GCSE grading alliance will pursue justice in the courts

Secondary school leaders have cast doubt on the efficacy of this autumn’s GCSE English re-sits, fearing the exercise is unlikely to see any wholesale improvements in grades.

Brian Lightman, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said he had “no confidence at all” in the offer by Ofqual and some awarding bodies to allow up to 45,000 candidates to re-sit the exam next month, at no cost to their schools.

Speaking to SecEd, he said that re-sits were “no way for young people to achieve the grades they require” for college, the workplace or to enter apprenticeships.

He continued: “If these examinations are marked on the same basis as those taken in the summer, then students will get the same results. If student grades suddenly improve then it will prove that there was a problem with the summer exams, which is something Ofqual and the awarding bodies are vehemently denying. It is simply not going to happen.