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Colleges in England are demanding a review of an "exceptional and unfair grade boundary increase" in an English language GCSE exam designed for resit students.
They say an 11-mark increase of the boundary needed to pass this summer will mean more students having to resit again, adding to financial pressures on colleges.
In a letter to exam board Pearson, 30 college leaders called for the boundary needed to pass the GCSE English language 2.0 exam to be brought down.
Pearson said it was "confident in the grades issued".
The colleges say they represent nearly 48,000 students who have been "negatively impacted by the unexpected and late decision" to change the grade boundary this year.
GCSE grading in England was always expected to be similar to 2023 levels this year.
College leaders said they had expected only slight changes to grade boundaries - and that the 11-mark increase has left "many students a whole grade poorer than had they sat the exam in 2023".
"This year’s punitive approach to grading... means many more students will now need to resit their GCSE English once again, many students will be rejected from university, some students will not be returning to education, and there will be significant financial strain added to any college operating the English language 2.0 qualification," the letter said.
"This worsens an already difficult situation for many colleges already operating at or near maximum capacity to facilitate the scale of GCSE English and maths resits necessary in recent years."
The college leaders said 20.7% of students sitting the GCSE English language 2.0 exam achieved a grade 4 or above this summer, compared with 37.4% last summer.
They want Pearson to review and reduce the grade boundary increase, to offer free re-marks and resits for those affected, and to refund exam entry fees.
Pearson said grade boundaries can occasionally "vary more than anticipated, for example where the design of a paper has changed or following a detailed review of the quality of work in a subject".
"We have undertaken extremely thorough and detailed work to ensure the standards required in GCSE English 2.0 are in line with the national GCSE English language standard, and we are confident in the grades issued," it said.
It added that it would "continue to be in touch directly with every school and college to provide full support."
Ofqual, England's exams regulator, said: "It is important that grades for all GCSEs are fair and reflect a comparable standard. Students can be confident in their grades this year."
It added: "Ofqual understands the concerns expressed by the signatories of the letter, and we continue to monitor closely the actions that Pearson has taken."
In England, students need maths and English GCSEs at grade 4 or above to qualify for further study - although they can study for resits alongside their new subject choices.
Colleges say they already had to expand class sizes and hire exam halls to cope with a rise in the number of students resitting last November and this summer – because of pupil population growth and grades being brought down to 2019 levels in England last year.
They will have to prepare for even more resit students this year, with data on GCSE results day suggesting:
- 182,000 16-year-olds will need to resit English language
- 176,000 will need to resit maths
Colin Booth, chief executive of Luminate Education Group, a group of education providers in the Leeds City region, said the grade boundary increase for the GCSE English language 2.0 exam "undermined" the resit policy.
"Students worked hard all year and, on a like for like basis, improved their marks in the exam significantly this year, but still received a grade 3 in both years," he said.
"We are now having to also explain to these young people why they have to study and take the exam again in November."
