Staff at Milton Keynes College are calling on all students to log in to their virtual teaching sessions as planned following confusion caused by the government’s recent messaging over exams.
Following mounting pressure from colleges and local authorities around the country, the Department for Education (DfE) announced on Tuesday that institutions should decide for themselves whether to go ahead with BTec exams scheduled for later this month, saying, “In light of the evolving public health measures, schools and colleges can continue with the vocational and technical exams that are due to take place in January, where they judge it right to do so.”
Because of the high infection rates in the city the College here has cancelled all exams but says all students enrolled on courses still need to attend online.
“It’s really important that students understand that they must log in to their timetabled sessions,” says Tracey Matthews, Assistant Principal for Employer and Student Experience. “They will still be marked on their attendance in the same way as if they were coming to College as normal.”
Most but not all classes will be recorded live where possible for later viewing but some will not and students are advised to check to see if their sessions will be available in this way. Students adjudged to be vulnerable and those with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) will be able to attend in person and should already have been contacted, along with their parents or carers. Plans are also in place to support those who cannot easily access online sessions at home.
Tracey says, “The situation is very fluid and for some courses we’re still getting information coming in from various exam awarding bodies about what’s expected. I want to say a huge thank you to the staff who’ve worked incredibly hard to adapt their teaching once again to these difficult circumstances, and also to students and their parents for appreciating that we’re doing our best to make sure the learning experience is as close to face-to-face teaching as possible.”
Meanwhile, potential new students are invited to a virtual open event on Saturday 23rd January where they can join talks explaining various options including T levels and apprenticeships. They’ll be able to take a virtual tour of the College campuses, visit course areas, browse courses and book appointments with tutors, careers advisors and members of the applications team.
The College is working closely with schools to understand how to support them with engaging students remotely in careers conversations showing the importance of securing a place for September and the different pathways available.
Tracey says, “Adults looking to retrain or who want to learn something while stuck at home with time on their hands that there are a host of free distance learning courses available as well as pathways into nursing and midwifery and primary school teaching.”
