Exam regulator Ofqual chiefs had no prior education experience

A jazz-loving ex-journalist who flunked his A-Levels and a career civil servant with no previous education experience: Calls for six-figure figures behind Ofqual exams shambles to quit Chairman Roger Taylor is a former journalist turned medical businessman Sally Collier is a career civil service but had not worked in education before Both were appointed in … Read more

University admissions are plunged into fresh chaos by major exam U-turn

University admissions departments now face a ‘major headache’ amid the chaos of a Government U-turn on the way A-level results are awarded – and the scrapping of a temporary cap on how many students they can accept.    English universities had only been allowed to recruit 5% more UK students than their targets this year in … Read more

Students mock government’s exam U-turn on social media

Delighted students take to social media to mock government’s ’embarrassing’ exam U-turn after Ofqual announces A levels AND GCSEs will now be based on teachers’ assessments One meme shows Homer Simpson disappearing into a hedge and a stuck car Another shows Leonardo DiCaprio saying: ‘We did it guys even an apology too’ Boris Johnson interrupted … Read more

Delighted students take to social media to mock government’s ’embarrassing’ exam U-turn

Delighted students take to social media to mock government’s ’embarrassing’ exam U-turn after Ofqual announces A levels AND GCSEs will now be based on teachers’ assessments One meme shows Homer Simpson disappearing into a hedge and a stuck car Another shows Leonardo DiCaprio saying: ‘We did it guys even an apology too’ Boris Johnson interrupted … Read more

Will GCSE results be delayed? As exam fiasco plumbs new depths, top Tories call for postponement

Boris Johnson was last night facing calls to delay this week’s GCSE results as the exam fiasco worsened. He is facing growing anger from his own party over the ‘huge mess’ surrounding the A-level results of millions of teenagers. Lord Baker, who introduced the GCSE system, said Thursday’s results announcement should be delayed by two … Read more

Now the ARMY is under fire over exam chaos after 100 junior soldiers got the wrong results

Now the ARMY is under fire over exam chaos after clerical errors led to more than 100 junior soldiers getting the wrong results in their promotion tests The solders who received incorrect results are in the Royal Logistic Corps (RLC)  Some soldiers were told they had failed when they had passed, and vice versa Error was only … Read more

Exam grades are in chaos, teachers are in despair, appeals are set for meltdown

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson issued a humiliating apology to millions of pupils last night – as fears grew of chaos in the A-level appeals process. A quarter of a million sixth-formers will get their results this morning after an 11th-hour change to the way grades are awarded. In an attempt to head off a rebellion … Read more

Exam chief defends marking system that could see 39% of pupils get lower marks than predicted

A-levels and GCSEs have been marked in ‘the fairest way’ says exam chief as he defends system that could see 39% of pupils get lower-than-predicted grades Roger Taylor said teachers’ predictions alone would ruin qualification credibility Combining predictions with statistical model is the ‘fairest’ way to award grades Similar system in Scotland saw thousands receive poorer … Read more

Denying exam grade appeals is like a ‘life sentence with no right of appeal’

Not allowing pupils the right to appeal GCSE or A-Level exam grades they think are unfair has been likened to imposing a ‘life sentence’. Students in England will receive their grades next week. They will be assessed using a statistical model after the pandemic halted the exam season. Ofqual, the exam regulator, is only allowing … Read more