BRITAIN's students are finding out their eagerly awaited A-level results TODAY – in turn shaping the course of their futures for years to come.
Tens of thousands of teenagers woke up to receive the important news on "results day", which will determine their university placement.
Students have scored record A-Level results this year after the number of top grades almost doubled under teacher-assessment.
A whopping 44% of grades were at A* and A this year, sky-rocketing from the 25% registered when exams were last held in 2019.
And to celebrate, restaurants such as Nandos, Pizza Express and Taco Bell are offering free food to A-level students.
Read our A-level results blog below for the latest news, updates and details of how to claim free food…
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EXPLAINED: HOW TO APPEAL A GRADE
Students will be able to appeal to the exam board via their school if there has been an error made in their grade calculation.
Students who are applying to higher education who did not attain the offer they accepted as their first choice, must appeal by August 16.
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PM CONGRATULATES A-LEVEL STUDENTS – BUT TELLS THEM TO GET A JAB
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has congratulated all the pupils who got their A-level results today saying they should be "very proud" of what they had achieved in "an extremely challenging year".
But he warned any teenager about to embark on the next phase of life to get their Covid vaccine first.
All over 18-year-olds are now able to book a vaccine appointment in England.
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PUPILS CAN ‘FEEL SATISFIED’ THEIR EXAM RESULTS ARE FAIR – OFQUAL CHIEF
Tens of thousands of pupils in England awaiting their A-level and GCSE results can “feel satisfied” their grades are fair despite exams being cancelled for the second straight year, according to the head of the exams watchdog.
Pupils are set to receive their A-level results on Tuesday and GCSE results on Thursday, with grades determined by teachers, rather than exams, as they will only be assessed on what they have been taught during the pandemic.
Ofqual interim chief regulator Simon Lebus told the BBC that the watchdog wanted to create a system where every student was given a fair chance to show what they can do.
“I’m very confident that, when they get their grades on Tuesday and Thursday this week, they’ll be able to feel satisfied that that’s happened,” he told the broadcaster.
Mr Lebus said there have been three stages of checks to ensure students can feel they have been “fairly treated”, including Ofqual checking the policies that schools have for awarding grades and exam boards looking over them.
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HOW DOES CLEARING WORK THIS YEAR?
The official university applications body last week said competition for places is tougher than ever thanks to inflated grades and a lack of courses.
UCAS said students going through clearing – which helps people find courses with places remaining – are likely to find it harder to get onto the courses they want.
Hopefuls are able to search for a course against the subject they are interested in, or the university they would like to attend.
Clearing is a way for universities to fill any places they still have empty, while applicants who did not receive an offer have another chance at getting into higher education.
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HOW DOES CLEARING WORK THIS YEAR? (CONTINUED…)
There will be around 90,000 students aiming to join different courses, with many trying to switch after doing better than expected thanks to teacher-graded A-levels.
Applications chief Clare Marchant reckons a record number of students will take up places through clearing, but there will be highly sought-after “hotspots”.
She warned that “for those most selective courses at the most selective institutions, it is likely to be more competitive”.
Ms Marchant urged students to make a decision about courses “in a matter of days” rather than waiting weeks as she expects the system to be “active”.
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A-LEVEL GRADE BOUNDARIES 2021 – OCR, PEARSON, CCEA, WJEC EXPLAINED
IT’S the moment of truth for students across the UK as A-level results day 2021 has almost arrived – but what are the grade boundaries?
Here we explain what your grades mean, and how each exam board gives their marks
Grade boundaries are published on August 10 from 8am and are available on each exam board’s website. This is the same day as A-level results day, when pupils can go to their school or college to receive their marks.
These boundaries show the minimum number of marks that students need for each grade. The grade boundaries were normally released online the day before candidates received their GCSE and A-level results, but was changed to the same day.
TES reported that the decision to delay the publication of the grade boundaries was to prevent students from becoming overly anxious about their results and panicking that they would not achieve the necessary grade.
It comes after the government’s pledge in 2017 to toughen up the end of year exams was left in tatters – with the marks needed for top grades lowered to prevent a massive fall in results this summer.
