Examination Appeals
examination appeals
The arrangements for awarding grades to students in summer 2021 includes internal and external quality assurance measures which aim to ensure that on results day students are issued with fair and consistent grades that have been objectively reached.
As a school we have endeavoured to keep pupils and parents informed at every stage through letters, emails, assemblies, the school newsletter and information events. Below briefly bullet points the actions taken to ensure that the grades awarded are fair and accurate for all of our pupils:
- A detailed Centre Assessed Grade policy was drafted and shared with all key Stage 4 and 5 teaching staff in March 2021.
- Assemblies were hosted to share the relevant content from this policy with pupils and parents/carers.
- Subjects submitted a curriculum coverage audit, assessment rationale and list of evidence they planned to use to award the final.
- A list of all pupils who were adversely affected above and beyond their peers was collated and continually updated. This was given consideration when finalising grades; however, the school must have evidence of a pupil’s ability to work at a particular grade.
- During the staff INSET day on 19th April 2021 time was allocated to the planning of the summer assessment process including standardisation and moderation plans. Where possible standardisation and moderation has taken place both in school and between schools.
- Each Subject submitted their plan for the assessment evidence they would use in each subject to the College Leadership Team by 30th April 2021. All assessment records were reviewed and any necessary alterations were made by 10th May 2021.
- A detailed Centre Assessed Grade policy was amended and a finalised version was sent JCQ (Joint Council for Qualifications) for review on 30th April, there was no alterations or amendments required.
- All subjects provided initial CAG grades by 28th May following the completion of assessments.
- In-school analysis of the results was carried out this included individual anomalies and historical patterns by subject and cohort.
- Quality assurance meetings were carried out for every qualification during the week beginning 7th June. These were attended by the Subject Lead and Ms Solani (Principal) and/or Mr Deane (Assistant Principal – KS4 Achievement and Standards).
- Pupils evidence files (physical and digital) were collated and physical evidence stored in a locked cabinet or cupboard which has highly limited access by the Examinations Officer.
- Final CAG grades were analysed by the Federation Executive Team on 10th June 2021 a formal meeting between Federation Executive Team including all Principals and the CEO was held on 11th June.
- The final CAG grades were submitted on 17th June.
- In the week beginning 24th June exam boards contacted the school to request evidence for at least 5 pupils’ evidence from 2 subjects at Year 11 and 1 subject at Year 13.
- Pupils will receive their results on 10th August (Yr13) or 12th August (Yr11) 2021.
- Once a pupil has received their results they have the right to appeal should they believe the grade provided is not accurate. There are two stages to an appeal outlined below, a stage 1 appeal must be submitted in advance of a stage 2 appeal.
When students are contacted regarding the outcome of a stage 1 appeal, the College will provide information on how to make a stage 2 appeal should you wish to. Stage 1 appeals must be submitted by 16th August 2021 for Year 13 and 3rd September for Year 11.
Following results day, the following link will be live: please click here to complete. Students will need their school log in for this (this is for security reasons; to avoid appeals being made on behalf of others).
process for appeals
When appealing, students must be aware that grades can go up, down, or stay the same. Any complaints regarding the award of grades should be made to JCQ (For further details see Customer Service Statement - JCQ Joint Council for Qualifications). A link to make a stage 1 appeal can be accessed in the link above (live from results day).
There are two stages to an appeal outlined below:
Stage one – Centre review (give details of deadlines etc)
- If a student feels their grade is wrong, they should speak to their school or college first to check if there was a mistake in determining or submitting the grade.
- If there was a mistake, schools and colleges can submit a revised grade to the exam board to consider.
Stage one appeals must be submitted by
- Monday 16th August 2021 for Year 13 priority appeals (direct impact on UCAS placement) and
- Friday 3rd September 2021 for Year 13 non-priority appeals and Year 11 Appeals.
Stage two – Exam board review
If schools and colleges don’t find a mistake but the student still believes that their grade is wrong, they can ask their school or college to submit a formal appeal to the exam board on their behalf.
Students can appeal if they believe any of the following applies:
- There was an error in the way the school or college followed or applied its procedure for determining their grade
- The school or college did not make a reasonable judgement when deciding which evidence to use to determine their grade
- The school or college did not make a reasonable judgement about their grade based on the evidence gathered
- If an appeal is submitted to an exam board, schools and colleges will need to supply the complete evidence in support of the student’s grade
Stage 2 appeal deadlines
- Priority appeals (for students applying to higher education who did not get their first choice, and wish to appeal an A-level or other Level 3 qualification result) must be submitted to the school from Tuesday 10th August 2021 until 0900 on Monday 23rd August 2021.
- All other appeals must be submitted to the school by Wednesday 15th September 2021 (non-priority appeals).
