GCSE Art - what tips are there to improve a grade?

[Ormally]

DD is taking GCSE art and has stayed on the same grade as she had when she started the course.

She works very hard and is efficient at completing work, and although unlikely to be top of the class, I think could improve with some good guidance and a few ways of recognising what is being looked for, by examiners. She's getting demoralized at a fairly early stage.

I asked about a couple of written comments (examples being working on shading and texture) during a parents' evening and the tutor said 'Just use the internet, there are examples there.' It felt too generic to be really actionable.

I also think that she is very ready to draw from photos rather than draw real things, and this can be less helpful. One round fruit on a photo had its left hand curve cut off by the edge, so it kind of required that it was reproduced exactly the same way.

She loves collage, other 3d things like textiles, but these may not be a large enough component to shine through.

What would help with improving GCSE work and understanding what counts well in an assessment?

To be honest the teachers is not wrong - there are plenty of YouTube examples of good high grade sketchbooks. It really seems to be a box ticking exercise and she needs to meets those requirements, I think that matters more than any artistic ability! My DD found it a bit of a drag having to do what they wanted rather than her own ideas but that’s the way they grade it.

Yes as PP said I would start by looking at YouTube videos of high quality sketchbook examples. They should point out why the sketchbook got a high grade.
I would also looking up the marking matrix for the GCSE board that your DD is doing, so she knows what she is aiming at, and where she is missing out on marks.
It is much better to work from real life than from photos, what about a series of self portraits inspired by different artists, or using different materials, or a limited colour palette?
One of the best projects I saw was one of my students got herself a shiny metal bowl, put it in different places around her house, and draw it in close up. It reflected a distorted image of herself drawing and the room around her. She made some really great drawings.

What grade? Is it high in teachers viewpoint and not to give too high a mark? Some schools in Year 10 is 5/6 and very few 7. No 8 or 9.
Year 11 can be the change?

Thank you for these. It's a 5 and at this point, yr 10. I think the issue is that she tries to act on feedback, but the feedback is in a column of short comments, not with visual examples, and the same comments come back on the new work. So instead of recommendations for shading, or seeing examples of techniques that could give X effect in biro, or something, it's more 'Improve the shading, use a better range of tones.'

My daughter's art teacher advised that the quality of research to go with the actual artwork was more important than how brilliant the actual art produced was, especially for the final project. Her advice worked - my daughter got a grade 8, based almost entirely on the work around the art I think, as she's great at research and preparation.

HI there,

I would try and see some art for a start, learning to appreciate art is always a good thing ;-)

copying exactly what you see is not the object of srt. Observing and interpreting is what to think about. You can also see it like getting fit - littl eand often, and warming up. One thing to try - whihc is what you'd do in a life drawing class to loosen up. set up a still life or choose what to draw, then give your self 2 mins to drawit, then five minutes, then 15, and then an hour. Losing the inhibition and letting your hand-eye coordination take over is the point.

You could also try removing the daunting blank page, try lightly shading the main part of the paper, then start draweing with a rubber. All about less inhibition.

Drawing from a photo is not going to get you anywhere

Art teacher here!

Art is one of the hardest subjects to get a high grade in (I’m sure all subject teachers would say this, HOWEVER…) I attend our GCSE training day every year & they always mention how teachers should see a handful of grade 9 students across their career! People don’t appreciate this. It’s a huge subject & is more time consuming than anything.
If your DC is being targeted with further shading & tone, that sounds to me that she is very ‘light’ with her pencil & perhaps lacking confidence? Lots of girls who sit on a 5 seem to fall into this category! I would encourage her to go bolder with her sketches - over-exaggerate the darkest parts for a more dramatic outcome. If she looks on Pinterest & searches the subject of her drawings - ‘shell pencil sketch’ for example, it will bring up lots of sketches that she could either compare her own work to or even create a sketch from that image. Lots of students find drawing a drawing, easier than drawing a photo!
Art is marked usually (AQA here) on 4 components - research, recording, experimenting and then a ‘final outcome’ to a project. If your DC is struggling with her recording (sketches etc) she may well pick up marks for her ability to explain her thoughts & links to artists, or her exploring of different materials & media … there are other ways to improve grade.
I would ask her teacher for a bit more support & specific guidance to see if that helps, her feedback does sound a little vague… Also the fact she has stayed on the same mark for almost a year is no bad thing?! A project takes time to work through, most students skills improve between Y10 and Y11 so hopefully grade may increase towards the end of this year.
Not sure if any of that helps, hopefully so!

