GCSE results – live: Grades expected to drop after peaking in Covid pandemic

Overall grades for GCSEs are expected to be lower than in 2020 and 2021, but “that’s very much part of the plan”, education minister Will Quince has said.

Asked whether their grades are going to be lower, the schools minister told Sky News: “So, yeah, they are and that’s very much part of the plan. Over the last couple of years, we have had teachers assess grades, we have gone back for the first time to examinations.”

Mr Quince added: “We recognise the fact that young people have faced huge disruption of the past couple of years, so there have been adaptations in place and Ofqual have reflected in their marking and grading.”

Students have now started opening their results at school.

Some in northwest London even opened their grades live on the news:

An education minister has insisted closing the attainment gap is a “huge priority” for government on the day GCSE results are handed out.

“Ensuring that wherever you live up and down our country that you have access to a world-class education, and you have the same opportunity – whether you live in Bournemouth or Barnsley – is really important to us, and every year up until the pandemic we’ve been closing the attainment gap,” Will Quince told Times Radio.

He added: “The pandemic has without question set us back on that mission. But to say that I am back on that with gusto would be an understatement.”

Results are also being handed out this year against the backdrop of a cost of living crisis – which has sparked fears some may be forced to give up on full-time educuation to work instead.

Students across the country are going to receive their GCSE results in a few minutes from now, having sat exams for the first time in two years due to the pandemic.

Grading is different in England, compared with Northern Ireland and Wales.

In England, traditional A* to G grades were replaced in recent years with a 9 to 1 system, with 9 being the highest mark.

Read more on GCSE grading here:

The Education department has shared a range of routes for students who will receive their GCSE results today, suggesting them to look at A levels, T levels, apprenticeships, higher education, traineeships as they move forward.

A Levels is among the exciting options for post-16 education in which students can pursue two-year subject-based qualifications for students aged 16 or older who plan to go to university or want much deeper knowledge of a study area.

The education department has also listed T Levels, broadly an equivalent in size to three A Levels.

In this, students can combine study in a “learning environment with a substantial industry placement so that students gain the skills and experience they need to progress into work, an apprenticeship or higher study.”

Students spend 80 per cent of their time in the classroom and 20 per cent on a minimum 9-week placement with an employer, the education department said.

Officials are also suggesting apprenticeships to students as a “brilliant option for people of all ages to launch their careers in a huge range of exciting industries or upskill at various levels”.

Students can also pursue higher education and apply to go to university or into another type of higher education earlier than 18 years old.

Teachers, lawmakers, community members and well-wishers of the students have started wishing the expectants luck ahead of the GCSE results today.

Around 700,000 young people are set to receive their GCSE results today, starting 8am.

According to the estimates, 75,000 fewer pupils than last year are in line to get equivalent of As or A*s.

The Conservatives have been accused of leaving a “legacy of unequal outcomes” by the Labour party for holding back children and communities as students across the country await their GCSE results today.

Pupils will receive their grades on Thursday, after sitting exams for the first time since the pandemic.

Similar to the pattern with A-level results, published last week, it is expected that grades will drop below last year, but remain above those from 2019.

Read the full story here:

Authorities have introduced leniency in this year’s grade boundaries, which means the number of marks needed for each grade, as opposed to those set in 2019 before the pandemic struck.

This is the first set of students after the Covid pandemic to receive their GCSE result.

Students were also given prior information about the content of the exam, the selection of topics in certain subjects and assistance with certain exams such as formulae sheets.

Students with jittery nerves awaiting their GCSE results can turn to Open Your Mind for mental health support as the campaign is immediately available for pupils and their parents across the country to fight out the nervous pangs.

The Cavendish Square Group’s initiative is a collective of 10 NHS trusts and offers tips and suggestions to those worried ahead of collecting their grades.

Experts at Open Your Mind suggest that if someone you care for is feeling overwhelmed and people are worried that they might not be able to keep themselves safe, then you should call your local NHS mental health helpline which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

“Calling your local NHS 24/7 urgent mental health support line, which is supported by trained mental health advisors and clinicians, will help make an assessment to help decide on the best course of care. You will not be wasting anyone’s time,” the campaign assures.

Students have been urged to reach out for help early and at the sign of slightest duress to ensure they don’t reach a crisis point — especially when there’s just days and hours to go for announcement of results.

Younger ones can access assistance via digital text support, NHS mental health crisis lines, and counselling.