How Entire Classes Of A-Level Pupils Had Their Results Downgraded
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One hundred thousand pupils across England awoke on Thursday to find their A-level results had been downgraded from the marks their teachers awarded them, with entire classes at some schools being marked down by at least one grade.
Following the cancellation of exams due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s A-level results were determined based on an algorithm that relies on grades submitted by teachers based on what they believed each student would have received if they had sat the exams – as well as the school’s past exam performance.
While the proportion of A-level entries that were awarded an A grade or higher has risen to all-time high, the downgrading of results has sparked anger, shock and dejection among pupils in the UK who have already suffered under extenuating circumstances with schools closed since March.
Nearly four in every 10 (39.1%) grades awarded on Thursday were lower than teachers’ predictions: 35.6% were adjusted down by one grade, while 3.3% were brought down by two and 0.2% by three grades.
In total, an estimated 280,000 A-level entries were affected by the process.
HuffPost UK has been made aware of at least one school in Yorkshire where an entire class of 21 pupils all saw their results lowered. Staff there were not allowed to speak to us.
But students from elsewhere in the country have opened up about their disappointment and feelings of betrayal.
Leah, from Hertfordshire, said every member of the philosophy A-level class at her secondary school sixth form had been downgraded by two grades.
“I’ve spoken to all my classmates,” she told HuffPost UK. “People who were predicted A*s got Bs. Everyone’s really upset.”
Today’s results came as a complete shock to her – she went from a predicted C to a U grade. “I’ve never got that grade before – I don’t even know where it came from.”
While her first choice...
