Plans to scrap fieldwork for GCSEs and A levels for another year will leave students “baked in” to a cycle of lost learning, the Field Studies Council has said.
Ofqual’s proposals to lift the mandatory requirement for fieldwork in subjects such as GCSE and A level geography to cover the 2022 summer exams were “out of kilter” with national educational recovery efforts and would risk irrevocable damage to the outdoor education sector, the council warned.
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Ofqual is currently analysing feedback from a two-week consultation into proposals to lift the requirement. It lifted the requirement in 2020 owing to coronavirus restrictions.
In a statement, the FSC said “students face being baked in to a cycle of lost learning” if the proposals go ahead.
The charity hosts 150,000 students per year to its network of residential field centres, and chief executive Mark Castle has called on the regulator to rethink the proposals.
“This flawed, clumsy approach takes no account of the radically different public health situation compared to a year ago.
“Sadly, the proposals perpetuate unnecessarily the cycle of disadvantage and bake in yet more lost opportunities and missed experiences that are a core part of a subject,” he said.
“They continue the damage caused by Covid for a cohort that has already missed out on so much learning. They all but guarantee that learners emerge without some of the skills and knowledge needed for work or further study, compared to cohorts less impacted by Covid.
“Ofqual’s proposal is out of kilter with the national recovery, the government’s aim to make the route out of lockdown irreversible, the urgent need to help learners catch up and public health guidance on the importance of fresh air.”
The charity has taken measures to ensure its centres can undertake Covid-secure fieldwork to host school residential trips safely.
Since restrictions eased on 17 May, 150 different schools have visited FSC sites, according to the charity, but Mr Castle says if Ofqual continues to push its plans through, it would undermine the recovery of the sector and place financial pressure on the future of the charity.
The consultation period by Ofqual ended on 28 May and feedback from schools, teachers and other affected organisations are currently under review.
A spokesperson for Ofqual said: “Schools can of course do fieldwork with their students and we recognise the benefits of doing so.
“In our consultation, we proposed to lift the requirements, for 2022 examinations only, for a written statement that centres have given students the opportunity to carry out a specified number of fieldwork activities, and that students should have to answer questions in the exam relating to their own fieldwork experience. Under our proposals, students would still be required to answer questions on fieldwork more generally, rather than fieldwork they have done themselves.
“We are considering the responses to our consultation and will publish the outcome soon.”
