B.C.’s Ombudsperson is monitoring the way the province is handling a “tabulation anomaly” which left some graduating students with the wrong grades on their provincial exam.
Ombudsperson Jay Chalke issued a statement Wednesday, saying he’s “concerned” about the error and the impact it could have on students.
“This is a very stressful time for students as they make future education plans. I urge the ministry to not only address the technical issue but to also identify and remedy any individual impacts,” said Chalke.
“Students and parents should be proactively informed about what they can do if they believe they have been adversely affected.”
The issue, which came to light on Tuesday, left many students who say they regularly score in the 80s and 90s reporting final exam grades in the 40 to 60 per cent range.
The Ministry of Education has acknowledged the error, and said it is reviewing every June 2019 exam to correct any inaccurate grades.
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It also said it has contacted B.C. post-secondary institutions and is contacting Canadian institutions to try and ensure no student’s applications are affected.
Vancouver lawyer Kyla Lee says if the Ministry of Education did send out the wrong grades on a student’s transcript, it could open the province up to being sued.
“The province has a duty of care to these students when they’re grading provincial exams to make sure that they’re done properly and that the grades are reported accurately, so that not a single transcript goes out with an inaccurate grade on it,” said Lee.
“The consequences of doing that could be devastating. It could be withdrawal of an offer of early admission, it could be refusal to grant admission in an application in the regular stream, and that could completely alter the course of someone’s life.”
It remains unclear how many students were affected by the error.
The cause of the anomaly also remains unclear. The ministry said Tuesday it was “actively working to identify and resolve the issue.”
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