Government confirms changes to A-levels and GCSEs in 2022

The Department for Education (DfE), along with Ofqual, has announced it will be making changes to GCSE, A-level and AS-level exams as the formal tests are reintroduced for 2022.

Teenagers will get a number of “adaptations” to make exams more approachable in 2022 – such as advance notice of topic areas –, and there will be a back-up plan to use teacher-assessed grades if exams cannot go ahead because of Covid.

The changes are intended to ‘maximise fairness’ in light of the disruption caused by the Covid pandemic, which saw exams cancelled in both 2020 and 2021.

It is also designed to tackle the grade inflation of the last two years – in 2021, 44.8% of UK A-level entries were marked at A* or A, compared to 26% in 2019. It is expected that this percentage will fall by around 10 percentage points in 2022, still providing a “safety net” for the cohort of students who have missed out on learning during school and college closures, and then return to pre-pandemic levels by 2023.

In 2022, students will get a choice of topics in GCSE English Literature and History. For other subjects, they will be given advance information in early February about what topics they will be tested on so they can focus their revision. In subjects such as Maths and Physics, they will be given formulae sheets to help them in the exam.

Exams and other formal assessments are the best and fairest means of assessing students’ achievements

– Dr Jo Saxton, the chief regulator of Ofqual

If exams cannot go ahead, teacher-assessed grades will be used as a contingency measure. Ofqual is to consult on the arrangements, but they are likely to involve schools collecting evidence from pupils in normal planned tests, such as mock exams, from the second half of this term.

Students will be told before they take the tests that the results could be used to inform their teacher-assessed grades if exams are cancelled.

Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said: “We’ve put fairness at the heart of our approach and listened to pupils, teachers, and parents. The measures we’re putting in place will help reduce the impact of the significant disruption this group of young people have had to face, allowing them to move onto the next stage of their lives.

“We are committed to rigorous standards being fairly applied, and exams are the fairest way to assess students, which is why they will take place next year.”

Dr Jo Saxton, the chief regulator of Ofqual, said: “The interests of learners are central to Ofqual’s mandate. For us, that means fairness. It means qualifications that stand the test of time, that employers, colleges, and universities can trust.

“Our grading approach will recognise the disruption experienced by students taking exams in 2022. It will provide a safety net for those who might otherwise just miss out on a higher grade, while taking a step back to normal.

“Exams and other formal assessments are the best and fairest means of assessing students’ achievements. Choice in some subjects and advance information to support revision are intended to provide support for all as we emerge from the pandemic.

“Advance information to help students focus their revision over the final months will be given for summer exams in early February, and the timing will be kept under review subject to the course of the pandemic.”

Geoff Barton, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said the plans were a “sensible set of measures which should ensure that students are assessed as fairly as possible for A-levels, GCSEs, and other important qualifications following the huge educational disruption caused by the pandemic”.