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The 9-1 grading system for GCSEs began in 2017 in England.
In Northern Ireland, a new grade C* was introduced in 2019 to line up with the English grade 5. In both systems, work below the grade G or 1 standard is denoted as 'Unclassified' (U). For comparison purposes, a grade C is considered equivalent to a 4, and an A is equivalent to a 7, and an 8 is equivalent roughly to an A*.
A grade 8 is also equivalent to an A*, however the grade 9 is the top end of the A*. The former C grade is set at grade 4 (known as a 'standard pass') and grade 5 (considered a 'strong pass') under the numerical scheme. Although fewer qualifications have tiered examinations than before, the tiering system still exists.
In 2020, Ofqual, the regulator of qualifications, exams and tests in England, produced a grades standardisation algorithm to combat grade inflation and moderate the teacher-predicted grades for A level and GCSE qualifications in that year, after examinations were cancelled as part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Edexcel, another British exam board, also had similarly low grade boundaries. Subsequently, Ofqual said that they were confident the grade boundaries this year were "sound", so shifted their focus onto the previous year's grade boundaries for the new Mathematics A-Level for the 2,000 students who sat it after studying it for one year.
[13] [14] [15] On a Sky News segment, presenter Adam Boulton answered one of the paper's 'hardest' questions with a former maths teacher. [16] [17] As a result, GCSE students across the UK signed a petition made by a candidate requesting that the exam board lowers the grade boundaries as the examination was too hard.
In August 2018, Ofqual announced that it had intervened to adjust the GCSE Science grade boundaries for students who had taken the "higher tier" paper in its new double award science exams and performed poorly, due to an excessive number of students in danger of receiving a grade of "U" or "unclassified".
The A-Level grades were announced in England, Wales and Northern Ireland on 13 August 2020. Nearly 36% were one grade lower than teachers' predictions and 3% were down two grades. [14] [15] By comparison, 79% of university entrants in 2019 did not achieve their predicted grades. [15]