Teenagers across the UK won't need to wait as long as usual for the arrival of their GCSE results, which have been graded in a different way this year.
Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, pupils have had to have unexpected time out of school when schools were forced to shut or classrooms needed to isolate after a positive case.
This resulted in summer exams being scrapped but instead, teenagers were graded on their performance in school, only during the months they were attending school which was not disrupted by Covid.
Teachers graded their pupils on their overall performance over the course of their two years of study in that specific subject.
The grades selected by teachers were then moderated internally before being signed off by each Head of Department for each subject.
When will the results be released?
This year’s GCSE results will be released on Thursday 12th August, an earlier date than usual.
Students should be able to collect their results from 8.30am.
The earlier release of the GCSE results is to ensure students have enough time to appeal any grades that have been given to them by their teachers before their next step in September.
Results from their GCSEs will allow them to find out if they’ve been successful in gaining a place at either a sixth form or college for those that require certain grades for entry.
How can I get my results?
Some schools are now offering students to access their GCSE results online rather than the usual collection from school.
This is due to the pandemic, but collection from schools is also available.
Anyone collecting results from school will be given an envelope on arrival containing their list of results in each subject.
Any student who cannot make it to collect their results can ask a family member or close friend to collect them on their behalf.
Before doing this it must be confirmed in a signed letter, given to the school ahead of the results day.
Other schools may not be offering collection or student access on-site this year, so it is important to check with your school before the day.
Results can also be posted to anyone who is unable to collect them or who cannot view them online.
How do I appeal my results?
Anyone needing to appeal any of their GCSE results because they believe to be wrong or an error has been made must contact their school or institution first.
They will then ensure that all measures were correctly followed during the marking process, schools will not review their grades given.
If the school finds an error with the grading process, they will submit a revised grade to the exam board.
However, if the process by the school was followed correctly, they will contact the exam board to review the grades given.
As no exams have taken place this year, the examining board will instead look at the evidence provided by the school and will assess if they believe the grade given to be fair to the student’s work.
It is important to be aware that an appeal can cause your grades to go up or down.
After these processes have been conducted and if you still disagree with the decision of your grades you can apply for your case to be referred to Ofqual’s Exams Procedure Review Service (EPRS).
Here they will investigate further to see if the exam board has made an official error.
