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Original poster

GCSE review of marking (re-mark) - your experiences.

109 replies

LongIslandIcedSummer · 04/09/2019 21:20

Just got the results back of an OCR remark today. Up by 4 marks and therefore up a grade. Glad we asked! Waiting on another subject remark to come back.

Anyone else heard back on re-marks from this summer’s GCSE results?

OP posts:
clary · 18/09/2019 14:43

As I understand it, they just reimburse the paper that changes. Is there a reason for trying for a 7? Apart from Oxford and Cambridge, no uni AFAIK is asking for specific grades, and even with O and C it's just "majority 7 or above".

A 6 is fine to do A level in most schools IME. You don't have to do it, if you can't afford the cash I wouldn't. I speak from experience as I had one of DD's papers remarked two years ago and now I wonder why. If she had gone from A to A* everything now, post A levels, would still be the same.

I do if course see why people are looking at reviews to achieve a 4 or even a 5.

Chuffles · 18/09/2019 16:02

Thanks for the response. Yes, I accept that a 6 is good enough but he really hoped for a 7 (his target grade) and to be just a mark off was disappointing. Also, he's not sure about one of his current A level choices and is thinking of switching instead to history. A 7 might convince college more readily. We've plumped for just one paper to be reviewed - I'm willing to take a punt for £50, but not £150!

Tobeshared · 18/09/2019 17:37

Just got word back - dd has gone up 3 marks in AQA Eng lang- so she has gone from a 6 to a 7 - she wasn't too bothered about having it remarked but she's glad she did now!

user1471525753 · 18/09/2019 18:09

Chuffles -I'm an Exam Officer. If the grade changes, you don't pay for any of the papers. So if you put all 3 in and only one changes but that's enough to change the grade, you don't pay anything. If the marks for papers change but the grade stays the same you will have to pay for all 3.

Tobeshared · 18/09/2019 18:35

If the mark goes down - do you get a refund?

Witchend · 18/09/2019 18:49

user I think it's only the paper that takes you over the grade change you get it back, even if you go up in more than one paper.

So if you put in 3 papers to be remarked, needing 2 marks, and you go up 1 on papers A and B and stay the same on C, then you get the money back on paper B as that's the one that changed your grade, but not on the other two.
That's why people will often put the papers in one at a time.

Yes, I'm fairly certain you get the money back if you go down too.

user1471525753 · 18/09/2019 19:07

People put the papers in one at a time as one paper can go up a mark and another can go down, cancelling each other out if you put them in together. The teachers will look for anomalies between the marks awarded for individual papers and chose the ones where there is likely to be room for improvement. There are no fees to pay if the grade changes, regardless of how many papers you have remarked, or what happens with the marks on each paper.

coconuttelegraph · 18/09/2019 19:24

Tobeshared do you mean the mark or the grade? Unless things have changed you don't get a refund of the mark goes down but the grade stays the same.

Tobeshared · 18/09/2019 19:27

We could afford to take the gamble - but what about kids whose parents can't afford it or just don't care? I'm sure it's all been said before but the system is so bloody unfair.

nursiecat · 19/09/2019 19:19

My dd got a letter today informing her that her rs result had gone up from a grade 5 to a grade 6. She's happy but shocked as we didn't even know it was being re-marked!

Sewingbea · 20/09/2019 17:12

School paid for DD to have English language remarked as she was a mark off the grade boundary. We heard yesterday that she has gained four extra marks (four!!!) so has moved up a grade. Great relief all round and part of me feeling cross that all the upset in August might have been avoided with more accurate marking ...

WombatChocolate · 20/09/2019 17:43

These grades often do matter when students apply to uni. They might be oversubscribed so filter applicants based on X amount of GCSEs at 7 or above, for example.

O and C might say majority at 7 or above but the reality is statistically the vast majority getting offers have a profile of mostly 9s and 8s. Having the very best grades you can (and obviously if it goes up, you are totally entitled to that higher grade) is always a good thing. Deciding that a 6 is good enough because it got you onto the next stage is a bit short sighted and not taking account of how these things can matter later and build annoverall academic (or less academic) profile. If your DC isn't interested in competitive courses or places for uni it might not matter so much, but it is naieve (sp?) to think that all grades above a 5 count equally into the future.

