GCSE and A-level grades to be more lenient in 2022
Pupils taking their GCSE, AS or A-level exams this year will receive more lenient grades to make up for the disruption caused by the Covid pandemic.
2022 will be the first year that national exams go ahead since before the pandemic.
In the previous two years, a ‘safety net’ was put into place where students were given more generous marks based on their in-class assessments.
This resulted in more students passing their GCSE or A-level exams and receiving higher grades.
This year, grade boundaries are predicted to be lower than before the pandemic, Ofqual (England’s exam regulator) revealed.
The Government has also released exam content to help pupils revise specific areas, but not enough that they can learn answers by heart.
This GCSE, AS and A-level content has been revealed for the majority of subjects, including maths, biology, chemistry and languages, BBC News revealed.
English literature, geography, history and ancient history will also include a greater choice of questions for students on exam papers.
Support materials will be provided in some exams as well, such as formulae sheets for maths.
Coursework-based assessments, present in subjects such as art and design, will not receive the same treatment, however.
Some students have expressed that they would be prouder of their results if they could take their exams, compared to previous years when their GCSE or A-level grades were merely estimated.
According the BBC, the National Association of Head Teachers’ senior policy adviser, Sarah Hannafin, said that the advance material “should now provide teachers and students some help on where to focus their teaching, revision and exam preparations”.
She added: “We need to remember this is new to teachers, so it will only be over the coming days that we learn whether they believe it will be sufficient to counter the levels of disruption which students have faced due to Covid.”
(Image: Anoushka P)
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