BRITAIN's students are eagerly awaiting their A-level results this week - in turn shaping the course of their futures for years to come.
Tens of thousands of teenagers will receive the important news tomorrow on "results day" - and deciding if they will attend university or not.
A-level and GCSE exams were cancelled for 2021, because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic - but students will this week receive their predicted grade.
Grades were submitted by June 18 and will be released tomorrow.
Schools and colleges were asked to provide samples of student work to exam boards, as well as evidence used to determine the grades for the students selected, as part of quality assurance checks.
It is hoped this year's school-based assessments system will be a major improvement on 2020's botched computer algorithm disaster which saw huge public outcry over some unfairly low marks.
Read our A-level results blog below for the latest news and updates...
Joseph Gamp 4 minutes ago
EXPLAINED: WHAT IS CLEARING
Students are able to use Clearing to find out what courses still have places remaining.
If students have not been successful with their first preference, they are able to search for a course against the subject they are interested in, or the university they want to head to.
Joseph Gamp 8 minutes ago
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.
Joseph Gamp 13 minutes ago
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.
Joseph Gamp 18 minutes ago
EXPLAINED: HOW CAN I SEE THE GRADE BOUNDARIES?
The grade boundaries can be found on their websites below.
AQA OCR Pearson CCEA WJEC
Joseph Gamp 23 minutes ago
A-LEVEL GRADE BOUNDARIES 2021 – ACA, 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.
Joseph Gamp 29 minutes ago
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".
Joseph Gamp 33 minutes ago
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.
Joseph Gamp 39 minutes ago
WHEN WERE GRADES SUBMITTED BY?
Grades were submitted by June 18 and will be released tomorrow.
Schools and colleges were asked to provide samples of student work to exam boards, as well as evidence used to determine the grades for the students selected, as part of quality assurance checks.
It is hoped this year's system will be a major improvement on 2020's botched computer algorithm disaster which saw huge public outcry over some unfairly low marks.
Students normally receive their scores in mid to late August, but this year they have been brought forward to August 10.
This will ensure pupils have enough time to log appeals so they don't miss out on their preferred university for September.
Joseph Gamp 49 minutes ago
A-LEVEL RESULTS DAY 2021: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
TENS of thousands of teenagers are awaiting their A-level results tomorrow.
But with exams cancelled and university places "more competitive than ever", grades, clearing and appeals might be a little different.
Read more here.
Joseph Gamp 53 minutes ago
HOW ARE GRADES BEING AWARDED THIS YEAR?
GCSE and A-level exams have been cancelled for 2021, because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and third lockdown that saw schools closed.
The government decided to axe this summer's testing regime with a Department for Education spokesperson saying in early January: "The Government position is that we will not be asking students to sit GCSE and A-Levels."
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.
Joseph Gamp 58 minutes ago
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.
Joseph Gamp Today, 14:56
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
Joseph Gamp Today, 14:53
EXPLAINED: WHEN IS A-LEVEL RESULTS DAY 2021?
A-Level results day will take place on August 10 2021.
And GCSE pupils will receive theirs two days later on August 12.
Normally students receive their results in mid to late August, but they have been brought forward because of the pandemic.
Bringing results day forward will ensure pupils have enough time to log appeals so A-level students don't miss out on their preferred university places for the autumn.
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