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WATCH: GAVIN WILLIAMSON FORGETS HIS OWN A-LEVEL RESULTS IN EMBARRASSING INTERVIEW
Gavin Williamson ‘forgets’ own A-Level results in awkward LBC interview
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A-LEVEL RESULTS DAY 2021: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
Tens of thousands of teenagers are awaiting their A-level results today.
But with exams cancelled and university places “more competitive than ever”, grades, clearing and appeals might be a little different.
Read more here.
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HOW MANY UCAS POINTS DO YOU GET FOR EACH A-LEVEL GRADE
Some universities and courses will make offers based on the total number of points you earn.
- A* – 56
- A – 48
- B – 40
- C – 32
- D – 24
- E – 16
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MANAGE STRESS
Before the results come out, every pupil should be patting themselves on the back for getting through their GCSE and A-level years during a pandemic – studying from home with less interaction with teachers.
Last night, A level students will have been pacing about like cats in anticipation of today. Today, make a choice to step away from social media.
Put your phone down. Ignore the mass hysteria going on in your WhatsApp groups. Ignore the noise of results day and stay calm in your own little bubble.
For GCSE pupils, I would advise putting a message out on Wednesday night wishing your friends good luck and telling them you are stepping away from social media for a day or so.
Parents, you can encourage this.
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POSSIBLE RISE IN STUDENTS GAINING TOP RESULTS NOT A ‘DEVALUING OF GRADES’
A possible rise in the number of students achieving top A-level results does not represent a “devaluing of grades”, a school leaders’ union has said.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said this year’s students have suffered more disruption than any cohort and their results should be “celebrated”.
His comments came ahead of students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland receiving their A-level results on Tuesday after exams were cancelled for the second year in a row due to the pandemic.
Teachers in England submitted their decisions on pupils’ grades after drawing on a range of evidence, including mock exams, coursework and in-class assessments using questions by exam boards.
Concerns have been raised that “inflated grades” will become the new norm, making it more difficult for universities to “select accurately and fairly”.
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TAKE TIME OUT WITH A GAP YEAR
A GAP year is always a good option. Employers look for life skills – and you will get plenty of those once you leave school and navigate your own path.
But have a plan, whether it is getting work experience, paid work, more studying or travelling.
If you have a university place for this year, and you want to defer, they will ask what you intend to do with the time – so have your answers ready.
If you plan to study maths and physics courses, they will want you to keep your hand in learning during your gap year.
You can keep studying with hundreds of short, free, online courses from Future Learn, futurelearn.com/courses.
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HOW MANY UCAS POINTS DO YOU GET FOR EACH A-LEVEL GRADE
Some universities and courses will make offers based on the total number of points you earn.
- A* – 56
- A – 48
- B – 40
- C – 32
- D – 24
- E – 16
EXAMS THIS YEAR REPLACED BY SCHOOL BASED ASSESSMENTS
On January 6, 2021, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said GCSE, AS and A-level exams in England will be replaced by school-based assessments.
The Department for Education and England’s exams regulator Ofqual says teachers can draw on a range of evidence when determining grades.
This includes mock exams, coursework or other work completed as part of a pupil’s course, such as essays or in-class tests.
Pupils will only be assessed on what they have been taught after months of school and college closures.
Schools and colleges will submit their grades to exam boards by June 18 to maximise teaching time.
MORE THAN 200,000 STUDENTS HEADING TO UNIVERSITY
More than 210,000 students have had their university places confirmed with 192,000 getting their first choice, the Department of Education has said.
Its data shows more than 695,000 A levels have been awarded along with 340,000 vocational and technical qualifications.
The Department of Education also says the number of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds going to university had increased proportionally by 11%.
It report: 19% of entries are at grade A*, with 44.3% at grade A or above – up 4.6% and 6% on 2020 respectively.
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WHAT IS CLEARING?
Clearing offers you a chance to find a full time undergraduate course to start this September.
Thousands of students find their university place through Clearing every year, so you won't be alone in exploring your options, says Birmingham City.
A university will publish a list of the courses which have places available to start in the coming September.
As soon as you have your results, you can apply for the course either online (from July until mid August) or by calling the university's Clearing hotline which opens on A Level/BTEC Results Day – Tuesday August 10.
