Question re A level missed grades going to review of marks

Boysarefab · 2022-08-18T19:06:34+00:00

My DS missed his firm and insurance by a few marks so was rejected by his chosen uni's. Teachers suggested a priority remark on the two subjects. He has offers in clearing which we may accept one of but if after the review he gets the grades he needed for the original firm or insurance do they have to honour it? The dilemma is that we only have a couple of days to accept the clearing place and be also guaranteed accommodation and the review will take longer than that. Anyone have any experience of this and what happened. Thanks

Gingercatlover · 22/08/2024 21:10

Annparla · 22/08/2024 10:17

Great ! Which subject and which boards ?

AQA and politics.

Annparla · 22/08/2024 10:17

Great ! Which subject and which boards ?

Gingercatlover · 22/08/2024 10:07

@Annparla Just received outcome of our review with 11 extra marks awarded and an A instead of a B.

Annparla · 21/08/2024 23:55

We got maths but no change

Annparla · 19/08/2024 06:06

What about priority marking ?

Annparla · 17/08/2024 12:47

I can understand.. real shock to us as well
keeping our hopes and prayers
hope we get it soon. Please keep me updated

Gingercatlover · 17/08/2024 12:42

@Annparla We are the same, waiting to see if we can get the B up to an A with AQA, under priority review, uni are holding first choice place until 06/09.

We have been told 15 calendar days, but have heard on here it could be much sooner - fingers crossed.

MarchingFrogs · 17/08/2024 08:25

Annparla · 17/08/2024 05:44

Hi my son got his a level results- all Bs
he is a very bright kid and his mock and predictive scores were A* s
we are devastated
we applied for priority review for Cambridge, COE and AQA boards
the university has held place till 31st August
can anyone give me some information please
how long does this take in priority review

Up to 18 days for CIE and up to 15 for AQA, according to their websites.

Annparla · 17/08/2024 05:44

Hi my son got his a level results- all Bs
he is a very bright kid and his mock and predictive scores were A* s
we are devastated
we applied for priority review for Cambridge, COE and AQA boards
the university has held place till 31st August
can anyone give me some information please
how long does this take in priority review

ideasinindigo · 22/10/2022 08:32

WombatChocolate · 07/10/2022 17:42

Pleasingly, or disappointingly, Ive just heard if a student who missed the A* by one mark. Teachers looked at papers and were sure it was very meanly marked and out of tolerance, so out in for review. It was returned unchanged.

As the school were really sure it was wrong, they went to the next stage of challenge, which is pretty difficult to do. But happily, the mark has now been raised significantly and the A* achieved. When even a review doesn’t deliver the right result, one really worrries about the system.

This is a child who missed their Oxbridge place because of it. It’s too late now for this year, although in liklihood they will be offered a palace for next year as they already had an offer and have actually now met it.

The same happened with my dc. College appealed a review of marks stating errors in both the original marks and the review, and it's just come back as being upheld (apparently this is highly unusual). Now dc has the grade above for that A level. The college had also appealed a whole cohort for moderation errors in course work grade boundaries and won that, so dc had another A level grade raised! They had been rejected for their firm on results day and were devastated, but with any luck should get a place now on that course for next year. College have been brilliant chasing all this and supporting dc, and although the outcome has been favourable (2 months later) it raises so many questions about the entire A level exam system and its power over defining young people's futures.

ZandathePanda · 07/10/2022 17:54

…and I hope they offer them a palace as compensation!

ZandathePanda · 07/10/2022 17:52

@WombatChocolate Can I ask which subject it was?

WombatChocolate · 07/10/2022 17:42

Pleasingly, or disappointingly, Ive just heard if a student who missed the A* by one mark. Teachers looked at papers and were sure it was very meanly marked and out of tolerance, so out in for review. It was returned unchanged.

As the school were really sure it was wrong, they went to the next stage of challenge, which is pretty difficult to do. But happily, the mark has now been raised significantly and the A* achieved. When even a review doesn’t deliver the right result, one really worrries about the system.

This is a child who missed their Oxbridge place because of it. It’s too late now for this year, although in liklihood they will be offered a palace for next year as they already had an offer and have actually now met it.

ZandathePanda · 29/09/2022 15:50

Being an ex teacher, I know the time pressure examiners are under. So have a healthy (dis)trust! Part of me wishes universities started in January so the whole process didn’t seem so rushed.

tryingmybest13 · 29/09/2022 14:33

@ZandathePanda thanks - and I am SUPER pleased it worked out. It is really annoying that we have to fish for intel and insider knowledge all of the time: how many young people might have the wrong grades! That tolerance level is big. It would be like me being able to give a 2:2 for a 2:1 essay! Would never happen!

Our Dcs know what they wrote: we were right to trust their instincts I have never challenged anything like this in my life but so glad, like you, that I/our Dcs did!

