Having endured a tougher than usual final school year due to coronavirus disruptions, thousands of students in New South Wales have begun sitting their HSC exams.
The 2020 exams kicked off across the state on Tuesday with English, under COVID-19 safety measures, and are set to continue until 11 November.
Over the next three weeks, students will need to complete a health screening prior to entering an exam venue, wash their hands, cover coughs and sneezes and avoid touching their faces when inside.
They will also sit in a socially-distant fashion, and must stay at home, contact their school and get tested if they show COVID-19 symptoms.
“Now that it’s done, we're very happy,” Tayla Egribas, a student at JJ Cahill Memorial High School in the Sydney suburb of Mascot, told SBS News after sitting her first exam.
Year 12 student Tayla Egribas Source: SBS News
“The tables were set out so we had space, it was socially distanced, and overall, I felt pretty safe.”
From remote learning to cancellations of most normal rites of passage, 2020 has been tumultuous for school leavers across Australia.
“I've been looking forward to the last carnival, the last cross country, dressing up in silly costumes, especially the graduation,” Ms Egribas said.
“But we got none of that.”
“We didn’t even have a proper graduation, stuff like that, so it was a bit hard,” Aisha Ors, another Year 12 student at JJ Cahill, said.
Year 12 student Aisha Ors Source: SBS News
Paul Martin, CEO of the NSW Education Standards Authority, on Tuesday praised 2020’s crop of Year 12 students for their resilience and said there were plans in place should there be a new coronavirus outbreak linked to a school.
“Doing the HSC at any time is a difficult task. Doing it under the COVID emergency this year has been even more so,” he said.
“[But] schools are ready for alternative venues as necessary, so we think we're well prepared.”
NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell also offered praise to the class of 2020.
“All of NSW is right behind you over the next few weeks as you sit your exams,” she said on Tuesday.
“Of course we want you to study hard and do your best, but also take the time out to do the things you enjoy.”
Written exams for most other states will also begin over the next few weeks.
Students began their HSC exams on Tuesday under a raft of COVID-19 safety measures Source: SBS News
But coronavirus disruptions have been felt particularly hard in Victoria, where VCE exams will start next month, and by students with disability.
Matthew Harrison, of the Autism Intervention Program at the University of Melbourne, said remote learning has been particularly hard for students with disability.
"Their world absolutely fell apart," he said.
"They haven't been able to access their usual coping mechanisms [and] how schools respond to this in the next couple of weeks is really going to determine how these students go in their exams."
Around 73,000 students across 900 NSW schools will sit HSC exams in the coming weeks, with results available on 18 December.
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