The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Policy on A-level mock exam appeals deferred
OUTCRY: Criteria for English students hoping to challenge their grades has been suspended
The exams regulator for England has dramatically suspended its criteria for students hoping to challenge their A-level grades on the basis of their results in mock exams.
In a brief statement, Ofqual said the policy was “being reviewed” by its board and that further information would be released “in due course”.
No reason for the decision was immediately available.
The move comes just hours after the body published its criteria for mock exam results to be considered as the basis of an appeal.
It threatened to plunge the A-level process into further disarray following an outcry from students after almost 40% of predicted grades were downgraded by the regulator’s “moderation” algorithm.
In a statement late on Saturday, an Ofqual spokesman said: “Earlier today we published information about mock exam results in appeals.
“This policy is being reviewed by the Ofqual board and further information will be published in due course.”
Labour has accused Education Secretary Gavin Williamson of backtracking on assurances given to students about the appeals process.
Mr Williamson gave a “triple lock” commitment that students could use the highest result out of their teacher’s predicted grade, their mock exam or sitting the actual exam in the autumn.
However, in its document, Ofqual said that if the mock result was higher than the teacher’s prediction, it was the teacher’s prediction which would count.
The regulator said while mock exams did not usually cover the full range of content, the assessments took into account a student’s performance across the whole course.
Shadow education secretary Kate Green said: “Gavin Williamson promised to give students a triple lock, but instead he left many devastated by unfair exam results, and now his commitment to give them another chance is rapidly unravelling,” she said.
“Having promised that students will be able to use a valid mock result, the reality is that many will not receive these grades even if they represent a student’s best result.
“The latest chaos is the inevitable consequence of this government’s
“Shambolic approach to exams... saw solutions dreamt up on the back of a cigarette packet SHADOW EDUCATION SECRETARY KATE GREEN
shambolic approach to exams, which saw solutions dreamt up on the back of a cigarette packet and announced barely a day before young people received their results.”
The latest setback comes as ministers were braced for a fresh backlash when GCSE results for England are announced on Thursday.
Like the A-level results, they will initially be based on teacher assessments and then “moderated” by the Ofqual algorithm to bring them in line with previous years’ results.
Mr Williamson has said the process was necessary to prevent “grade inflation” which would render the results worthless after actual exams had to be abandoned due to the coronavirus outbreak.