There is some confusion over how grades will be awarded in the upcoming exam season, following the announcement that GCSE, AS and A level exams will not be going ahead this year. In short, teachers in England will be asked to assess students and reward them a grade, allowing them to progress to the next stage of Education. There will be a clear focus on what students have been taught as opposed to what they have missed. Teachers have been given guidance to help assist them in awarding students a fair and justified grade. They will take into account a range of evidence including:

Mock Exams
Coursework
Class Work
In-Class Tests and Essays

Exam boards are also providing teachers with some example questions and papers which they are encouraged to give students. All subjects are releasing optional assessments set by exam boards, but these are not legally required to be taken into account or used. There are clear guidelines as to what each grade boundary entails, allowing students and teachers to be aware of what level they are working at. The government is currently designing quality assurance methods to enable all exam grades to be awarded fairly.

Teachers will be required to submit grades to exam boards by Friday 18^th June 2021. Before the grade is confirmed, students will be told what evidence has been used to come to the conclusion that this grade is appropriate. At this point students will be able to put forward any mitigating circumstances they may think might have affected their grades.

If a student believes their grades are wrong, they have the right to appeal them. If this is the case the student first has to request the school checks for any errors. At this point if the student still believes their grade is incorrect the school will have to submit an appeal directly to the exam board. It is then in the exam board’s interest whether they provide an alternative grade based on the evidence they have been given. England’s exam board is Ofqual.

Results days for GCSE, AS and A level follow the week of Monday 9^th August 2021.

A level results day falls on Tuesday 10^th August 2021 for English students.

If students are unhappy with their teacher-assessed grades, there is an opportunity to sit an Autumn series exam, or to take a gap year and reapply to university in the following year, after completing exams next summer. At Crescent Tuition we will support all students regardless of circumstances and academic journey. We offer bespoke tuition tailored to every individual student to ensure that they are able to achieve their full potential and continue to the next stage of education.