ZandathePanda · 29/09/2022 14:27

tryingmybest13 · 24/08/2022 10:07

@ZandathePanda That made me laugh!

I have an old uni friend who is a team leader for AQA History and AQA politics. He will also be a reviewer for review of marking. These are his insights:

Because there is a tolerance level then a marker giving 15/20, 16/20 or 17/20 is seen as ok. This can bite those on the border of two grades but someone has to be on the border.

However, markers get approx 5-10 mins to mark a two hour script (within pay rates). For those who have 'internalised the standard' and/or are prepared to stand back from something a bit more novel and take more time then usually fine. But, if markers are rushed or less experienced and afraid of the seeding they do to check they are within the tolerance level, they tend to squeeze at the lowest mark. While marking schemes are reviewed and updated during standardisation, and while team leaders can support markers who are unsure, some markers don't ask for help and stick to the lowest tolerance level. Also, mark schemes say credit other valid ideas: but unless markers ask for support, then things can be missed/squeezed.

However, while all this means not many grades change via the review, some do if unreasonable academic judgement (outside of the tolerance level and where markers have not asked for help) occur: and sometimes this does happen. There have also been some rarer instances where input of marks has been a keyboard error and also where marks have not been inputted.

So glad I teach at a uni where we don't have this going on!

@tryingmybest13 on reflection, I just thought I would come back and thank you for the post you did as it encouraged Dd to ask for a review. There was one paper she did which she thought she’d ‘smashed’ and got the lowest marks. When she got it back, the marks seems to be 2-3 marks lower of every question but the review of that one came back very quickly unchanged. She was disheartened but I mentioned your comment. The other paper that went in, she thought was accurate until the first essay question where she got 40% on which she thought was worth so much more. She’s never got less than two thirds. So this paper went in and she gained 8 more marks. We think it must just have been this one answer.
Which fits in with what you said.

BriocheForBreakfast · 28/09/2022 20:08

Zott · 28/09/2022 17:48

@BriocheForBreakfast that’s great!

DS was A levels but I remember a couple of months after GCSE results we were given certificates by the school from each exam board so I would just check your certificates (and file as carefully as passports!) when they come and keep the remark email as proof should there be a mistake.

Thanks @zott. Sorry I wasn't very clear but DD was A levels too. It took the school over a week to advise us that a remark would be a good idea and then another week to advise on which paper.

I'll do as @ZandathePanda suggests and store the remark document.

ZandathePanda · 28/09/2022 19:45

The school email had an attachment with a letter from the exam board detailing the new result so I told Dd to store this safe (so she forwarded it to me)!

Zott · 28/09/2022 17:48

@BriocheForBreakfast that’s great!

DS was A levels but I remember a couple of months after GCSE results we were given certificates by the school from each exam board so I would just check your certificates (and file as carefully as passports!) when they come and keep the remark email as proof should there be a mistake.

BriocheForBreakfast · 28/09/2022 17:38

We had the same issue as @zott but DD was 1 mark off a B for Physics - I wish I'd found this thread on 19th August! 😁

Not one of the teachers were available on the week of results! We felt quite abandoned by school which is a shame as they had been great overall until this. I didn't get a reply from head of science until the day after GCSE results. Consequently, they didn't get hold of her papers and so they blindly recommended a remark of paper 3 based on one teacher's experience of having marked it but not seeing DD's actual paper. The result was that she lost 2 marks! So we asked for a remark of paper 2 as we knew that she wouldn't go down a grade but it did mean that she now needed 3 marks to move up a grade. I wasn't feeling confident of getting 3 extra marks at this stage. Well, it worked and she was awarded a B. Phew!

I'm now wondering if I can request school to reprint her results or if we use the remark email. What has everyone else done?

tryingmybest13 · 28/09/2022 11:53

We did! One mark off an A for Politics and two papers went for review and both went up -by quite a bit! Again wasn't needed for uni but it felt off and teacher said it was likely wrong. Glad others got justice, too!

ZandathePanda · 28/09/2022 10:48

That’s great Zott.
It would have been good for Dd to get the right grade to begin with but the validation now is nice too.

Zott · 28/09/2022 09:55

Yes! One mark off a B (extremely disappointed son who usually gets a high B or an A in this subject) the remark gave him a B but only just! Wasn’t needed for university but DS was pleased.

ZandathePanda · 28/09/2022 09:45

Did anyone else have a successful remark? One essay question was very low on a paper (never got as low before) Dd got back so we got a non priority review. Gained lots more marks to clearly go into an A*. Wasn’t needed for university but it was nice for her to get the recognition for herself.

tryingmybest13 · 01/09/2022 08:56

Just a quick post; AQA is all over the Press today for probable grading errors, including students being marked as absent when they were in exams. AQA have not got back reviews of marking for a lot of A level students awaiting uni places.