@singlepringle12 that really isn’t born out by the facts.
i have just checked my school data for the past 3 years, we consistently have an Art cohort of 40 ish ( 2 classes)
Their grade 9% is around 12% students, year on year so each of the teachers will see 2/3 a year, well more than a handful over a career
Maths hover around around 9%, English even lower and our Maths and English scores are well above average nationally.
Hyperbole is rarely helpful
Art is indeed a real draw on time for the students.

Looking at the results of the two private schools near us (as they publish full breakdowns of results by grades!) one is consistently getting about a third of those taking art GCSE getting a 9, which is 15-20 a year. The other is much lower only getting 2-4 a year. It’s interesting they are so different given they have similar headline results!

Nationally around 4.1% of 16 year olds taking maths get a 9. For Art it’s 5.6% or 5.8% for fine art. So not a huge difference but of course far fewer take Art.

I am no expert in how to improve a grade but teaching is absolutely key. My DD (years ago!) got a B at GCSE but got an A at A level. She changed school and has an inspirational teacher who really knew what was required. DD also did photography A level and got an A star. In fact nearly all the girls got an A or A star. It was superb teaching that made the difference instead of bland waffle.

GCSE Art – what actually improves grades (from how it’s marked):

• It’s about the process, not just the final piece. Examiners want to see development: initial idea → experiments → refinements → final outcome. Sketchbooks matter a lot.
• Record from real life, not just photos. Drawing from observation (even simple objects at home) scores higher because it shows understanding of form, light, and proportion.
• Annotation = easy marks. Short notes explaining why choices were made (“used cross-hatching to create depth”, “inspired by The Starry Night style brushwork”) can push grades up quickly.
• Show experimentation. Different materials, textures, techniques (e.g. charcoal, ink, collage, textiles). Even if messy—this is rewarded.
• Develop, don’t repeat. Doing the same style over and over caps grades. Each page should build on the last.
• Link to artists properly. Not just copying—show influence. Look at artists like Vincent van Gogh or Georgia O'Keeffe and adapt their techniques.
• Shading and texture = depth. Strong contrast (lights/darks), varied mark-making, and attention to surfaces (rough, smooth, reflective) make work look more advanced.
• Fill the page confidently. Small, hesitant drawings often score lower than bold, developed compositions.
• Play to strengths (e.g. collage/textiles) but still evidence the process behind them.

@Ormally

@Ormally

On the feedback issue (very common):

• Comments like “improve shading” or “use a wider range of tones” need translating into specific actions. Think:
• Go from 2–3 tones → aim for at least 5–7 distinct tones (light → dark)
• Practise one technique at a time (cross-hatching, blending, stippling)
• If the teacher isn’t giving visual examples, use simple references:
• Search “biro shading techniques” or “pencil tonal scale”
• Look at how artists like Leonardo da Vinci build tone gradually rather than outlining
• A quick practical fix that often boosts marks:
• Do a small tonal strip before starting (light → dark)
• Then apply that range in the drawing
• For texture:
• Don’t just shade smoothly—change the marks (dots, lines, scratches) depending on the surface
• e.g. shiny = smooth blending, rough = broken lines
• If she keeps getting the same comment back, it usually means:
• She’s trying, but the difference isn’t visible enough
• She needs to push it further than feels “finished”
• One really effective habit:
• Next to a piece, do a mini test patch: “this is my improved shading using X technique”
• Examiners love seeing that kind of intentional improvement

In short, she doesn’t need to work harder—she needs to make the improvements obvious and measurable on the page. That’s what shifts grades.

@Ormally hope those help

Thank you so much for all the detailed responses - this is brilliantly helpful and will make a difference. I am with 'obvious and measurable'. Those are so clear. Pushing it further than feels 'finished' is interesting - she is good at fitting work to the time, although a quarter of the class don't, and I am thinking that some will be taking more time to make some parts really good.

I do take her to appreciate places, usually a gorgeous small gallery that shows current diploma and postgrad work, but it's hard to know how she feels about this. There are times where she has fun with pieces, in contrast with a fairly introverted feel to many pieces, one she's made is very big and is intended as a large board for photos and things to display, but this work is generally out of school.

Thanks once again, this is 20x better in understanding how to try to reach further.