"Potentially that has shafted her future career" - father's anger after daughter's A Level grades reduced from B to E under government marking system

Thousands of students across the region were left in tears of disappointment yesterday as they collected their A Level results despite exams having had to be cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Grades this year were calculated after teachers were told to submit the marks they thought each student would have received if they had sat the papers, alongside a rank order of students and exam boards then moderated the grades.

The algorithm meant many grades were changed - including those of Holly Barber, 18, of Burley-in-Wharfedale, who has now missed out on a place at her chosen university.

She is a student at Woodhouse Grove School in Apperley Bridge and did A levels in maths, geography and physics.

The school predicted that she would get a B in maths, A in geography and B in physics but her actual results ended up being a C in maths, B in geography and an E in physics.

However, her father Tim Barber says it is the principle and the government should revert to teacher predictions as happened in Scotland.

He told the Yorkshire Evening Post: "Why could they not trust the decision of teachers? They are effectively saying that they have been underhanded and it undermines teacher credibility. We were obviously very angry, the school is angry, my daughter is devastated. She thinks people will think she has not been trying.

"She did get a place at university but that is not the point. The principle is all wrong. That result will be on her CV forever and as much as people say it does not matter that is not true in accountancy which she wants to go into. Potentially that has shafted her future career."

Meanwhile, the executive principal from a multi academy trust which operates schools across the city said the situation could have been avoidable and will impact students from less advantaged backgrounds.

David Holtham, Executive Principal of Post-16 at The GORSE Academies Trust said his staff has followed the instructions to predict grades with diligence and integrity and also questioned the logic behind last night's 11th-hour announcement from the Government that grades achieved in mocks can be used in appeals. He said there are many questions that need answering but fears the answers will make no difference.

He added: "What we need is a full and clear disclosure of the process of standardisation at national level and assurances from the highest levels that either regionally or nationally, groups of students or sectors of the education system have not been unfairly disadvantaged. An algorithm that looks solely at the system and not at the individual child is flawed. Worse, it is heartless.

"At the moment, it is difficult not to conclude that there has been fundamental – albeit no doubt unintended – unfairness, which has led to such disappointment for so many young people. They deserve better than this.

"I do not pretend that this has been easy for the government, Ofqual or the exam boards. But a better and more transparent system was needed – because today’s outcome has made life very hard indeed for so many young people who were already facing very uncertain futures because of the impact the coronavirus has had on the economy, their family’s finances and

their job prospects. The very least we could have done was to ensure a process that meant that they received fair grades for their hard work and talent."

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Thank you

Laura Collins