Gavin Williamson:
The system we have built for establishing grades is robust, fair and protects the interests of students
Istill remember that nerve-racking morning, heading off to my sixth form college in Scarborough to get my A-level results, wondering if I would get the grades I needed. Results day is an educational rite of passage, a life-defining moment, a milestone that marks the culmination of years of hard work, and this year it’s no different for the hundreds of thousands of students receiving their grades this morning.
Although Covid has caused the cancellation of exams and has overshadowed the annual celebration of results day, the vast majority of students will be able to continue with their dreams of a place at university, an apprenticeship or training course, or starting a business or getting a job.
The exceptional circumstances of the pandemic meant exams could not go ahead, so the exams regulator, Ofqual, had to develop a fair method for calculating grades to make sure young people could progress to the next stage of their lives. However, I am well aware that there has been a great deal of anxiety about this year’s grading system. Young people are understandably worried about whether the grades given will be a just reflection of their abilities and will mirror those likely to have been awarded if the exams had taken place.
I would like to reassure everyone who is waiting for grades that the system is robust and fair. The grades have been based on what teachers estimated their students would have achieved in exams, because they know their pupils better than anyone.
However, there will be variation between how schools and colleges have estimated these grades, so we had to make sure that the national picture is not vastly different from previous years by standardising grades.
If we didn’t, we would have seen them shoot up, which would devalue the results for the class of 2020 and would clearly be unfair on the classes of 2019 and 2021. But worse than that, it would mean that students this year would lose out twice over – both in their education and their future prospects.
Inevitably, some students will feel they would have done better had they sat their exams, and a small minority who have been home-educated or who studied independently will not receive any grades at all.
As Education Secretary I will not hesitate to act in the best interests of pupils and students, and that’s why I’ve introduced the “triple lock” to ensure confidence and fairness in the system. This means that students will be able to accept their calculated grade, appeal to receive a valid mock result or sit exams this autumn.
If students want to use a valid mock result they will use the appeals process and will need to tell their school or college, which will then provide the necessary evidence to their exam board. Schools and colleges will also be able to appeal if they believe their historic data does not reflect the ability of their current students – that may be because they have experienced a recent change in leadership or because they have one or a number of exceptional students.
All three grades will hold exactly the same value with universities, colleges and employers, and similar
Gavin Williamson on Twitter @ Gavinwilliamson; read more at telegraph.co.uk/ opinion arrangements, if necessary, will apply to vocational and technical qualifications. In the event that students want to appeal their grades, we have asked universities to hold places open for them until September 7 and I know that exam boards will do everything they can to conclude appeals in good time.
If students want to sit an exam this autumn, all subjects will be available in GCSES, AS and A-levels for those who could not get a grade in the summer or who want to try and improve on grades they have been given. The Government has earmarked £30 million to cover the costs of running exams this autumn so schools and colleges get extra logistical support with venues, invigilators and additional fees.
Whatever grades they receive, I want to say congratulations to all our students, for getting through this extraordinary year. I wish them all well in the next stage of their lives, whatever that may be. The class of 2020 is not going to lose out because of Covid-19, and their futures are going to be as full of promise as those in every other year.
Gavin Williamson is the Secretary of State for Education