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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

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Original poster

Coursework moderated from an A* to a C

178 replies

Fossie · 15/08/2019 16:16

DD lost out on uni place as her Product design coursework (50% of her grade) has dropped from a borderline A* (according to her school) to a C which changes her overall grade from an A to a C. How is this possible? The school and her teacher are ‘puzzled’. This has happened to all in her class so all are affected. Neither firm nor conditional will take her now. Any ideas how to challenge this?

OP posts:

Benjispruce · 15/08/2019 17:55

Surely the coursework shouldn't be marked by the teacher?

Benjispruce · 15/08/2019 17:57

That's a big drop Fossie are they looking into it?

Original poster

Fossie · 15/08/2019 18:02

Benjispruce the school said they were and would call today but they haven’t yet called me.

OP posts:

LolaSmiles · 15/08/2019 18:02

Benjispruce
It's totally annoying for the students concerned.
It's just also not that uncommon for there to be fluctuations. If staff start issuing grades to students for coursework it's unwise and risks undue upset on the part of students.

One thing I'd been told is that the board could tell which centres were marking to old boundaries /what got a mark last year /was it as good as so and so from last year rather than applying the mark scheme fresh each time.
Generally A Level coursework ought to have every piece internally moderated, remarked and agreed if staffing allpws That's what's happened at my last few centres. It means that staff challenge each other and justify the marks rather than one well intentioned teacher trying to push things through a little higher (which can happen in a team as well but it's not an ideal approach)

Benjispruce · 15/08/2019 18:03

I'd go in tomorrow but send an email to the head of 6th form too so they are aware.

Benjispruce · 15/08/2019 18:05

Yes I work in primary and that's what we do, in fact work is moderated by other schools in our area.
DD was aware it would be moderated but as teacher has said he couldn't fault her work and that she left nothing out, she was confident.

IgnoranceIsStrength · 15/08/2019 18:06

benjispruce it was put down to teacher error in relation to how the teacher interpreted the task and set it to us so we hadn't actually answered the question. I got 114 out of 120 on the exam part but with the U only achieved a C overall. Luckily was my surplus A level so did not affect my university choices

oneteen · 15/08/2019 18:06

Benjispruce - It's marked and moderated within the school and then externally moderated too.

Fossie - those results sound very much in line with what happened to my DD GCSE (it was a massive drop) and all she needed was one mark to get the A (obviously she was expecting an A*)

LizzieVereker · 15/08/2019 18:07

As a teacher and Examiner I agree with the comments above, the most common and likely situation is that the moderator who moderated a sample of your daughter’s cohort’s coursework decided that the teacher who originally marked the work had been overly generous. You can appeal just as you would for an exam paper mark, but the moderator’s marks are rarely changed, especially if it’s Edexcel or OCR. In my experience this is all too common in Product Design, the Board and teachers seem to be at odds all too often, which I’m afraid doesn’t help you, I know.

As a Mum, I can tell that a couple of years ago, my own son’s Business Studies controlled assessment was given full marks by his teacher (so notionally but obviously an A*. The moderator brought it down to a notional D grade, and he lost a place at really good 6th form as a result. The school appealed and his original mark was reinstated, which goes against all my other experience.

I’m really sorry that this has happened to your daughter, I hope you will appeal and get a good outcome.

Benjispruce · 15/08/2019 18:10

That is so unfair for the students. No special consideration? When my sister was sitting her O Levels, her RS teacher taught St Luke's gospel instead of St Mark. He only realised when the paper was turned over in the exam hall and was seen exiting the hall to vomit outside. The school was given special consideration and were marked on St Luke.

cantfindname · 15/08/2019 18:10

This is a bit outing so I am changing some non-vital details.

My child was the only one that took a particular subject to exam level, all the others dropped out along the way. She was taught by a very experienced teacher, old school, still wore a black gown etc. Teacher realised literally the week before the exam that she had been teaching the wrong syllabus for 2 whole years She then raided the stockroom and produced a former pupils work that had been graded as an A several years before. She gave that work to my child and even worse colluded with the exam invigilator and child took the work into the exam with her and was instructed to 'copy it and just change a few words'

Child refused and came home in a state of great anxiety. I phoned the Head who tried to tell me that such a thing could never happen. Sadly for him I was in possession of the former pupil's work and refused to hand it over as it was my only proof. I then contacted the LEA and told them the whole story. Head tried everything to get the papers back from me, including coming to my house and also to my mother's house asking her 'to reason with me' He even followed me to work and demanded them!

Anyway, it was all being investigated when the sudden announcement was made that 'Miss X is taking early retirement for health reasons' It seems that was their only way out of a potentially huge scandal.

