English: Before I move on to the issues in relation to the motion, can I put on record my thanks to the staff of our education system, who have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic and the lockdown, and particularly our teachers? They faced difficult challenges at that point in time and they stepped up to the plate and actually delivered for our young people and ensured that learning could take place. I think this also reflects the fact that, in Wales, we have an education system that actually had a digital identity, and, with the Hwb system in place, pupils were able to develop their skills at home, through the support of the teachers who were working in the classrooms. I praise them for all the work they've done and the work they've done since. I also want to talk about the motion now, and I think I agree with Suzy Davies: this motion is so wide, it actually doesn't do justice to the various components within it. We can only focus upon one element, usually, in a motion and there are so many elements in that motion, I think there's too big a scope to actually have a single issue on. But I want to focus on the examination system. I agree with Members who have indicated the challenges that young people faced in the summer and the difficulties they had when they were awaiting the results, because they weren't clear as to whether that algorithm would work or not, and when the results came out, what happened beyond that, and we mustn't let that happen again. That was something that we should learn lessons from and make sure it doesn't happen again. Now, where we do have an advantage is that the majority of individuals who were facing examinations in that summer had completed their courses, mostly, by the time the lockdown came, so their knowledge and their understanding of the subject material had been completed - near enough. Maybe some hadn't got that far yet. This year's situation is different because the students who are possibly facing examinations next summer are not in the same position. They would have lost some teaching in June and July that they would have had in the lower sixth or in year 10, and they're also having a slight disruption now. So, we know in advance that the material and the knowledge and the competencies and the skills are not going to be, possibly, to the level we would expect them to be by the time examinations would come in normal circumstances, and we have to reflect upon that. Now the question that then comes is: are examinations the solution or are other mechanisms the solution? I have raised the question before of whether we should look at a moderated approach to teacher assessments. I'll take both options here, acting Presiding Officer. If we go down an examination route and the examinations have to be held - and we await the Minister's decision on this - then we must ensure that the examinations reflect the abilities and the knowledge that students have gained in that time. Because we might have a syllabus, but not every school will deliver that syllabus in the same order or the same manner, and therefore you cannot guarantee that a pupil will be at the same level of knowledge and understanding to answer questions in the examination next summer, the way we are at the moment. So, there's a very serious question: if we are having exams, what will those exams actually look like and what will they be assessing? If we're going to go to a moderated assessment approach, then we must make the decision quickly because teachers and pupils need to understand how they will be assessed for their grades, and that's critical. I'm happy to give Plaid Cymru my experience of having done it. I've taught at all those levels: GCSE up to Master's degrees, at every level. I've also moderated and examined at levels along those lines as well. And it's different from teaching it, assessing it and moderating it, and the experiences need to be understood if we are going to do that. To put moderation in place, we need to be acting quickly, because