I would not blame any student receiving their A-level results today for feeling hard done by. Their education has been disrupted by Covid and teacher strikes, and the A-levels they took were the first national exams they had encountered. But instead of receiving special consideration they have found themselves taking normal exams marked to pre-pandemic standards.
Not surprisingly, there has been the biggest fall in grades. Fifty thousand fewer A*s have been awarded this year than last, and that becomes a drop of 80,000 when A grades are taken into account as well.
The number getting straight A* for three A-levels has more than halved. Yet the return to normal exams and standards is actually good news, because students once more have a sound basis for decisions about their futures, and admissions officers and employers have a reliable means of telling applicants apart.
It is especially good news for boys, because teacher assessment favoured girls and with the return to exams boys have regained their lead in A*s.
Not such good news, however, for subjects where excellence is more a matter of opinion. While maths and the sciences have retained their high percentages of top grades, the subjective subjects such as media studies, drama, music, and the performing/expressive arts, which enjoyed a bonanza when the grades were decided by teachers, have been hit the hardest.
While the wildly over-generous grades given by teachers may have been a very pleasant surprise on results day, they have led to complacency and wrong decisions. Too many students have found themselves struggling at university and dropping out of their courses.
The universities have been in on the planned reduction and have adjusted offers accordingly. There is no denying that there is going to be a scramble for places, but competition from overseas students and deferrals has been exaggerated.
Although those receiving their A-levels results today might be worse off in terms of actual grades than those in the three years above them, they are really in a much better position to take sound decisions. And if Plan A does not come to fruition, maybe Plan B was the more appropriate all along.
