A petition to scrap GCSEs and A levels in 2021 is likely to be debated in Parliament after gathering more than 120,000 signatures.

The petition calls for exams to be cancelled next year “due to the disruption of Covid-19”, and has easily passed the 100,000 threshold that means it must be considered for parliamentary debate.

“Students in the UK have already missed hundreds of hours of learning since 23 March,” it says. 

GCSEs 2021: Ofqual looking at multiple choice and mocks

News: 2021 GCSE and A-level exams to be delayed by 3 weeks

Exams: Results will be a ‘challenge’ warn boards

GCSEs and A levels 2021: ‘Dismay’ at ‘weak’ DfE plan

“This has had a huge effect. Some pupils don’t have the essential resources: a working computer, textbooks, stationery, etc. Many don’t have a proper learning environment, therefore results will most certainly not reflect the true efforts of pupils.”

The petition calls on the government to scrap exams next year in favour of awarding pupils their predicted grades.

The news comes as it was announced yesterday that most GCSE and A-level exams would be delayed by three weeks in 2021 to allow for more teaching time.

And this morning, interim Ofqual chief regulator Dame Glenys Stacey said there could be greater “optionality” and choice in next year’s exams.  

However, some educators have said holding exams next year is too much of a ”gamble” given the amount of teaching time pupils have lost.