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HOW DOES CLEARING WORK THIS YEAR? (CONTINUED…)
There will be around 90,000 students aiming to join different courses, with many trying to switch after doing better than expected thanks to teacher-graded A-levels.
Applications chief Clare Marchant reckons a record number of students will take up places through clearing, but there will be highly sought-after “hotspots”.
She warned that “for those most selective courses at the most selective institutions, it is likely to be more competitive”.
Ms Marchant urged students to make a decision about courses “in a matter of days” rather than waiting weeks as she expects the system to be “active”.
- [email protected]
HOW DOES CLEARING WORK THIS YEAR?
The official university applications body last week said competition for places is tougher than ever thanks to inflated grades and a lack of courses.
UCAS said students going through clearing – which helps people find courses with places remaining – are likely to find it harder to get onto the courses they want.
Hopefuls are able to search for a course against the subject they are interested in, or the university they would like to attend.
Clearing is a way for universities to fill any places they still have empty, while applicants who did not receive an offer have another chance at getting into higher education.
- [email protected]
EXPLORE YOUR OPTIONS
If you haven’t got into the university you wanted, you can appeal over your results via your school. Let the university know you are doing this.
Another option is to sit the exams in the autumn. But think carefully. Your teachers know you best – are you really going to improve on the grade they have given you?
If you are set on going to university, then you will be able to go through Clearing.
On the UCAS site, Clearing Plus will suggest places and courses similar to your original choice.
Parents, you need to be on hand with your laptops and tablets to research any institutions your child likes the look of.
They then need to phone that university and get a verbal offer of a place before going back on to the UCAS site.
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A-LEVEL RESULTS DAY 2021: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
Tens of thousands of teenagers are awaiting their A-level results today.
But with exams cancelled and university places “more competitive than ever”, grades, clearing and appeals might be a little different.
Read more here.
- [email protected]
WHAT TIME DOES UCAS UPDATE ON RESULTS DAY?
Ucas is a service that allows students to follow their university application online.
The Track became available from 8am on August 10, 2021, updating records for each applicant.
Students do not see their A-level results through the service, instead they receive them from their school or college.
Despite the myth, Track does not update at midnight before the release of the results.
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EXPLAINED: HOW TO APPEAL A RESULTS GRADE
Students will be able to appeal to the exam board via their school if there has been an error made in their grade calculation.
Students who are applying to higher education who did not attain the offer they accepted as their first choice, must appeal by August 16.
- [email protected]
WATCH: GAVIN WILLIAMSON STATES CONTINGENCY PLANS MAY BE DRAWN UP FOR TEACHER ASSESSMENTS AGAIN NEXT YEAR
Gavin Williamson states contingency plans may be drawn up for teacher assessments again next year
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PUPILS CAN ‘FEEL SATISFIED’ THEIR EXAM RESULTS ARE FAIR – OFQUAL CHIEF
Tens of thousands of pupils in England awaiting their A-level and GCSE results can “feel satisfied” their grades are fair despite exams being cancelled for the second straight year, according to the head of the exams watchdog.
Pupils are set to receive their A-level results on Tuesday and GCSE results on Thursday, with grades determined by teachers, rather than exams, as they will only be assessed on what they have been taught during the pandemic.
Ofqual interim chief regulator Simon Lebus told the BBC that the watchdog wanted to create a system where every student was given a fair chance to show what they can do.
“I’m very confident that, when they get their grades on Tuesday and Thursday this week, they’ll be able to feel satisfied that that’s happened,” he told the broadcaster.
Mr Lebus said there have been three stages of checks to ensure students can feel they have been “fairly treated”, including Ofqual checking the policies that schools have for awarding grades and exam boards looking over them.
- [email protected]
TAKE TIME OUT WITH A GAP YEAR
A GAP year is always a good option. Employers look for life skills – and you will get plenty of those once you leave school and navigate your own path.
But have a plan, whether it is getting work experience, paid work, more studying or travelling.
If you have a university place for this year, and you want to defer, they will ask what you intend to do with the time – so have your answers ready.
If you plan to study maths and physics courses, they will want you to keep your hand in learning during your gap year.
You can keep studying with hundreds of short, free, online courses from Future Learn, futurelearn.com/courses.
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