Computer glitch hits Lisburn schools

Up to 400 primary schools are experiencing problems with computer assessments for P4 and P7 pupils, Education Minister John O’Dowd has said..

He said that between 200 and 400 schools have had trouble with the tests and that schools having problems should stop using the system.

Efforts were continuing to fix the problem, he added.

“Pupils at 500 schools have completed tests, but I didn’t pay for 50% of a system I paid for 100%,” he said.

Paul Good from Lisburn Primary Principals Association described the testing process as “a shambles”.

He said: “The technical problem experienced by myself and colleagues at neighbouring schools are servers crashing, screens freezing and tests going back to the beginning when we were assured that they could be saved and the children could complete them at a later time.

“They have not been working very well for us at all.”

The NI exams regulator, CCEA, has confirmed there have been problems with the tests over the past three weeks.

The new assessments were introduced in 900 primary schools in September.

The Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment said that as yet, the “specific problem has not yet been identified”.

Their statement said: “We are very sensitive to the impact that these problems may be having on pupils and teachers.

“Therefore, we have been advising schools who continue to experience technical problems to discontinue the assessments until this matter is resolved.”

The new online literary and numeracy tests are part of a major £170m schools’ contract and involve the participation of the IT service provider Northgate and C2k - a regional education project responsible for the delivery of ICT infrastructure and resources in Northern Ireland schools.

The assessments were trialled in the spring and Mr Good’s school, Meadow Bridge Primary, was one of the 130 schools involved in the pilot.

He said that Meadow Bridge highlighted a number of problems during the trial but he claimed their concerns had not been taken on board.

CCEA’s statement said: “Based on the information provided to date it is appears that the difficulties are related to system and network issues and include computers freezing or crashing and screens not displaying properly.

“CCEA and the assessment providers continue to work very closely with C2K and Northgate to investigate the problems as a matter of urgency and to determine the cause (or causes) of these issues.”

In a separate statement, the service provider Northgate, said a “dedicated response team from Northgate, CCEA and C2K” has visited a number of primary schools affected by the issue to carry out tests on site.

“These investigations proved inconclusive as the problems previously experienced by schools were not replicated during the visits.”

Northgate added: “Sourcing and solving the problem remains a priority for all.”