Last updated: 03/04/20
During these extraordinary times, many teachers, learners and families have been feeling uncertain and anxious about the closure of schools and the cancellation of exams this summer. We know this has been extremely unsettling, and it remains our overwhelming priority to support you throughout this unprecedented situation.
Since the Secretary of State announced that exams would not take place this summer we have been working around the clock with the Department for Education, Ofqual and the other exam boards to define the detail of how assessment will work.
Today, Ofqual has announced further information about how GCSEs, AS and A levels will be awarded this summer.
For this summer’s awards, schools and colleges are being asked to provide centre assessment grades for their students. These should be fair, objective and carefully considered judgements of the grades schools and colleges believe their students would have been most likely to achieve if they had sat their exams, and should take into account the full range of available evidence.
This unprecedented situation calls for an unprecedented approach. We welcome this decision and believe it is the best way to deliver fair results at this challenging time. It’s important that professional teacher judgements are taken into account, that a wide range of evidence is used and that there will be a clear appeals process. Students that prefer to sit a paper for certain qualifications later in the year will also have the opportunity to do so.
We also know, however, this update will prompt many questions. To help with this, Ofqual has a comprehensive series of questions and answers that represent the agreed procedures and arrangements to-date.
In the meantime, if you would like to speak to us directly, you can submit questions through our contact form or by calling +44 (0)344 463 2535.
Today’s update applies to GCSE, AS and A levels, Extended Project Qualifications (EPQ) and Advanced Extension Awards (AEA) in maths. We appreciate that many students will also be taking other general and vocational or technical qualifications. Ofqual is working urgently to develop an approach and we will update you as soon as we know more.
We remain committed to ensuring that all students internationally receive a result and a grade. As shared previously, we will award grades to international students using the same principles as for the UK GCSE and A level qualifications. Following today’s announcements by Ofqual, we are moving forward with further detailed work to confirm how the Ofqual principles announced will be applied to our international qualifications (International GCSEs, International AS Levels and International A Levels). We will continue to engage with our international stakeholders throughout this process, and we will share further details on this as soon as possible.
Thank you for your ongoing patience and support. We continue to work as quickly as possible and aim to provide you with further information after Easter.
Learners in schools, colleges and higher education across the UK have put in huge amounts of work to get to this point and we intend to ensure they achieve the grades they deserve to move to the next stage.
At times like these it’s important to look after ourselves physically and mentally. If you or your students are feeling stressed or anxious, take a look at the mindfulness and wellbeing support available to help you through this difficult time.
My thoughts and best wishes are with you all.
Sharon Hague,
Senior Vice President, Schools
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