The original article requires translation.
On Friday, the government announced that the Swedish National Agency for Education will stop the digital national exams in the coming years – they will be written on paper until the new grading system is introduced in 2028.
In connection with the announcement, the Swedish National Agency for Education published a review of its work on the digitalization of the exams, carried out by an external auditing firm.
The report is an obituary for the project that cost nearly one billion kronor and took seven years to implement.
70,000 documents
Azet has reviewed 7,000 of the total 70,000 documents relating to the project, and interviewed employees within the Swedish National Agency for Education.
The conclusions include:
The National Agency for Education has lacked coordination – in total, between 150 and 200 interventions have been made within the project in different parts of the building. But without anyone having overall control.
The view on the project and the goals of digital exams has spread internally.
The agency is described as "five agencies in one", where there has been a lack of communication between different departments and project groups.
Employees state that it has been difficult to get a hearing for criticisms related to, among other things, the purchased system's capacity to handle large numbers of users simultaneously, and that the costs are too high for the schools.
Time consumption has been prioritized, ahead of quality and cost.
The feedback to the government has been more positive than reality warrants.
There is a difference between what users demand and what the Swedish National Agency for Education has offered.
“Not good enough”
Department head Maria Weståker responds to email:
"We have not been good enough at translating the recommendations from previous follow-ups and evaluations into concrete activities. There is still important work to be done there."
"Not least when it comes to the dialogue with the school system, when it comes to testing activities, and creating a user-friendly and stable testing platform that works with teachers and principals. We have significant development work to do there," Weståker writes.
Recommendation: Secure service
Azet recommends that the Swedish National Agency for Education next time procure a service that delivers what users need, and that is secure.
"Of course, it has been and will be important in future procurement with requirements for user-friendliness and that the supplier has expertise in functionality and security, which the report very clearly highlights the need for. Then it is our responsibility to ensure that the requirements are met," says department head Maria Weståker in an email response to Vi Lärare.
And also writes that the mission is complex, not least because of Sweden's decentralized school system.
"All school principals have different IT environments. It has taken me time as a relatively new department head to get used to the work, but it was clear to me after the practice test and after Azet's review that a re-examination is necessary," writes Maria Weståker.
The obstacles on the road
But Azet also notes that the Swedish National Agency for Education has encountered obstacles along the way.
Among other things, the EU ruling that forced the provider SoNet to move servers from the US to Europe in 2020.
But also that the change of government in 2022 meant a stricter view of digitalization, and a change in attitude towards the mission.
During the course of the assignment, the Swedish National Agency for Education has received six government decisions regarding changes.
Azet's recommendations include that when procuring new services, the National Agency for Education ensures that the supplier has the ability to handle 150,000 users simultaneously in its solution, and that this can be done without leaks.
According to Azet's report, the government has not received an accurate picture of the situation.
The report states that information about the shortcomings has not reached the government. What do you say about that?
"We are many employees and managers at the Swedish National Agency for Education who have invested a lot of time and commitment to making digital national exams work. There has probably been an optimistic spirit about really delivering on the government's mission. It is reasonable to believe that this optimism has been reflected in the feedback," writes Maria Weståker.
"Big failure"
Ultimately, the government is responsible for the mission.
Lotta Edholm, Minister of Upper Secondary Education, Higher Education and Research (L) responds to Vi Lärare by email:
How come, despite so many testimonies, including from our readers, it took so long to put a stop to it?
"The Ministry of Education has been in constant contact with the Swedish National Agency for Education during the work. However, after the latest tests, it became clear that a major overhaul of the issue is needed. School staff and students deserve better than the jerkiness and unpredictability that has been the case in recent years. The focus will therefore be on the national tests being held analogously, i.e. paper tests, all the way until a new grading system is introduced," writes Lotta Edholm.
You tell Ekot that you can't say it's like throwing tax money down the drain. I don't think the teachers agree. What do you want to say to them?
"It is clear that it is a major failure and I completely understand the frustration that many principals and teachers feel. I share it and truly regret the situation that has arisen. It is certainly an extensive and complex assignment that the Swedish National Agency for Education has been given, but it is obvious that several wrong choices have been made since 2017 and the assignment has, as I said, failed. At the same time, the investments have not been in vain. Much of the work that has been done and the lessons learned will be useful in the future, writes Edholm.