Portugal's secondary school exam correction chaos

Thousands of teachers in Portugal are unable to begin grading the newly digitised secondary school national exams, risking the July 14 posting of results. The Institute of Education, Quality and Evaluation (EduQA) reported technical problems with digitising and distributing exam papers, and the Ministry of Education has not provided a clear response.

The National Teachers' Federation (Fenprof) denounced the situation as "unacceptable," citing missing credentials, incomplete digital files, and the assignment of retirees and teachers outside their subjects to grading tasks. The National Exam Jury has postponed the correction timetable but kept the final deadline of July 10 for all grades.

The crisis highlights concerns over the readiness of the digital correction system and has prompted calls for accountability from the government, which promised cost savings but is now facing criticism for a perceived degradation of public service.