Trust in Predicted GCSE and A level grades

Trust in Predicted GCSE and A level grades

A short survey of pupils have been conducted to find out the feeling of the predicted exam grades.

Nearly half of the candidates who were involved in the survey say the predicted grades is a sensible reflection of their work over the time at school or college. (Link)

The short research was carried out by the High Education policy institute , which used a sample of 500 GCSE and A level candidates to ask them if they expect their predicted grades where going to be a truthly reflection of their grades. Over a quarter of the surveyed candidates thought the grades would be worse than they expected while 13 percent believed that the A level and GCSE predicted grades would be generous. While 14 percent felt unsure. We have blogged recently about why cancelling exams outright as they have was mostly a bad idea.

In a further twist, the University and college Union has lobbied for universities to guarantee that candidates for GCSEs and A levels can hold their university place while the candidate goes through the appeal process with the exam boards.

The report goes on to ak if the message around the coronovirus and exam cancellations has been clear. The results show over 70 percent feel the messaging has been clear.

More info can be found from the report found here.

Rachel Hewitt, Director of Policy and Advocacy at the Higher Education Policy Institute, said:

These results show universities are supporting students and applicants well through these challenging times. Despite having to scale up online provision very quickly, few students are dissatisfied with the offering from their institution. Both applicants and students feel they have had clear information around the pandemic.

On admissions, it is clear applicants need greater certainty about what will happen to their university places. It is essential this group, who have already lost out on the end of their school experience, are not disadvantaged from getting into the university of their choice. The data shows this is a concern for a significant minority of applicants. 

Despite all the uncertainty, much remains the same. Two-thirds of students still want the opportunity to complete their assessments from afar. The majority of applicants still intend to go to the same university as before the crisis. What’s more, many students are still living in their term-time residence, meaning they may be reliant on the support of their university and accommodation providers.

We feel the Government along with Ofqual are doing a reasonable job in around the GCSE and A level exam cancellation. If it was the right decision we will find out soon enough. Continue to follow with the Exam blog.