Teachers join pupils in the exam hall

June 02 2008

A number of teachers in England have opted to brave the exam hall along with their pupils.

In a bid to gain a better understanding of how to advise students to prepare for exams, the staff decided that taking the assessments would help them enhance their awareness, reports the Times Educational Supplement.

Mark Smith, lead physics teacher at Shoeburyness High School in Essex told the publication: "I think teachers' depth of knowledge to talk around a subject and be able to answer awkward questions is really important."

He sat biology and chemistry AS-level alongside his students and noted that the experience made him consciously think about "what makes learning stimulating".

Another teacher to take up the challenge was head of English at Cumbria's Millom School, Alison Smith, who sat the subject's key stage three test.

She noted that it made her aware of just how much her pupils need to read in a short space of time and encouraged her to give them lessons in speed reading.

Concerns were raised that exam papers had gone missing last week, when teachers marking them said they had not received some scripts.

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