Portugal's National Exams Digital Grading Faces Technical Glitches and Misassignments

The Jury National Exams (Júri Nacional de Exames) announced that the digital classification of Portugal's national secondary exams is "in a recovery phase after technical difficulties" and that answer sheets will be distributed to teacher‑graders gradually from Monday. The grading deadline remains set for 10 July, with results to be posted by 14 July.

Reports have emerged of serious organisational errors: a deceased teacher was summoned to grade a physics‑chemistry exam, and other teachers were assigned to subjects they do not teach. The Federation of Teachers also warned of delays in granting access credentials to graders, particularly for the Portuguese language exam. The new system digitises hand‑written answer sheets so that teachers can mark them online, except for Geometry Descriptive A and Drawing A, which stay unchanged.

The education authorities emphasised that each exam code will retain the usual ten‑day grading period and urged schools to await further information. The controversy has sparked criticism from educators and school directors, who view the minister's steps as both bold and risky.