New A Levels – fairness is our priority
Wednesday, 02 June 2010 09:52
As 300,000 A Levels are being marked this summer Ofqual says fairness is the number one priority. With major changes to A Levels this year the examinations regulators for England, Wales and Northern Ireland have been working with Awarding Organisations to ensure that the grades they award are consistent and fair.
The Chair of Ofqual, Kathleen Tattersall, said “We must have an A Level system that is fair and consistent for all learners, past and present. Every year the regulators require A level examiners to make judgements informed, among other things, by relevant statsitical information. During the four years of preparation, we have agreed with all the awarding organisations a process which will make sure that this summer’s changes will be applied fairly. Details of the agreed approach have been on Ofqual's website for some time now and Ofqual has discussed them in detail with teachers and universities. This is a transparent process supported by all the awarding organisations."
Ofqual emphasises that the use of statistical reference material, adjusted to reflect the past performance of groups of candidates, is just one important part of the process to ensure that the grades awarded to candidates are fair and consistent. It has been used for many years and is especially important when changes are made to qualifications, such as this year’s A levels. In order for candidates to receive the grades their work merits, the regulators' guidance states that grade boundaries should be set using professional judgement, informed by the relevant technical and statistical evidence. All of the awarding organisations involved in delivering A levels have signed up to this approach.
During the summer Ofqual will be monitoring the awarding process and the outcomes so that people can be confident that results are a fair record of the candidates' achievements, are in line with those in previous years and have been awarded fairly across awarding organisations. Where the difference between the statistical reference points and the outcomes exceeds the agreed thresholds, Ofqual will seek an explanation and may then ask the awarding organisation to reconsider the grade boundaries. Any such requests will be based on the evidence and made in the interests of fairness and consistency.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
- The new A Level A* grade will be awarded to all candidates who achieve an A overall and who score 90 per cent or more of the available UMS marks in their A2 units
