Every VCE student will automatically be offered special consideration on their exam results and ATAR scores after their COVID-19-disrupted final year of study.
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The impact of COVID-19 on each individual student will be assessed and taken in to account in determining their scores, education minister James Merlino announced on Friday.
"Every other year level we've got time at the end of this year and next year to catch up students who need that catch up and to re-engage students who are disengaged from school," he said.
"For year 12s this is their last year of school and we know there are many students and many parents who are worried about how COVID-19 will impact on VCE scores and ATARs."
Factors such as school closures, long absences, increases in family responsibility as a result of COVID-19, mental health and wellbeing will all be assessed through both a school-based system and a more data-driven standardised process across the state.
"Students will go in to VCE exams with confidence knowing they will not be disadvantaged as a result of COVID-19," Mr Merlino said.
In April it was announced the General Achievement Test would shift from third term to fourth term and VCE exams moved back two weeks but Mr Merlino indicated there would be no further changes to VCE exams.
Final scores will take in to account the individual's circumstances so they are on a level playing field with every student across the state
- James Merlino
The more than 50,000 year 12 students will receive their VCE scores and ATARs on December 30, about two weeks later than previous years.
In regular years, special consideration is usually accessed by only a small number of students with extenuating circumstances affecting their studies.
It is the first time it has been implemented across an entire year level.
"Final scores will take in to account the individual's circumstances so they are on a level playing field with every student across the state," Mr Merlino said.
The special considerations process will fall back on to year 12 teachers at an already busy time of year helping students prepare for exams.
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Teachers will be asked to rank where they expect each student to be right now for each VCE subject, and asked to rank the student where they would have been if not for COVID-19 and why.
The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority data will then assess the data alongside exam results, including a student's expected achievement levels before the impact of coronavirus, school assessments completed prior to remote and flexible learning, the General Achievement Test (GAT) and a range of statistical analyses to calculate final results.
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