teachers need to know how they've put things together, they need to have their methods of assessment, the assessment marking schemes, they need to have sample coursework, they need to be sent off to some examiners to be moderated. There's a whole process that has to be put in place, and that can't be done in the last few weeks of the year; it needs to be done sooner rather than later. So, I agree that if we are moving to teacher assessment, the sooner the better, so I'm looking forward to the announcement in the week starting 9 November to get that. I very much welcome the education Minister's commitment to give it that early. But, I also reflect upon the comments from the Plaid Cymru spokesperson when she opened the debate, about where we go with assessments and where we go with examinations. I think it's very easy to make wide-ranging statements that we need to have a change, but that change takes time, and that change needs people to go with you. You need the pupils, society, businesses, the education system, universities and colleges to go with you on that change, and not just from our nation, but from all nations in the UK and nations across Europe, because everyone recognises those types of qualifications. If we want our young people to be able to work in the world beyond Wales, then we must ensure that the world beyond Wales recognises what we are assessing and the qualifications they will come out with. That is not a short-term picture; it's a long-term situation to be able to get that, and if you don't believe me, try looking at how the Welsh bac was accepted by universities in the last few years. I can tell you from when I was working in that sector that it had difficulty initially to get recognition, particularly from some of the top universities. We need to ensure that everyone comes with us. Grandiose statements, fine, but the reality is far more complicated and far more complex. So, if you are looking to ensure that our young people have a strong future, have a place where they can go anywhere in the world -
Welsh: Cyn i mi symud ymlaen at y materion sy'n ymwneud â'r cynnig, a gaf fi gofnodi fy niolch i staff ein system addysg, sydd wedi gweithio'n ddiflino drwy'r pandemig a'r cyfyngiadau, ac yn enwedig ein hathrawon? Roeddent yn wynebu heriau anodd bryd hynny ac fe wnaethant gamu i'r adwy a chyflawni dros ein pobl ifanc a sicrhau y gallai dysgu ddigwydd. Credaf fod hyn hefyd yn adlewyrchu'r ffaith bod gennym, yng Nghymru, system addysg a oedd â hunaniaeth ddigidol mewn gwirionedd, a chyda system Hwb ar waith, gallodd disgyblion ddatblygu eu sgiliau gartref, drwy gymorth yr athrawon a oedd yn gweithio yn yr ystafelloedd dosbarth. Rwy'n eu canmol am yr holl waith a wnaethant a'r gwaith y maent wedi'i wneud ers hynny. Rwyf hefyd am siarad am y cynnig nawr, a chredaf fy mod yn cytuno â Suzy Davies: mae'r cynnig hwn mor eang, nid yw'n gwneud cyfiawnder â'r gwahanol elfennau ynddo. Ar un elfen yn unig y gallwn ganolbwyntio, fel arfer, mewn cynnig ac mae cynifer o elfennau yn y cynnig hwn, ac rwy'n credu bod y cwmpas yn rhy fawr i allu canolbwyntio ar un elfen. Ond rwyf am ganolbwyntio ar y system arholi. Rwy'n cytuno ag Aelodau sydd wedi nodi'r heriau a wynebodd pobl ifanc yn yr haf a'r anawsterau a gawsant pan oeddent yn aros am y canlyniadau, oherwydd nid oeddent yn glir a fyddai'r algorithm hwnnw'n gweithio ai peidio, a phan ddaeth y canlyniadau allan, yr hyn a ddigwyddodd y tu hwnt i hynny, a rhaid inni beidio â gadael i hynny ddigwydd eto. Roedd hynny'n rhywbeth y dylem ddysgu gwersi ohono a gwneud yn siŵr nad yw'n digwydd eto. Nawr, lle mae gennym fantais yw bod y rhan fwyaf o unigolion a oedd yn wynebu arholiadau yr haf hwnnw wedi cwblhau eu cyrsiau at ei gilydd erbyn y daeth y cyfyngiadau symud i rym, felly roedd eu gwybodaeth a'u dealltwriaeth o'r deunydd pwnc wedi'i gwblhau - yn ddigon agos. Efallai nad oedd rhai wedi cyrraedd mor bell â hynny eto. Mae'r sefyllfa'n wahanol eleni gan nad yw'r myfyrwyr sydd o bosibl yn wynebu arholiadau