Government U-turn - A-levels are now based just on teacher assessment

[SorrelBlackbeak]

www.bbc.co.uk/news

Just announced on the Beeb. All A levels and GCSEs based on teacher assessment.

Were the algorithm designers the same people who developed the track and trace app, the PPE procurement system, the NHS computer systems?

DS college has confirmed he is being put forward for three A grades on his A levels and all his mocks were at A grade. He is thrilled as had been originally awarded three B grades.

DH is a teacher. He's sitting here pretty gutted that he was so rigorous and followed the CAG guidelines to the letter, when he knows damn well that plenty of schools didn't.

Good.

apricotblossom kids expecting to get their UCAS predictions and they may get a nasty shock when they discover that their CAG was lower than their UCAS prediction
I've seen so much on here that indicates people are confusing UCAS predictions with CAGs.
Many teachers will give "aspirational" predictions for UCAS so the child can apply for the course they want. The CAG will have been more realistic.

apricot sorry, I misunderstood your post. Yes, i see what you mean. Not everyone realises the difference between a CAG and a predicted grade.

Fyzz quite.

@apricotblossom

He shouldn’t be gutted. He’s done what’s fair by his kids. If students are now coming out with A/Bs As their teachers inflated their grades and getting into uni courses they wouldn’t have got into they are going to struggle like hell to keep up and probably will
Drop out and loose lots of money.

So he’s helped his students continue on with the courses/choices what is best for them...

Not sure his kids' (fee paying) parents are going to see it like that.

@apricotblossom

DH is a teacher. He's sitting here pretty gutted that he was so rigorous and followed the CAG guidelines to the letter, when he knows damn well that plenty of schools didn't.

This is my concern too. While with the old system there will definitely have been a lot of kids who didn't get the grades they deserved, there will now be a lot more who get higher grades than they would ever have got if they had taken exams.

As the Scottish figures showed, some schools were far more likely to over-exaggerate grades than others - this u-turn now rewards those students whose teachers were less honest\overly generous (take your pick) and effectively penalises ones whose teachers were more rigourous.

@TheEmojiFormerlyKnownAsPrince

He’s just a knob. And I’m a teacher, so l know he is!

Yup (another teacher).

How can we trust them when they say schools are safe??!! You can't.

[quote OverTheRainbow88]@apricotblossom

He shouldn’t be gutted. He’s done what’s fair by his kids. If students are now coming out with A/Bs As their teachers inflated their grades and getting into uni courses they wouldn’t have got into they are going to struggle like hell to keep up and probably will
Drop out and loose lots of money.

So he’s helped his students continue on with the courses/choices what is best for them...[/quote]
But that's not the real issue - it's the children who would have got those places at that University who now don't, regardless of whether anyone drops out in six months time.

Well I’d rather a few get higher grades than they deserve than those from schools such as mine which got ridiculously low grades because of where they live.

I do t trust him, or any of them.

I’m 57 and l have NEVER known a government lie like this one. It’s just all made up shirt, and they don’t even care that people can see through it.

I never thought anyone could be worse than Thatcher, but as much as l despised here, l do t think she lied on this scale.

Doesn't this just massively increase competition for places though?
How will uni's honour all their offers as presumably they over offer.
Bit like an airline over selling all their seats as some don't turn up but for every flight on one day everyone does!
Inevitable though once NI and Scotland had u turned as it wpuld have unfairly disadvantaged some English/ welsh students.
But does cause it's own set of disadvantages.
Do kids generallt already know their teacher assessed marks?

Teacher estimates, that will work well for some schools I know.

How will this work for university places? Surely most places have been confirmed now based on the original grades. Do universities have to squeeze in everyone whose grades have increased now?

@apricotblossom

DH is a teacher. He's sitting here pretty gutted that he was so rigorous and followed the CAG guidelines to the letter, when he knows damn well that plenty of schools didn't.

@apricotblossom Absolutely.

Those kids will be shafted twice. Firstly because they won't get the inflated grades, and secondly because everyone will assume they have.

And this year 12s are going to find their university places squeezed because they can't fit them all in this year, so there will be fewer spaces next year.

It's another example of the government showing lack of leadership and only thinking about their votes. This should have been independent of the government.

I feel so desperately sorry for this year’s GCSE and A Level students (and next year’s as well!). I’m a primary school teacher (Y5) so my judgement is always the one used with internal and external moderations throughout the year.

It must be so confusing right now. I remember the build up to my results days and how overwhelmed and nervous I felt and that was a normal year. This year, they have been messed about so much and no one really knows what’s happening anymore.

CAGs aren't great for schools who were really strict on their calculations for courses with coursework and NEA, especially where they were a high percentage. One of DD's CAGs was lower than it ought to have been - it only looked at her moderated Year 13 mock - didn't take into account her NEA and coursework (60%) as it was incomplete and unmoderated (not due in til after Easter.) Another had a lower percent NEA which again wasn't included in her CAG. So it seems that for DD and her friends, their school has looked to have let them down too.

So Apricotblossom children who demonstrably disadvantaged (see the 19% downgrade on historic figures analysis put out by 6th Form college association) should continue to be disadvantaged because your husband "knows" (from a feeling in his waters????) that their teachers over graded them? Is that what you are suggesting? Or do the views of their parents not count because they didn't pay fees?

And not sure it will help DD, or many of DD's friends - bar getting a boost from high grades for their self confidence and well being after it all. Most were downgraded across the board, so lost their first place universities - and most of those are now full. I'm assuming that in popular courses which are now full nothing can be done.

DD is fortunately now feeling fine about her insurance university place and starting to feel settled.

But it really shouldn't have happened like this. Its been such a difficult time for these kids and then to have this shambles happens So so hard. I really feel for them all.

What happens to all the medical students who lost their places under the algorithm system? Surely those places will have been given away. Also those who had to accept their back up choices.

@Aragog

CAGs aren't great for schools who were really strict on their calculations for courses with coursework and NEA, especially where they were a high percentage. One of DD's CAGs was lower than it ought to have been - it only looked at her moderated Year 13 mock - didn't take into account her NEA and coursework (60%) as it was incomplete and unmoderated (not due in til after Easter.) Another had a lower percent NEA which again wasn't included in her CAG. So it seems that for DD and her friends, their school has looked to have let them down too.

Presumably though you can keep the highest grade so either the result you got last Thursday or the teacher assessment?

DH is a teacher. He's sitting here pretty gutted that he was so rigorous and followed the CAG guidelines to the letter, when he knows damn well that plenty of schools didn't.

This is the case for DD, especially for the courses with high percent NEA (as above) Her CAGs are below her predicted grades due to the coursework and NEA elements not being in there.

However, this is at least better than them doing nothing. At least she will get her CAGs rather than the downgraded ones - otherwise she'd be negatively affected twice over.

I'd rather some kids get higher grades this year than lots get even lower.