Pupils just starting A2 at the school in Burntwood, Staffordshire, echo the concerns of thousands around the country who are floundering in the fallout of from the fiasco.

Eve Randle, 18, studying A-levels in chemistry, history and English literature, said: “It is worrying because you think, ‘I am going to work really hard but in the end am I going to get what I deserve?’.”

Martin Holmes, 17, who hopes to do a physiotherapy degree, is taking A-level history, PE and human biology. He said: “If the A-levels are re-graded and students take up their first-choice places, the courses I want to do may be oversubscribed next year.”

Sharon Broomhall, head of RE, said classroom morale was low: “Students starting A2 now have no confidence in the system. My tutor group is very demoralised.”

Teachers are confused and bewildered by the grades awarded to students taking this year’s A and AS-level exams. Straight A students were given a U in some papers for AS English and music.

Tim Boardman, head of sixth form, said there were problems with AQA’s final A2 English synoptic exam paper. However, this syllabus does not feature in the list produced by Mike Tomlinson which will be regraded.

Ten students were expected to achieve a couple of As through to Ds and Es. They all got Us and the highest grade awarded was a C. “I do not know what standards they were using for these papers to be a U,” Mr Boardman said. “Teachers now have a lack of confidence about telling students what to expect in terms of grades.”

There were also huge differences between expected and actual grades in an Edexcel music AS-level practical exam. High-fliers who were expected to achieve A, received Es.

Head Robert Newton said the exams controversy stemmed from a statistical approach to education that put a ceiling on continued improvement in results. “I hope we now start to put the breaks on the assessment juggernaut,” he said.

Opinion, 23