Didn't help my child but sure made us feel a bit better about it.

TinklyLittleLaugh · 15/08/2019 18:12

DD’s mate had her art foundation final piece changed from a distinction to a pass after moderation. The teachers were outraged but it still stood.

ChloeDecker · 15/08/2019 18:12

To those immediately assuming the teacher has screwed up somehow-it is just as likely that the moderator may well have made mistakes or a teacher least, when it comes to judgement in subjects like these, as opposed to right or wrong answers, is off the mark. Especially to the poster above who mentioned in their scenario, that their teacher was spot on the year before.
Querying the moderator’s report and reasoning would be a step the school would have been scrutinising today and they can make a complaint if appropriate.

Yes, the teacher may have miss-marked but just wanted to point out that moderators get it wrong too (I have experienced this) with often very vague mark descriptors now from exam boards, that are open to interpretation.

derryrose · 15/08/2019 18:14

I teach DT product design and this is why I never ever tell the pupils what I have marked them as, as so often the moderator changed it. If the board was AQA I felt they were always moving the goalposts and what would have gotten an A a year or 2 before would not get same marks in latter years. That is why I moved exam boards 2 years ago. I got into many rows with them over coursework but got never get a resolution to how a piece of work that was the standard of the previous' years A was suddenly a C. Some of the technology specs are only in 1st or 2nd year of going through the new specification and if the teacher was teaching how they have always taught, they could have missed vital things that were changed to the new specification so this might be something you need to look into. I'm sorry your daughter got a shock today and hopefully she will get a course that suits her wi th the grades she has gotten x

ChloeDecker · 15/08/2019 18:16

moderator may well have made mistakes or a teacher least,

That should read, moderator may well have made mistakes or given alternative interpretations at least.. Sorry.

derryrose · 15/08/2019 18:17

Just saw you saying the coursework is worth 50% of course so possibly is AQA and this would be the first cohort through this new A level. I think this has come about from misinterpretation by the teacher as previously there would have been a piece submitted each year of the course and now it is all one piece.

LooseAtTheSeams · 15/08/2019 18:18

I agree Chloe - had an experience a few years back with an exam board knocking 3 marks off everyone's scripts for a controlled assessment because they thought one teacher had been a bit generous on one student's assessment! Really unfair because they even agreed with the band for the mark, just argued it should have been bottom of the band not upper end!

LolaSmiles · 15/08/2019 18:18

ChloeDecker
I don't think anyone has said the OP can't appeal it or raise it with the board. We're just saying how this sort of situation can occur.

If coursework is the same procedure as new exams though, it may not help the OP as 6 marks could keep the coursework in the highest band and review of marking is checking the criteria have been applied properly, not a full remark.

It could be the teacher being out with marking. It could be the teacher being led by what got speciifc marks the previous year. It could be moderator error. Its also worth being aware that 6 marks, whilst substantial could also be within a grade boundary and they've only noticed it because of the drop from A to A on the module sheet and they student has been told they've got an A.

The exams office should be their first port of call and hopefully this threadgivesthe OP lots of information.

Benjispruce · 15/08/2019 18:22

Thanks and thank god your son had his grade reinstated. History board is OCR.
School are appealing. it's tricky one because she got into her 1 st choice of Durham so no issue but her she feels so strongly about this as all 3 subjects 1-2 marks off.

ChloeDecker · 15/08/2019 18:24

I don't think anyone has said the OP can't appeal it or raise it with the board.

I didn’t say anything of the sort. I was responding to phrases like this:

sounds like the person teaching it has missed vital aspects of the criteria
and
the school has messed up somewhere with their marking

Catalicious · 15/08/2019 18:25

Happened to me! Grammar school, most of us predicted As in our Spanish A-Level. We then got Cs...meaning I missed out on my place at Oxford.

...I figure it all worked out for the best

Benjispruce · 15/08/2019 18:27

I have great faith in the teacher .He teaches both my DDs and knows his subject very well, they love his lessons. I feel for him actually because I know he will be feeling terrible too. Fingers are crossed for 2 marks extra!

LolaSmiles · 15/08/2019 18:28

Benjispruce
Marks can go down as well as up now, certainly that's the case in my subject. It's no longer the case that the higher of the two marks stood.

The boards clearly got fedup of English departments submitting remarks (usually upheld due to awful marking).

If she has what she wants to move forward then my gut instinct is to stay put and enjoy university.

Benjispruce · 15/08/2019 18:32

Yes I know they can go down.

LolaSmiles · 15/08/2019 18:34

That's ok. Someone I know got a shock when they ignored /weren't aware of that and the mark went down. My friend was on the receiving end of the complaint. It was on the school's form but they signed without reading

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