exams | Schools Week

Tell us why pupils’ exam grades will be withheld, heads tell Ofqual

Headteachers are demanding Ofqual come clean over why pupils might have exam grades “withheld” this summer. Ofqual’s chair and chief regulator last week warned results could be withheld should an exam board and school not agree on the teacher-assessed grade awarded. We have asked these questions, but have not been able to elicit any further […]

It turns out teachers aren’t being trusted on grades

On Thursday evening, Ofqual sneaked out a major and fundamental shift in the quality assurance process for this summer’s cancelled exams, almost literally under the cover of darkness. It came in a friendly, seemingly innocuous blog, rather than in proper revised guidance; it feels like a gut punch to teachers and schools, delivered by an […]

Oxbridge cuts offers to avoid another grade inflation admissions bulge

Oxbridge colleges have been forced to reduce the number of offers made this year by as much as 15 per cent in anticipation of expected grade inflation and its impact on admissions following the cancellation of A-level exams. Ministers are bracing for another year of higher grades after opting to cancel exams for the second […]

Ofqual chair: Exam grade evidence not a ‘topic for negotiation’ between teachers and students

Evidence used to issue exam grades this year will not be a “topic for negotiation” between teachers and students, the chair of Ofqual has said. Ian Bauckham, interim chair of the exams regulator, told the annual conference of the ASCL school leadership union today it would be “wrong and fundamentally unfair” for teachers’ decisions to […]

Exams 2021: Leaders fear pressure from parents with ‘pointy elbows and lawyer friends’

School leaders fear the switch to teacher assessment instead of exams this year will lead to pressure to adjust grades from parents with “pointy elbows and lawyer friends”. Richard Sheriff, president of the ASCL school leaders’ union and chief executive of the Red Kite Learning Trust, said he feared more privileged parents would try to […]

2022 exams may need similar ‘adaptations’ as those proposed for 2021, warns Ofqual chief

The government is considering making “adaptations” to exams in 2022 similar to those proposed for this summer’s assessments before they were cancelled, the head of regulator Ofqual has said. Simon Lebus, the interim chief regulator, told MPs this morning that the “thinking at the moment is about adaptations along the line that had been originally […]

Williamson pledges to back teachers ‘all the way’ on exam grading

The education secretary has pledged to back teachers “all the way” in their efforts to award exam grades this summer, and accepted he will share the responsibility if there is a backlash on results days. In an exclusive interview with Schools Week this week, Gavin Williamson said the government was putting its “confidence and faith […]

Covid-19 has hit exam years hardest, finds study of 62,000 pupils

Exam students have been hit hardest by Covid-19, a new report has found. A study by non-profit research organisation ImpactEd also found that those children who struggled the most were not always those previously identified as vulnerable. The study tracked things like wellbeing, anxiety and home learning in a group of more than 62,000 pupils […]

Boards back down on exam fees demand

Schools can now delay paying exam fees after boards offered concessions following a backlash about their plans to raise prices in a year when exams will not be held. A Schools Week investigation revealed last week that boards had increased their fees across GCSEs and A-levels between 2 and 5 per cent. They had pledged […]