Due to teacher shortages in Flanders, four in ten secondary school headmasters have been forced to scrap or modify exams according to a survey carried out by Het Nieuwsblad.
Nearly 300 headmasters took part in the survey – 221 from primary education and 47 from secondary education.
The results showed that there is still no light at the end of the tunnel in the Flemish education system, currently crippled by teacher shortages. Six in ten schools currently have vacancies, which marks an increase compared to the same period last year.
In primary schools, temporary care teachers – staff who offer individual support to pupils with specific problems or needs –are being used for classes without a teacher.
However, in secondary schools, some classes are cancelling lessons on certain subjects for months at a time, making it virtually impossible to organise exams for those subjects, according to directors.
As a result, four out of ten secondary schools are being forced to cancel exams or organise them differently, such as conducting them orally or giving the students a shorter exam than usual.
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As for whether or not a student will continue to the next school year if they do not have certain exams, the headmasters of the school stated that the decision will be based on previous exam periods as well as the daily class work of the student.
Additionally, given the gaps in knowledge caused by not having received classes for certain subjects, the teachers in the next school year will be notified to better assist the children in the new school year.
