Estelle Morris and the truth about the great A-level fiasco

Estelle Morris and Sir William Stubbs would probably be breathing a sigh of relief today if they were still in office. The number of students switching courses or winning a university place because of the A-level fiasco has been confirmed as just 24.

The figure is a far cry from the 90,000 or so candidates who had units of their A-levels rechecked for regrading as a result of the recommendations of the independent inquiry into the affair conducted by Mike Tomlinson, the former chief schools inspector.

The question is therefore being asked in education circles: was this summer's débâcle a storm in a teacup? Tony Higgins, the chief executive of the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, is suggesting it was. The answer is both yes and no. On the one hand, there has to be a great sense of relief at the small number of students whose future was affected by the marking of this summer's examinations. On the other, it has to be admitted that the Tomlinson inquiry did unearth flaws in the way the new system of A-levels – AS-levels in the first year of the sixth form followed by A2 units in the second – was introduced. In particular, it highlighted the lack of understanding between exam boards, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) – the exams watchdog – and individual teachers in schools as to the standards expected in the exam. As a result of the furore that followed, it has to be hoped this will be corrected in time for next year's exams.

So did the former Secretary of State for Education and chairman of the QCA both have to go as a result of what happened? The answer is that it would have been difficult for them to work together, as relations reached such a low ebb during the Tomlinson inquiry that Sir William accused Ms Morris of improper conduct and her aides of making him a "scapegoat".

Moreover, Ms Morris cited the growing pressure of a number of issues and the fact that she felt she had not done the job as well as she would have wanted to as the reasons for her decision to resign from the post. We cannot turn the clock back, and in Charles Clarke and Ken Boston, the new chief executive of the QCA, we have two robust replacements.