GCSE results in Kent and what to do if you don't get the grades you want?

Teenagers in Kent and Medway collecting GCSE results have been given the marks their teachers think they would have got should they have sat exams, as the fallout from results continues.

Ofqual and the Department for Education have awarded students receive teacher-assessed marks - also referred to as Centre Assessment Grades or CAGs - which is the result schools believe their pupils would have achieved should exams have gone ahead.

There has been much anger and confusion since A-level results were released, with the government forced into a major U-turn over the standardisation process it used to moderate results in place of official exams lost to coronavirus.

An estimated 40% of A-level students had their initial teacher assessments marked down by the central system, some by more than one grade, with higher-achieving pupils in lower performing schools amongst those said to be hardest hit. Learn more here about what to do if you didn't get the A-level results you wanted.

Subsequently, the Government and Ofqual jointly agreed to revert to teacher assessments of pupils (or CAG grades) with any pupil who in fact did get calculated a higher grade as a result of the algorithm having the option of using that mark instead.

For the fourth year running, GCSEs have been graded from 9 to 1 this year rather than A* to G and the pass rate has risen nationally from 70% in 2019 to 79% this summer. It's this anticipated rise in marks which forced an 11th hour postponement of BTec results as exam board Pearsons looks at re-grading to also reflect the uplift. These results are now expected next week.

But what options are there for pupils in Kent not getting the grades they had hoped for?

The exact nature of GCSE appeals still remain somewhat unclear but the initial 'triple lock' option of including a mock result as a key part of an appeal is believed to be no longer an option.

In other years students with a college or sixth-form school place pending could ask for a priority re-mark of their paper however with calculated grades this of course is not possible.

Instead, students are being advised to speak with their school, or the sixth form they wish to move onto, about the results alongside determining whether the Ofqual moderated marks put them in a better position to that judged by teachers.

An appeal process is also available for any student, A-level or GCSE, who thinks there may have been an error in the process itself and this can be raised by the school.

In a joint statement, Kent County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and Skills, Richard Long, and Corporate Director for Children, Young People and Education, Matt Dunkley, said: “As in any year we know there will be some pupils who did not receive the results they were hoping for and we would encourage these young people, and their parents or carers, to speak to their schools as soon as possible to find out what their options are."

For more family-related news from across the county visit www.mykentfamily.co.uk