‘It’s not very fair or necessary’

Parents and children are anxious and confused about what constitutes a pass under the new grading system

They represent the biggest changes to GCSEs since the qualification began, but less a than a fifth of parents think this year’s new grading system is a “good idea”.

The 9-1 numerical grades – replacing A* to G – were introduced to signal that GCSEs had been reformed and toughened, and to offer better differentiation between pupils.

But a survey – of more than 1,000 parents in England – reveals that nearly two-thirds of those with children studying GCSEs do not support the numerical system.

Cate Summers shares their concerns: “I don’t understand why things have to keep being changed all the ...

‘No reason to find grades confusing’

Anyone confused about the new numerical GCSE grades has “not thought about it hard enough”, according to an Ofqual board member.

Barnaby Lenon, who is also chair of the Independent Schools Council, says: “There is no reason for anyone to say it’s confusing.

“People who say they are confused about the new grades have simply not thought about it hard enough. Those people have simply not sat down and worked it out. C equals 4, A equals 7.”

“If you can remember that, as a parent or a member of the public, then you have completely grasped everything you need to know about the reforms.”

In fact, Ofqual says only that “broadly the same proportion of students will get a grade 4 or above as would have got a grade C or above”.

And when the changes were announced in 2014, Glenys Stacey, then Ofqual’s chief regulator, stressed: “It is not right to say that a new grade 4 will equal a current grade C.”

While roughly the bottom two-thirds of pupils who would have got a C will now get a grade 4, the top third will get a grade 5.

The situation is further muddied by the government’s decision to make grade 4 a “standard pass” and grade 5 a “strong pass”.

Lenon says that schools should not worry: “What matters is what universities regard as being a pass. Universities generally are saying a 4 is a pass in the way a C was a pass.”

However, University College London and King’s College London have set grade 5s in maths and English GCSEs as minimum requirements.

Subscribe to get access to the content on this page.

If you are already a Tes/ Tes Scotland subscriber please log in with your username or email address to get full access to our back issues, CPD library and membership plus page.

Not a subscriber? Find out more about our subscription offers.

Subscribe now