site.btaState Matriculation Exams May Be Postponed, Spring Break Cancelled

April 2 (BTA) - If the state of emergency in Bulgaria is extended until May 13, the state matriculation exams for secondary-school leavers (12th grade) will probably take place on May 30 and June 1 and schools students will not have a sping break, Education and Science Minister Krasimir Valchev told a news conference on Thursday. He said that the only scenario under consideration at the moment is that schools will reopen on May 14.

The first compulsory state matriculation exam, in the Bulgarian language and literature, was scheduled for May 20. The second compulsory exam, in a subject of choice, was scheduled for May 22. According to the time table for the 2019/2020 school year, 12th graders were supposed to study until May 14.

Valchev said that their diplomas will also be delayed, probably by another week. He has talked with the Bulgarian universities about the forthcoming application campaigns, and is keeping in touch with his EU counterparts. Valchev said that most probably all EU countries will shift their matriculation exams. He stressed that if a country or university does not postpone its application campaign, the Ministry is prepared to issue school-leaving diplomas ahead of schedule.

Valchev went on to say that there may be a slight delay for the seventh grade exams, initially scheduled for June 9 and 11. The new dates could be June 13 and 15.

According to Valchev, there are no obstacles to conducting the National External Assessment exams for grades 4 and 10, as a small part of fourth graders usually apply to high schools of mathematics. The National External Assessment exams for fourth graders will also be postponed, probably for May 29 and 30. Valchev said that no child will be penalized for low scores in those exams as they mostly serve as feedback from the schools.

This year for the first time students will sit for international assessment examinations in a foreign language and IT. Thus, they will be issued CEFR and DigComp certificates free of charge.

The only thing that will be cancelled altogether will be the national stages of Olympiads and competitions, but this is not crucial, the Minister said. Some of the scores from national-stage competitions are factored into the students' grade point average, but the plan for this year is to factor in the scores from the regional stages instead.

The sping break initially planned for April 13-16 will be used for consultation and catching up, as well as for interest-oriented activities.

Since March 16, some 700,000 students and more than 60,000 teachers in Bulgaria's 2,400 schools have been involved in remote learning after a state of emergency was declared on March 13. Various regions had flu breaks earlier this year and a nationwide flu break closed all schools before March 13.

The list of measures will be finalized next week, the Minister said. RI/MT,DD





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By 01:23 on 04.08.2024 Today`s news

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