A-level results 2018: Grade boundaries slightly down

Ofqual insists boundaries “relatively stable” despite small decrease on last year – but watchdog only provides data on reformed A-levels
16th August 2018, 9:47am

Grade boundaries of reformed A-levels have fallen slightly on last year, new analysis from Ofqual has revealed.

The exam regulator said it was “particularly difficult to compare reformed grade boundaries with the legacy qualification” because of the reduction of coursework, so “to compare like with like” had only looked at the boundaries for reformed A-levels, which were first awarded last summer.

“Overall, the grade boundaries for individual papers are relatively stable compared to last summer,” Ofqual said.

“At both grades A and E, a similar number of grade boundaries have increased as decreased.

“On average, the grade boundaries at grade A have changed by around a quarter of a raw mark, and the grade boundaries at grade E have changed by less than a quarter of a raw mark”.

In the A-levels Ofqual looked at, boundaries at grade A increased for 118 papers, stayed the same in 95 and decreased in 124, with an average mark change of -0.25.

For the grade boundaries at grade E, 110 papers saw an increase, 136 stayed the same and 91 decreased, with the average mark changing by -0.18.