The government extended the closure of educational institutions until July 15 and cancelled all exams following a decision made by the meeting of interprovincial education ministers and the National Coordination Committee (NCC). Around 4.5 million students appear in board exams conducted by 29 educational boards across the country every year. The Higher Education Commission and universities will finalise standard operating procedures to deal with the exams issue. Now all the students of classes 9 and 11 from both public and private schools will be promoted without examinations, Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mehmood announced at a press conference in Islamabad. In a series of tweets summarising his presser, Mehmood said there will be no composite exams for these students next year. Provincial education minister Saeed Ghani said the examinations for matriculation and intermediate students will not be held this year and students will be promoted without exams, but a legislative change or an amendment will be required for the move. All Pakistan Private Schools Federation (APPSF) have rejected the federal government’s decision to extend the reopening date of schools until July 15, saying that it will be akin to the ‘economic murder’ of school owners, and also rejected the decision of canceling board exams. APPSF said there will be many shortcomings when the decision comes into effect. All Pakistan Private Schools Federation (APPSF) also demanded to refund the examination fee amount 25 billion rupees collected by the boards to the Parants and the students, due to cancellation of exams by the governments. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected educational systems worldwide, leading to the near-total closures of schools, universities and colleges. School closures in response to COVID-19 have shed light on various social and economic issues, including student debt, digital learning, food insecurity, and homelessness, as well as access to childcare, health care, housing, internet, and disability services. The impact was more severe for Students debt disadvantaged children and their families, causing interrupted learning, compromised nutrition, childcare problems, and consequent economic cost to families who could not work. In response to school closures, UNESCO recommended the use of distance learning programmes and open educational applications and platforms that schools and teachers can use to reach learners remotely and limit the disruption of education. Education systems around the world are working to react to the unexpected outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. As of 188 countries have taken measures to implement country-wide closures of education and learning institutions, be they kindergartens, schools, vocational training colleges or universities. An estimated 1.60 billion learners are off schools, which represent 91.3% of total enrolled learners in the world and an unprecedented situation in the history of education1. Moreover, about 63 million primary and secondary teachers have also been affected, and where ICT infrastructure and stable internet connection exists, are trying to transfer teaching and learning online. The government must issue a standard operating procedure (SOPs) to open schools on 1st June and take exams. Schools could run in two shifts – one from 7am to 10am and second from 12pm to 2pm by maintaining social distance in classes Given the prolonged and massive closure of school, university and other learning institution and a shift to remote learning in many countries in the world, a key question posed to policy- and decision- makers is how to manage timetabled assessments and exams – in particular those related to end-of-key levels, school leaving, university entrance exams and gateways for job, and how to end the school year smoothly. These are high-stakes exams and assessments, where, passing the test would allow the student entry into a higher grade or permission to graduate, and many of which are forth-coming as the current school or academic year ends in May and June in many countries. In most of the cases, these assessments are standardized high-stakes, high-accountability tests, and in some others also linked to teacher performance evaluation and school funding. They represent a sheer challenge for policy makers as the interruption of these examinations is delaying the decisions on student progression, certification, qualification and graduation, thus inducing critical implications on entry into higher education and the labour market, quality and equity of learning outcomes, and fairness in qualifications obtained, leading to lifelong consequences on the students and learners’ progression in life as well as a broader socio-economic impact on the economies and societies. Countries are adopting different strategies – in many cases a mix of them – to cope with the situation, including organizing exams with special arrangements, cancellation, postponement, rescheduling, going on-line exams and assessments, and introducing alternative approaches to exams and validation of learning. Unfortunately, in Pakistan the response government have received on tele-school was very discouraging. Due to the failure of tele-school project, now the government planed to launch a radio channel, exclusively focusing on students’ classes and introducing other technology-based initiatives. The situation with the Covid-19 outbreak is changing rapidly. Now government has decided to extend school closures into June till 15 July, making it impossible for many of our schools to hold education systems and examinations. Cambridge International has decided to cancel all examinations with students now being graded based on skills and knowledge gained in their respective courses as novel coronavirus outbreak brings the world to a standstill. On the other hand, as the U.S. debates when to bring children back into classrooms, phased-in reopenings have begun in numerous countries around the world. US President Donald Trump is also advocate to open schools country wide. Denmark eased its coronavirus lockdown in mid-April by reopening schools and day care centres, although concerns they might become breeding grounds for a second wave of cases convinced thousands of parents to keep their children at home. Teaching staff there are under instruction to keep social distancing in place between children and, with many school buildings staying closed, some teachers are taking pupils outside and writing with chalk on the playground instead of a blackboard. In Switzerland, children at Geneva s La Tour School had to adapt to new rituals, with parents dropping them off at a distance. Classrooms were half full to reduce crowding and desks spaced two metres apart. In the Netherlands, the Springplank school in the city of Den Bosch installed plastic shields around students desks and disinfectant gel dispensers at the doorways. The Canadian province of