Q and A: How am I affected by the GCSE English row?

1. I did GCSE English this summer. Does what’s going on affect me?

It depends on what grade you got, and even which exam board you were with. It’s more likely that you’d have been affected if your grade was a C or a D. Thousands of candidates who were predicted Cs got Ds, although the exams regulator – Ofqual – says it remains convinced that grades were correctly issued to candidates who sat English GCSEs in June.

It also depends on where you live. Pupils in Wales may get their exams re-graded as the Welsh exam board, WJEC, was ordered by the education minister in Wales to regrade the results in the disputed English exam.

Some schools had higher reductions of final grades compared to predictions, and Ofqual is now looking into what may have led to this.

2. If it does affect me, what should I do about it?

The best thing to do is to take advice from your school, or from the exam board which set your paper. Ofqual has said that it will “look closely at the detail” of Grade C boundary settings for some English units. The body plans to explain what happened with results after it has investigated, and says that it will take action if problems are found.

Ofqual does have a helpline, on 0300 303 3346 that you can phone for advice. You could also contact your relevant exam board.

3. Will my exam paper be re-marked or regraded?

Any school can ask for any exam paper to be re-marked, but it’s up to them to decide whether to submit it for remarking or not. At this stage, it appears unlikely that papers will be automatically remarked, or regraded, but the situation is still fluid while the exam regulator and the government try and work out what’s going on. Ofqual has said it “will take action as appropriate”, but as matters stand, we don’t yet know what that is.

4. Will it cost me anything to have it re-marked?

It does cost money to have papers re-marked. Fees are set independently by each individual exam board. It’s best to check with each board as to how much it would cost. Usually the fee is paid by the school, but some may ask parents to pay. It is refunded if the subject grade changes, however.

In terms of how much it costs, it depends on the exam board, the type of re-mark and whether your school is entering multiple admissions. That’s what has happened in the past, although obviously, things could change.

5. How does whatever happened today affect me now if it didn’t before?

It shouldn’t. There were already issues surrounding the awarding of some grades in some exam boards. All that happened today is that Glenys Stacey, chief executive of the regulator Ofqual, confirmed that she had had a hand in whatever was going on. The facts haven’t really changed, we just know more about how there came to be questions over grades awarded for GCSE English. Essentially, you’re in the same boat as you were before, only there’s a little more light shed on how that came to be.

6. Will I have to re-sit my GCSE English exam?

Again, it’s best to speak to your school for advice on this. But, some exam boards will be offering the opportunity to re-sit in November, which is earlier than the usual re-sit schedule.

7. How does this affect my chances of going to university?

If you’re worried about this, take advice from your exams officer, teacher or careers adviser. Likewise if your grade means the difference between staying on at school or not. But there should be people at your school who can offer advice on these matters.

8. I’m planning on doing GCSE English in a year or two, when I reach that age. How will this affect me?

The issues raised over this year’s GCSE English shouldn’t affect you by that stage. The GCSE English system may well be changed before too long, as the government is considering an overhaul of the GCSE system; there are constant assessments of whether grades are at the correct boundaries or not. But either way, it’s likely that there will still be some kind of moderator monitoring national standards.