The @CommonsEd is about to hold an accountability hearing with @NickGibbUK over next year's exams and the government's catch-up initiatives. Stay tuned for the latest updates #edselctte

. @NickGibbUK says government policy for next year is that it expects students to sit exams, and says they are working through 'other contingencies' now with exam boards, as well as looking at the 'constrained' marking time next year from the three week delay in exam start dates.

. @NickGibbUK tells @CommonsEd says the government has tried to free up teaching time to ensure pupils have enough time to catch up on lost learning. #edselctte

. @NickGibbUK says there is lost education across the country as a whole from school closures dating from March and 'we will have more to say about this' - he says @ofqual
are looking into this in terms of grading #edselctte

And @NickGibbUK tells @CommonsEd that he is also working with exam boards to address the different experiences pupils have had over the lockdown #edselctte

. @halfon4harlowMP refers to our @tes story on how primary schools in poorer areas had far lower levels of attendance than those in leafy areas. https://www.tes.com/news/exclusive-poorer-schools-hit-twice-hard-lockdown

'What was the department doing to monitor these children's attendance?' asks @halfon4harlowMP. @NickGibbUK says 'react' teams were working with vulnerable families during lockdown #edselctte

. @NickGibbUK says schools are well equipped to ensure pupils will catch up and that lost learning will be reflected in the overall grading to ensure the 2021 cohort is not 'unfairly treated' compared with other years. #edselctte

. @NickGibbUK expresses concern over the 'unevenness and unfairness' of how students have experienced lockdown, and he is discussing how to address this with @ofqual, although cautions there are limits to what exams can do #edselctte

. @NickGibbUK says @ofqual is used to adjusting grading to reflect changed circumstances, e.g. use of the saw tooth concept to adjust to new curriculum, in response to question from @IanMearnsMP about how grading can be adjusted to reflect pandemic.

. @NickGibbUK adds that saw tooth cannot really be used to adjust for disparities within the cohort, and that this worries him hugely #edselctte

Jonathan Gullis MP says he fears there will not be "sufficient time" to cover breadth and depth of exam curriculum. @NickGibbUK says changes to assessment already announced will give rise to more teaching time #edselctte

Jonathan Gullis MP asks if we are definitely ruling out CAGs being used next year in "any capacity"? "I'd say to schools not to preempt what they think we might announce later in this autumn term," @NickGibbUK says.

What is the govt's back-up plan for students isolating on the day of the exam? Lucy Smith, @educationgovuk director general for Covid-19 response and school recovery, says "there will be things we can do through timetabling" #edselctte

For example, "if we can space really important exams two weeks apart, we think that helps", Smith says #edselctte

. @halfon4harlowMP says given @NickGibbUK is so passionate about standards, why does he seem to be 'turning a blind eye' to patchy online provision during the pandemic? #edselctte

. @NickGibbUK says this is why government issued directive on online learning and that they are working to support and monitor schools in their remote provision. @Ofstednews will be a 'candid friend' in this matter #edselctte

. @KimJohnsonMP asks @NickGibbUK about number of laptops which have actually reached pupils through the government's scheme. He says they are 'determined' that any pupils who do not have access to laptops can order one and that since Sept 100,000 have been delivered #edselctte

Tom Hunt asks: Will the quality of online learning be formally part of any Ofsted inspection?
@NickGibbUK: they will be looking at the quality of education once inspections start, and this includes the quality of education that students receive while self-isolating #edseleccte

Asked who will be responsible to assess the performance of tutors in the National Tutoring Programme, @NickGibbUK says [the programme] will be evaluated with quantitative and qualitative methods but as for the quality of tutors, that’s something the EEF is responsible for.

Asked whether the government will help schools cover extra costs schools are incurring for Covid safety, Gibb says schools are now in the new three-year funding settlement, "so we expect schools to use that funding to fund the extra costs."

. @NickGibbUK says he was 'very moved' by @MarcusRashford's letter on child poverty.
He says that Universal Credit should be helping families to deal with the pandemic financial difficulties.

. @halfon4harlowMP asks @NickGibbUK to make clear that all that £350m of the NTP will be spent this year.
Gibb says he will write to the committee about those figures at a later stage. #edselctte