GCSE Results: What to expect and how the grading system will work
After months of anxious waiting, GCSE results day is finally approaching. For many pupils, this will be the most nerve-wracking day of their lives so far.
GCSE students across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire will collect their results the morning of Thursday, August 20, 2020 despite exams being cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
But, this results day is likely to be different for students across the Calendar region for many different reasons.
Here is all you need to know:
How do I get my GCSE results?
The results will be available on Thursday morning (20th August). Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, results day will follow a different process this year. Collection times may vary to adhere to social distancing measures. Usually, they can be collected from around 8am. It's best to check with your school in regards to what the specific plan is.
If you’re unable to go to collect your results, you can ask to receive them by post or email. You can also arrange for a relative or friend to pick up your results for you. They’ll need to take in a signed letter from you and a form of ID for themselves.
How are my GCSE results calculated?
All exams in 2020 were called off as the coronavirus lockdown forced schools to close. So initially results were calculated by a controversial algorithm, which used a school’s exam history to determine pupil’s grades.
Teachers were asked to rank pupils in order of best to worst predicted exam performance. These rankings were then sent to exam regulator Ofqual, which moderated them, taking into account each school’s previous exam performance.
However, when the A-level results came out last week 40% of student’s grades seemed to have been unfairly downgraded.
After widespread backlash, the government u-turned on this policy, and now GCSE pupils will be given either their Ofqual-moderated grades or their original teacher-predicted grades, depending on which is higher.
GCSE's are graded on a scale of 1-9, with one being the lowest and 9 being the highest. This year, there are specific no grade boundaries, as pupils are not receiving marks for individual papers.
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