One parent,who spoke anonymously to not identify their child,said discussion about the loophole began to appear on parent WhatsApp groups on Monday.
“Rumours started[on Tuesday] that people who were able to see their results were those who received an offer,” she said.
“It meant parents have been staying up all night,constantly refreshing the page to see the results like everyone else. This is causing intense anxiety for both children and parents.
“The Department of Education needs to provide us with an explanation. Some parents and students are celebrating already while many of us are worried and anxious. They’ve been tutoring for a long time just for this day,” she said,adding that the information had spread via in Chinese apps,study forum and chat groups.
Loading
Ros Wolfers,who runs Swot Shop tutoring at Baulkham Hills,in Sydney’s north-west,said limited places at the state’s selective schools – and an increase in applications – had led to intense competition and anxiety about results.
“I’m appalled but not surprised this happened because selective school results aren’t as transparent as they once were. It’s making parents more anxious,” she said.
“It’s seen as such a major prize if you can succeed,and parents are counting down the days until results are out.”
Australian Tutoring Association chief executive Mohan Dhall said more people are applying for entry for relatively fewer places in the system. Despite population growth,the number ofplaces in selective schools has remained the same.
“That engenders more and more behaviour like this to arise from that extreme competitiveness,” Dhall said.
“As soon as one person finds a way to access results it will spread like wildfire on social media.
“Any selective school coaching centre that criticises this behaviour might need to consider whether their business model encourages this.”
Several years ago,the department stopped publishing minimum entry scores for each selective school after wellbeing and privacy concerns were raised by students and parents.