Quebec reopened some of its schools, as some parents and teachers expressed uncertainty over the move’s safety. The Ecole St-Gerard, in a Montreal suburb, opened with staff wearing visors and using hand sanitizer. United Kingdom also announced to open the schools from 1st June. Schools in Australia s biggest states, reopened but only allowing students to attend few day a week on a staggered basis. Israel reopened some schools this month but the move was boycotted by several municipalities and many parents who cited poor government preparation. Across France, primary school pupils sat at least a metre apart in small classes and listened to teachers in masks on their first day back after two months of home-schooling during the coronavirus lockdown. In Cyprus, health workers wearing personal protective equipment tested students for COVID-19 at a school in Nicosia after high schoolers were allowed to return beginning May 11. In Shanghai, students and staff alike were required to enter the school building via a thermal scanner when school reopened last week after three months of lockdown. The walls are papered with posters on measures to tackle the coronavirus and in the spotlessly clean school canteen, glass walls divide the tables, so only two students can eat together. Schools in many states of India and Bangladesh reopened by only allowing students to attend 3 day a week on a staggered basis. Kitted with masks and hand-cleaners, the first three grades of elementary school and the last two grades of high school were allowed back, redistributed in classes capped at 15 pupils to enforce social distancing. Examinations are continuing to take place in many places of the world. In the United Kingdom, sixth-year medical school students have just taken their exams online for the first time. Advanced Placement (AP)exams, which measure students’ mastery of content and skills in a specific subject and are used to obtain college credit in the United States, will be administered online this year in free-response format, with resources provided to students and administrators online. The CXC high school exams in the Caribbean are expected to be implemented in modified online and offline formats, with multiple choice assessments plus school-based assessments to determine final grades. In the United States, many U.S. universities are adjusting their admissions criteria to make such tests optional. Likewise, based on the student’s coursework and the established assessment expertise, rigor and quality control already built into the programmes. In Germany, secondary school-leaving exams will take place under strict hygiene and distance regulations. Depending on the specific state, exams have already taken place, have been postponed by a few weeks, or will be conducted on schedule. Although Norway has canceled all written exams for 10th grade students in junior high school and for students in all three years of high school. But the consequences of the cancellation are not expected to be large, as exams count for 20 percent of the final grade, while course participation counts for 80 percent. In Uttar Pradesh in India, students in grades 9,10, 11 and 12 will be promoted to the next grade by taking the exams. Czech Republic has introduced preparation for school-leaving examinations on TV. In Ireland, discussions are underway for the Leaving Certifications. Likewise in India, the government is working to revise the exam schedule as well as adjust the academic calendar. In China, the GaoKao university entrance examinations, which nearly 10 million students take per year, are rescheduled. In Colombia, state exams have also been rescheduled. In general, examinations are used to make decisions about an individual student’s progress through the education system, including the allocation of educational opportunities. To be fair to all students, they should be standardized – factors such as the content and format of the examination papers and tasks, the administration conditions, access to resources and any supporting materials, and analysis of results should be the same or equivalent for all students. Along with validity and reliability, fairness is important to maintain, as high-stakes decisions are made about students’ futures based on their results. Thus, bodies such as examination councils, boards, and ministries of education will need to address several key questions before determining how to proceed. If exams are cancelled or postponed beyond the scheduled date for high-stakes decisions, on what basis will decisions be made for allocating scarce resources, such as university spaces or scholarships, and how can transparency and fairness be preserved? On the other hand, if exams move to an online format, how can fair access be ensured for all students? What provisions will guarantee that students in remote or rural areas, those with disabilities, and those with no or low-quality access to the internet or to computers or tablets will be able to take the exam? It would be difficult for the examinations team to ensure that test security is maintained, and what mechanisms will prevent test manipulation or item leakage? Finally, how can students from different socioeconomic backgrounds prepare for the new format or delivery of exams in an equitable and fair way, given the disruption of classroom learning? Another problem is, if exams are replaced with teacher or expert-provided grades, what resources need to be delivered to teachers to ensure accurate and fair assessment and effective communication of what students know and can do, particularly in the context of distance learning. Understanding should prevail at times when students and their parents are concerned not only about their futures, but about their lives. A ray of hope can be seen in Korea, where COVID-19 seems to be better contained than in most countries, and where students are continuing to study and prepare for exams. The government must issue a standard operating procedure (SOPs) to open schools on 1st June and take exams. Schools could run in two shifts – one from 7am to 10am and second from 12pm to 2pm by maintaining social distance in classes. On the same pattern the government should hold board examinations by maintaining social distance. In these circumstances the closure of schools till July 15 would be an anti-education step and would result in permanent closure of 50 per cent of private schools and around one million people would lose their jobs. The government should also announce a relief package for private schools because 90pc of schools are working in rented buildings. Hopefully in coming weeks, as social distancing policies and responsive health systems make headway against the health emergency, students around the world can resume their studies, and the exams they have studied so hard for will take place at all. The writer is The President of All Pakistan Private Schools Federation and his mail ID is president@pakistanprivateschools.com