yr haf nesaf yn yr un sefyllfa. Byddent wedi colli rhywfaint o addysgu ym mis Mehefin a mis Gorffennaf y byddent wedi'i gael yn y chweched isaf neu ym mlwyddyn 10, ac maent hefyd yn wynebu ychydig o aflonyddwch nawr. Felly, gwyddom ymlaen llaw na fydd y deunydd a'r wybodaeth a'r cymwyseddau a'r sgiliau, o bosibl, ar y lefel y byddem yn disgwyl iddynt fod erbyn i'r arholiadau ddod o dan amgylchiadau arferol, a rhaid inni ystyried hynny. Nawr, y cwestiwn wedyn yw: ai arholiadau yw'r ateb neu ai mecanweithiau eraill yw'r ateb? Rwyf wedi codi'r cwestiwn o'r blaen ynglŷn ag a ddylem edrych ar ddull wedi'i gymedroli o asesu athrawon. Fe gymeraf y ddau opsiwn yma, Lywydd dros dro. Os dilynwn lwybr arholi a bod yn rhaid cynnal yr arholiadau - ac rydym yn aros am benderfyniad y Gweinidog ar hyn - rhaid inni sicrhau bod yr arholiadau'n adlewyrchu'r galluoedd a'r wybodaeth y mae myfyrwyr wedi'u hennill yn y cyfnod hwnnw. Oherwydd gallai fod gennym faes llafur, ond ni fydd pob ysgol yn cyflwyno'r maes llafur hwnnw yn yr un drefn neu'r un modd, ac felly ni allwch warantu y bydd disgybl ar yr un lefel o wybodaeth a dealltwriaeth i ateb cwestiynau yn yr arholiad yr haf nesaf, yn y ffordd rydym yn ei wneud ar hyn o bryd. Felly, mae'n gwestiwn difrifol iawn: os ydym yn cael arholiadau, sut bethau fydd yr arholiadau hynny mewn gwirionedd a beth fyddant yn ei asesu? Os ydym am symud at ddull asesu wedi'i gymedroli, rhaid inni wneud y penderfyniad yn gyflym oherwydd bod angen i athrawon a disgyblion ddeall sut y cânt eu hasesu ar gyfer eu graddau, ac mae hynny'n hollbwysig. Rwy'n hapus i roi fy mhrofiad i Blaid Cymru o fod wedi gwneud hynny. Rwyf wedi dysgu ar bob lefel: TGAU hyd at raddau Meistr, ar bob lefel. Rwyf hefyd wedi cymedroli ac arholi ar lefelau ar hyd y llinellau hynny hefyd. Ac mae'n wahanol i'w addysgu, ei asesu a'i gymedroli, ac mae angen deall y profiadau os ydym am wneud hynny. Er mwyn rhoi cymedroli ar waith, mae angen inni weithredu'n gyflym, oherwydd mae angen i athrawon wybod sut y maent wedi rhoi pethau at ei gilydd, mae angen iddynt gael eu dulliau asesu, y cynlluniau marcio asesiadau, mae angen iddynt gael gwaith cwrs enghreifftiol, mae angen eu hanfon at arholwyr i'w cymedroli. Mae yna broses gyfan sy'n rhaid ei rhoi ar waith, ac ni ellir gwneud hynny yn ystod wythnosau olaf y flwyddyn; mae angen ei wneud yn gynt yn hytrach nag yn hwyrach. Felly, rwy'n cytuno, os ydym yn symud at asesiad athrawon, gorau po gyntaf, felly rwy'n edrych ymlaen at y cyhoeddiad yn yr wythnos sy'n dechrau 9 Tachwedd i gael hynny. Rwy'n croesawu'n fawr ymrwymiad y Gweinidog addysg i'w roi mor gynnar â hynny. Ond rwyf hefyd yn ystyried sylwadau llefarydd Plaid Cymru pan agorodd y ddadl, ynglŷn â ble rydym yn mynd gydag asesiadau a ble rydym yn mynd gydag arholiadau. Rwy'n credu ei bod yn hawdd iawn gwneud datganiadau eang fod angen inni gael newid, ond mae'r newid hwnnw'n cymryd amser, ac mae angen mynd â phobl gyda chi ar y newid hwnnw. Mae angen mynd â disgyblion, cymdeithas, busnesau, y system addysg, prifysgolion a cholegau gyda chi ar y newid hwnnw, ac nid yn ein gwlad ni'n unig, ond ym mhob gwlad yn y DU a gwledydd ledled Ewrop, oherwydd mae pawb yn cydnabod y mathau hynny o gymwysterau. Os ydym am i'n pobl ifanc allu gweithio yn y byd y tu hwnt i Gymru, rhaid inni sicrhau bod y byd y tu hwnt i Gymru yn cydnabod yr hyn rydym yn ei asesu a'r cymwysterau a fydd ganddynt. Nid darlun tymor byr yw hwnnw; mae'n sefyllfa hirdymor i allu cael hynny, ac os nad ydych yn fy nghredu, ceisiwch edrych ar sut y cafodd bagloriaeth Cymru ei derbyn gan brifysgolion dros y blynyddoedd diwethaf. Gallaf ddweud wrthych o'r adeg pan oeddwn yn gweithio yn y sector ei bod wedi bod yn anodd cael cydnabyddiaeth iddi i ddechrau, yn enwedig gan rai o'r prifysgolion gorau. Mae angen inni sicrhau bod pawb yn dod gyda ni. Mae datganiadau mawreddog yn iawn, ond mae'r realiti'n llawer mwy cymhleth. Felly, os ydych am sicrhau dyfodol cadarn i'n pobl ifanc, fod ganddynt lefydd i fynd yn unrhyw le yn y byd -