Problem with written test – Error logging in – NRK Nordland

As secondary school students across the country sat their Norwegian main subject exams today, there was a problem.

It took the Norwegian Directorate of Education more than an hour to resolve the problems on its websites. Then most people can start the exam.

But challenges continued in Møre and Romsdal.

The district council had local network issues which meant students could not go online.

– We have now received information from Udir that the exam has been cancelled, Karian T., Capacity Manager of More and Romsdal County Municipality. Flovikholm says.

Flovikholm in Møre og Romsdal says that those who have started the exam can finish it if they want, but they can apply for a distribution later.

But it is canceled for the uninitiated.

– Being a private sector, we do our best to ensure that they pass the exam. They do not have the same opportunities as others to get exemption from diploma.

First meeting with exam

– Pernil Alnes, a student at Ålesund Secondary School, says that we waited three hours until the exam started because the internet was not working.

He explains that the internet is back and that it’s canceled for those who sit an hour into the exam and want it. She and her friend Marthe Fjeldahl-Jacobsen chose not to take the test.

– Fjeldahl-Jacobsen says that it was difficult to start the exam, so it’s good that we were able to finish. It was her first choice.

– It’s not what I wanted. I noticed that it was getting hard to start and thought this would not have happened if I had let it start right away.

Lina Krugel and Jenny Bjergvik also opted out.

– The task comes after three hours, but by then we are already very tired. It’s a bad start, so to speak, Bjergvik says.

They were ready for their first test, and it was disappointing that the method failed.

– We were a little worried because it was the first time we went to the exam, says Krugel.

– This is incredibly disappointing. This is our first selection, we are very excited and we are preparing ourselves, says Bjergvik. She says you have a bad feeling.

Can no longer be cancelled

Wigan County Council also asked for an assessment on whether to scrap the exam, writes VG.

– We can confirm that Vigen County Council has asked the Directorate of Education to assess whether the exam should be cancelled, writes Vigen County Council, Paul Wixland’s newspaper.

The Directorate of Education informs NTB that in the current situation, exams will not be canceled in places other than Møre and Romsdal. They apologize for the trouble.

The directorate says Mor and Romsdal have problems with the local network and are therefore in a special position. The problems the Directorate of Education had – and across the country – were resolved on Monday morning.

– We understand that it is difficult for students to start their exams because of this problem. Morten Rosenkvist, director at the Directorate of Education, told NTB.

They say there are large and complex technical systems that have been tested in advance. Then everything worked, but on Monday an unexpected technical error occurred.

– The directorate informed that all the students who started the examination late will be given extra time to complete it.

– Weak faith in fully digital exams

– It is unfortunate that the students had to experience stress in that way. Also what did the students do on this day as the exam will be more. This has weakened confidence in purely digital exams. The lack of a plan B is reprehensible.

So says Ole Reinlund, Principal of Ålesund Secondary School. He says the students are tired after waiting for hours.

– Since so much time had passed, it was clear to many of us that the exam should be cancelled.

The exam problem occurred last week when Wisma Inschool had extensive operational problems. Students need to login to find out which subject they are going to appear in.

Norwegian Education Association: – Concern

Copies of assignments should not have been sent to schools in advance. The exam is available only in full digital version through online portal Wisma.

The education union in Bodo, head union representative Katrin Kummernes, has called for an alternative plan to hold the exam.

– Worrying that no backup of any kind is scheduled. For students in a new and very important situation, that confusion causes unnecessary stress. I hope all the students, despite the difficulty, were able to do their best. Kummernes writes to NRK that they should have avoided the problem with the system.

Allow extra time

The Directorate of Education is working to resolve the error and announced at 10.20 that the issue with login has now been resolved. By then the exam day lasted for one hour and 20 minutes.

– Majority of the candidates now have access to the activation method. Some candidates may still experience instability for a short period of time, but will not lose any of their jobs as a result, the Norwegian Directorate of Education says on its website.

Fixed problem accessing product section.

– Candidates affected by the error will be given extra time for the exam, writes Communications Manager Anneleen Swingen in an email to NRK.

NRK has sent several questions to the Directorate of Education in this regard but there is no response yet.

This has affected the students

At Brønnøysund Secondary School, the principal experienced that half the students could not log in.

– It’s the big exam day. It’s a serious matter, says Principal Runhild Geldas.

This applies to VG3 students who have taken a Norwegian main subject and a Norwegian VG2 vocational subject. Students received an error message while logging in.

– The first students arrived at half past eight and the exam was to start at nine.

The Headmaster was also not fully satisfied with the information received from the Directorate of Education about the problems only at 09.30.

– They may have left a little earlier. At first we thought we had the problems, says Keldas.

Chief Minister Kejeldas fears that this will affect students appearing for the first exam.

– It does something to your stress level and that can affect your performance.

– Want to postpone the exam?

– It’s hard for me to comment, but UTIR should have a plan for auditing here, some students are really feeling the stress of not being able to start as planned. I hope the auditors get the information.

Secondary school students were also affected

In Bergen, students at the secondary school were preparing for a written exam in English tomorrow.

– The students are waiting. They’ve never experienced this before and don’t know what they’re getting into, says Einar Schintveit, principal of the Kirkjegrinsen school.

Skintveit says there is no crisis at the moment, but it does lead to additional stress for students.

– It is clear that the less time they have to prepare, the more stress there is. From 9 am to 2 pm, students spend time in school to prepare for their first exam. Also, you can prepare from the comfort of your own home till the exam takes place at 9 am tomorrow.

– No crisis yet, but clearly it will be exciting to see what happens when everyone logs in tomorrow. So saying it might work doesn’t help.

– Total crisis

By At Bø ungdomsskole in Telemark, both students and teachers are having problems accessing preparation materials in English for tomorrow’s exam.

The material was supposed to be available from 9 am, but after an hour only 6 out of 27 students entered, says teacher Vipak Herlo Thomson.

– We now have a student computer connected to a smartboard in the classroom. We review everything together so we’re sure everyone can see and read.

The author feels that it is very unfortunate that problems arise.

– I think it’s an absolute crisis. When it’s such an important day for students, you have to double and triple check that everything is working.

Thompson believes that part of the problems could have been avoided if paper versions and digital files had been sent to editors in advance.