Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of universities resuming face-to-face teaching at the start of the new academic term in September 2021.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The government has now lifted the restrictions on higher education (HE) including removing all restrictions on face-to-face teaching. Providers are therefore able to shape courses without restrictions on face-to-face teaching and learning.
HE providers should therefore not be planning to restrict teaching based on COVID-19 restrictions. However, as autonomous institutions, it is for providers to determine their own provision, taking account of government guidance.
As a result of COVID-19, some providers have accelerated their digital teaching and learning plans, and some will retain an element of blended learning. We know that the COVID-19 outbreak has enabled many providers to identify new and innovative ways to teaching and learning, and students will continue to benefit from these alongside in-person provision.
We expect all universities to continue to deliver excellent teaching and learning, in line with guidance from the Office for Students (OfS), and that they should provide students with a full experience.
The OfS has made it clear that all HE providers must continue to comply with registration conditions relating to quality and standards and the OfS will be monitoring to ensure this is the case.
Universities should be open about what students can expect. If students have concerns, they should first raise them with their HE provider. If their concerns remain unresolved, students at providers in England or Wales can ask the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education to consider their complaint.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of whether GCSE and A-level examinations will take place without disruption in academic year 2021-22.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government has made clear its firm intention that exams will take place in summer 2022. Exams are the fairest way of judging pupils’ performance. The Department has engaged with a wide range of stakeholders who have all called for exams to go ahead.
There is continued uncertainty about the path of the COVID-19 outbreak, including whether further disruption to education may occur over the course of the 2021/22 academic year. Even if some public health restrictions were to be needed over the coming academic year, the Department believes it will be possible for pupils to take exams safely, but we recognise the need to have plans in place for the unlikely event that that is not possible.
The Department is working with Ofqual, exam boards, and representatives of schools and colleges to ensure that contingency arrangements are in place for scenarios where exams cannot be held for any reason, or where individual pupils are unable to sit exams due to illness or self-isolation. The Department will announce the detail of these contingency plans in the autumn term.
The Department also recognises that pupils who will be taking exams in summer 2022 have had disruption to their education in the last two academic years. Whilst we believe it is in pupils’ interests that they cover as much of the curriculum as possible, we also recognise that in order to be fair, exams in 2022 will need to be adapted to take this disruption into account. The Department has recently consulted jointly with Ofqual on a range of adaptations to exams. We are currently considering the responses to that consultation and will announce final decisions shortly.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what precautionary covid-19 related health and safety measures will be implemented in schools when the academic year begins in September 2021.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department’s priority is for all schools to deliver face to face, high quality education to all children, pupils and students. The Department has worked closely with the Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England to revise the guidance for schools. Schools should continue to ensure good hygiene for everyone, maintain appropriate cleaning regimes, keep occupied spaces well ventilated and follow public health advice on testing, self-isolation and managing confirmed cases of COVID-19. As pupils will potentially have mixed with many other people during the summer holidays, all secondary school pupils should receive 2 on-site lateral flow device tests, 3 to 5 days apart, on their return in the autumn term.
Schools should continue to conduct risk assessments and take appropriate action in line with the control measures. Schools should have contingency plans in place outlining the actions they would take if pupils and staff test positive for COVID-19, or how they would operate if they were advised to take extra measures to help break chains of transmission.
The evidence is clear that being out of education causes significant harm to educational attainment, life chances, and mental and physical health. In making decisions, the Government has balanced education and health considerations, weighing the impact of these measures on teaching, wellbeing and the functioning of schools and nurseries, against the risks posed by COVID-19, in a context that has now fundamentally changed due to the success of the vaccination rollout.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of improving ventilation in school buildings to help prevent the spread of covid-19.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) have advised the Government that ventilation should be integral to the COVID-19 risk mitigation strategy, and that this should include identification of how a space is ventilated, as well as guidance to ensure the ventilation is adequate.
On 21 August 2021, the Department announced that CO2 monitors will be provided to all state-funded nurseries, schools and colleges from September. Backed by a £25 million Government investment, the new monitors will enable staff to act quickly where ventilation is poor and provide reassurance that existing ventilation measures are working.
The programme will provide nurseries, schools and colleges with sufficient monitors to take representative readings from across the indoor spaces in their estate, assessing all spaces in a relatively short space of time. It is expected that monitors will confirm that in most cases, existing ventilation is sufficient.
The Department will also provide new guidance on how to better manage ventilation, including how using CO2 monitors can help.
