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English GCSEs won't be regraded, says Ofqual | |
(35 minutes later) | |
England's exams regulator, Ofqual, has refused to order exam boards to regrade this summer's English GCSE in a row over this year's results. | |
Head teachers urged Ofqual to investigate when it was revealed that grade boundaries for the exams were changed part way through the year. | Head teachers urged Ofqual to investigate when it was revealed that grade boundaries for the exams were changed part way through the year. |
The regulator said the January papers were marked too leniently, but stood by the new June grade boundaries. | The regulator said the January papers were marked too leniently, but stood by the new June grade boundaries. |
Instead of regrading, pupils would be offered early resits, Ofqual said. | |
Heads claim those who sat the exam in June were put at an unfair disadvantage because of the changes. | |
Many pupils who were expecting a crucial C grade were given a D as a result of the grade boundary changes, they claim. | |
Ofqual chief executive Glenys Stacey said she had looked carefully at how the exam boards had managed the awarding of all GCSE qualifications this year. | |
She said: "People were particularly concerned about the June grade boundaries. | |
"We have found that examiners acted properly, and set the boundaries using their best professional judgement, taking into account all of the evidence available to them. | |
"The June boundaries have been properly set, and candidates' work properly graded. | |
"The issue is not the June, but the January boundaries. Again, examiners used their best judgement in setting these boundaries, but they had less data and information to work with." | |
Early resits | |
This was partly because fewer candidates sat the exam in January. Some 7% sat the unit causing concern in January, compared with 93% in June. | |
And because the exams were new qualifications, examiners could not rely so much on direct comparisons with the past, Ms Stacey added. | |
"As a result, those grade boundaries were set generously," she said. | |
Ofqual had thought carefully about what should be done, adding that its job was to ensure grades were comparable from one year to the next, said Ms Stacey. | |
The exam boards recognised the strength of feeling, she said, and would be offering early resits for students who sat the June units. | |
GCSE English grades at A* to C fell by 1.5%, but some schools saw much bigger falls. | GCSE English grades at A* to C fell by 1.5%, but some schools saw much bigger falls. |
The National Association of Head Teachers wrote to Education Secretary Michael Gove and the Ofqual chief last week to call for an inquiry. | |
Overall, this year's GCSE results showed the first fall in the A* to C grades since they were introduced. | |