I'm nit saying to randomly out in for remarks, but if grades are disappointing in terms of what the school thought and you can afford the expense, then go for it. All irrelevant now anyway as the deadline for remarks has passed.

mrsjg · 20/09/2019 20:51

DS got 5's for both English language and literature (AQA) which we were quite shocked. He was one mark off a 6 in literature so off it went for a remark. Got paper back and it was a 7. I wish we had insisted on getting his language paper rechecked too.

AQA what a joke!!

Ilikedampcake · 21/09/2019 02:17

Can I ask how long a remark usually takes? I submitted two for my DD she was a mark off a B for Biology and 2 marks off an A for music. I submitted both on Weds and we’ve had the results already. Both stay the same which is bad enough, but so fast?

MaggieHorseRustler · 21/09/2019 04:00

As a department we submitted and paid for anyone who was within 2 marks of a grade boundary (really need the progress 8 as well as the obvious benefits for students) we submitted 30 students and 8 have gone up a grade.
It was my favourite part of the year so far, calling the parents to tell them Smile.

MarchingFrogs · 21/09/2019 06:51

My dd got a letter today informing her that her rs result had gone up from a grade 5 to a grade 6. She's happy but shocked as we didn't even know it was being re-marked!

Schools have to have the signed consent of the student for a review of marking to be requested, because there is no grade protection if a lower mark means that a grade would be dropped (as was the previous system) She must have signed something.

Tobeshared · 21/09/2019 08:43

we submitted 30 students and 8 have gone up a grade. That's quite depressing that so many are being marked incorrectly - I have no faith in the marking at all.

nursiecat · 21/09/2019 09:06

Dd signed something before she sat all the exams, so we had no idea which papers were sent for re-mark. She didn't collect her results, maybe students were told about it then.

WombatChocolate · 21/09/2019 09:22

Schools should not be putting in for mearks without express permission from students and parents for individual papers AFTER marks are seen and discussed.

It is only ever possible to decide if to have a remark when you've seen the breakdown of marks for different papers. You need to know how close the boundaries above and below the marks are and where performance was stronger and weaker. Only with that knowledge can the school tell parents how likely an increase of grade or how big the risk of goi g down a grade is. Parents need to decide and make the final decision in full receipt of that information and bear the risk that always existsof grades dropping. If a school puts in for re marks,neven if they have had some kind of generic agreement, without parents agreeing to a specific remark, they face the risk of rightfully furious parents if their child is downgraded over an action they didn't authorise.

Most schools only advise remarks if a grade is surprising and if the child is close to the next grade up. If they are close to the one below, most schools won't advise the risk is taken. In the end, it is parental choice whether to listen to advice or not, but. Schools shouldn't be deciding to go for remarks without express permission for that specific paper.

Tobeshared · 21/09/2019 11:22

In the end, it is parental choice whether to listen to advice or not In the end it was not parental choice, it was the choice of the pupil - they had to sign the form - not the parent.

Witchend · 21/09/2019 11:42

but so fast It's always been within a few days for dd, and both times it's gone up.
At this point there won't be so many people putting in for remarks because most people put in fairly quickly, so I'd expect it to be quick.

WombatChocolate · 21/09/2019 11:54

But in Nursies case, neither child nor parent agreed to a specific remark, nor knew how close they were to any boundaries. A generic form signed before doesn't mean an informed choice has been made.

In our school, parents sign as they pay for remark. Also because if it goes down and only child agreed then there can be all kinds of complaints and issues.

Lemoncurd · 21/09/2019 13:14

My daughter said her English dept contacted all those within a few marks of the next grade at the beginning of the week. When she took her form in the day before the deadline she said there was a queue of people doing the same! Haven't heard anything yet.

DeRigueurMortis · 21/09/2019 13:20

We got a remark on OCR Computer Science. Took a week.

Grade went up from an 8 to a 9.

Tobeshared · 21/09/2019 13:25

In our school, parents sign as they pay for remark. Also because if it goes down and only child agreed then there can be all kinds of complaints and issues To be fair - we paid using parent pay - so the parent would have consented through payment - but I do think it's essential that the pupil consents - its their mark.

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