The majority of the 300,000 carbon dioxide monitors will become available over the autumn term, with special schools and alternative provision prioritised to receive their full allocation from September.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the quality of teaching provided to university students during the covid-19 outbreak; and whether he plans to support students pursuing a reduction in fees charged during that period.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
This has been a difficult and uncertain time for students, however, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education and I have continued to work closely with higher education representative bodies, mission groups and the regulator throughout the COVID-19 outbreak. The government’s clear and stated expectation throughout the COVID-19 outbreak is that universities are expected to maintain quality and academic standards and the quantity of tuition should not drop.
The higher education regulator in England, the Office for Students (OfS), has also made it clear that all higher education providers must comply with registration conditions relating to quality and standards. This means ensuring that courses provide a high-quality academic experience, students are supported and achieve good outcomes, and standards are protected, regardless of whether a provider is delivering its courses through in-person teaching, remote online learning, or a combination of both.
The OfS has and continues to take very seriously the potential impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak on teaching and learning. It has actively monitored providers to ensure that they maintain the quality of their provision, that it is accessible for all, and that they have been clear in their communications with students about how arrangements for teaching and learning may change throughout the year. The OfS has also followed up directly with providers where they received notifications from students, parents or others raising concerns about the quality of teaching on offer.
If students have concerns about their tuition, there is a process in place. They should first raise their concerns with their university. If their concerns remain unresolved, students at providers in England or Wales can ask the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education to consider their complaint.
Universities and other higher education providers are autonomous and responsible for setting their own fees within maximum fee limits set by Regulations.
Ultimately, whether an individual student is entitled to a refund of their tuition fees depends on the specific contractual arrangements between the provider and student. Students do have consumer rights, and it is for them to decide whether to seek to exercise these.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the quality of citizenship education for secondary age pupils; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of expanding that education to older pupils to increase participation in democracy when individuals reach voting age.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Citizenship education has been part of the National Curriculum at Key Stages 3 and 4 since 2002. The subject aims to prepare pupils to play a full and active part in society and covers topics such as parliamentary democracy, the key elements of the constitution of the United Kingdom, the power of Government and how citizens and Parliament hold it to account. Pupils are also taught about the different electoral systems used in and beyond the United Kingdom and how citizens can take part in democratic processes, including by voting, to influence decisions.
As part of the personal development judgment within school inspections, Ofsted is required to consider pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Inspection of personal development includes areas such as democracy and preparing pupils for life in modern Britain, which are important elements of citizenship. This approach enables important aspects of citizenship to be considered in a proportionate and integrated way.
The Department does not provide a national curriculum beyond Key Stage 4. Further education (FE) colleges have the flexibility to offer aspects of citizenship education if it is in the best interest of their students.
As part of 16-19 study programmes, FE colleges can offer a qualification regulated by Ofqual, with a small number of citizenship qualifications at level 2 and below being eligible to receive public funding from the Education and Skills Funding Agency.
Also, as part of 16-19 study programmes, students are expected to take part in meaningful non-qualification activities that develop their character, broader skills, attitudes, and confidence.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which step of the Government’s covid-19 roadmap will allow all university students to return to their term-time addresses.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
Following the review into when the remaining higher education students can return to in-person teaching and learning, the government has announced that the remaining students should return to in-person teaching no earlier than 17 May 2021, alongside Step 3 of the roadmap. Students and institutions will be given at least a week’s notice of any further return in accordance with the timing of Step 3 of the roadmap.
The government roadmap is designed to maintain a cautious approach to the easing of restrictions to reduce public health risks and ensure that we can maintain progress towards full reopening. However, the government recognises the difficulties and disruption that this may cause for many students and their families and that is why the government is making a further £15 million of additional student hardship funding available for this academic year 2020/21. In total we have made an additional £85 million of funding available for student hardship.
We are supporting universities to provide regular twice weekly asymptomatic testing for all students and staff on-site and, from May, at home. This will help break chains of transmission of the virus.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when students who have not yet resumed in-person teaching and learning at university will be able to do so during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
Following the review into when the remaining higher education students can return to in-person teaching and learning, the government has announced that the remaining students should return to in-person teaching no earlier than 17 May 2021, alongside Step 3 of the roadmap. Students and institutions will be given at least a week’s notice of any further return in accordance with the timing of Step 3 of the roadmap.
The government roadmap is designed to maintain a cautious approach to the easing of restrictions to reduce public health risks and ensure that we can maintain progress towards full reopening. However, the government recognises the difficulties and disruption that this may cause for many students and their families and that is why the government is making a further £15 million of additional student hardship funding available for this academic year 2020/21. In total we have made an additional £85 million of funding available for student hardship.
We are supporting universities to provide regular twice weekly asymptomatic testing for all students and staff on-site and, from May, at home. This will help break chains of transmission of the virus.