid certification of private
candidates during this time. Private candidates are students learning outside of a traditional school setting,typically enrolled to undertake the assessment only. In the UK, for example, the JCQ has issued somepreliminary guidance. The key message is that where centres have sufficient evidence on private candidate
performance, they can propose a calculated grade; guidance on the implications for private candidates
where centres had insufficient evidence has yet to be published. International approaches announced todate likewise focus on school-based candidates, with no clear policies on awarding qualifications andgrades to private candidates.

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ADJUSTING ASSESSMENT VOLUME
Many secondary school programmes are two- to three- years in duration, typically with mid- or end-of-year
exams. The implications of lost instructional time may therefore be seen in assessment in future years. This
may take two forms: reduction in the number of topics assessed, proportional to the length of time schools
were closed for; and/or reduction in the number of tasks included. A key consideration for exam boards will
be ensuring fairness for all candidates and ongoing validity.
Some upper secondary programmes include examinations in the penultimate year of study in addition to
those at the end of the course. In Wales and Northern Ireland, AS level grades achieved usually contributeto the final A level; students in Pakistan take Part I of their examinations in grade 11. Following this year’s
cancellations, the first part of these courses will not have been assessed, so exam boards will need toconsider how assessment for these qualifications in 2021 will allow for this, without burdening students withadditional examinations covering content studied in the 2019-20 academic year.

A MOVE TO ONLINE ASSESSMENT
As we’ve already seen, the AP in the US has moved to an online, “at-home”, format, allowing students to sit
their exams on time from any device, whilst in New Zealand, it is envisaged that a large number of subjects
will have digital assessments available. A number of English language test providers have similarly
developed, or are in the process of developing “at-home” tests.
This allows for minimal impact to students’ progression overall, whilst at a national level, consideration mustbe given to the challenges of digitalisation both in terms of the timeframe for assessment (accounting fortechnical difficulties without risking test validity by increasing candidates’ thinking time); and more widely,
the risk of increasing inequality with some students unable to access the technology or sufficiently reliableinternet access to take assessments remotely.

MONITORING GRADING AND GRADE DISTRIBUTION
A final consideration will be whether the pandemic has any impact on grading practices. As we’ve alreadyseen, countries which have cancelled examinations have set out guidelines for calculating grades, withprevious statistical data used to standardise the final awarded grades. This is the case for example for
GCSEs, AS and A levels in the UK where data on expected outcomes together with data on the priorattainment of cohorts at each school/college in recent years will be referenced.

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Figure 4: GCE A Level Outcomes 2008-2019 – all subjects, all candidates

Source: Ofqual

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USING UK NARIC
UK NARIC collates grade distribution data over time as part of its International Grade Comparisonsdatabase, presenting this alongside student performance data for the GCE A Level. We will continue tocollate this data to enable evaluation of qualifications in the context of the time in which they were awarded
wherever possible.
UK NARIC will also continue to research international approaches, analyse transcripts and collate data on
student performance, ensuring it can provide members with clear information and insight on assessment
methods, volume and grading used for each qualification.
About UK NARIC
As the designated National Agency for the recognition and comparison of international qualifications andskills, UK NARIC plays a key role in the sphere of international student recruitment and admissions.
UK NARIC’s International Comparisons database describes the secondary qualifications and grading
systems of over 190 countries worldwide, whilst the International Grade Comparisons database,covering 130 countries, provides details of student performance and grade comparisons over time.
UK NARIC members can additionally request further information on specific countries through theMember Enquiries portal. Members and non-members alike can also access specialist webinars on key
themes and education in key countries and regions. Please see our Training Schedule for details.

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Ofqual (n.d.) A level outcomes in England. Accessed May 2020.

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