Final-year students awaiting their A-level results next week will feel they’ve got an “unfair deal” if they miss out on university places because of a crackdown on mark-ups, according to teachers who have shared their fears about the impact on students’ mental health.
Julie Richardson, headteacher at Verulam School in St Albans, said her pupils would be “disappointed” if Buckingham University’s predictions of a 10% drop in A and A* grades came true next week.
The ‘Covid generation’ of Year 13 students suffered two years of disruption, including the reversal in 2020 of their GCSE results – when the government agreed grades should be given from teacher assessments after the use of an algorithm resulted in almost 40% of predicted grades being lowered.
“It was rectified but it put a significant strain on the Year 11s at the time. This will not be forgotten, so they will feel incredibly difficult if [they receive lower grades] next week,” she said.
“My biggest concern when it comes to our students, if results are 10% lower, is the impact it could have on their mental health and wellbeing. They have already experienced considerable stress at GCSE.’
Although there has been no lockdown this academic year, there has still been disruption due to staff taking leave to recover from Covid and the stress caused by the pandemic.
Richardson said her school — like many others — has had significant staffing issues, including the absence of a religious education teacher for a long period of time.
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Although her staff will be on hand to advise students on how to go through exemptions if they miss out on their university place, she said many will be disappointed. “I think it’s very difficult for young people when they’re set on going to a certain institution. It’s quite difficult to get them to understand that there are other options and that it’s not a completely lost cause.”
Maia, a teacher at a public school in Portsmouth, said she felt “very nervous” for her students next week. “All the offers my students have gotten are for really high grades and it’s really hard to say right now what’s going to happen. My hope at the moment is that universities will be flexible in their offerings.
She said four of her students, who did not expect to meet the terms of their offer, already plan to take a year off and reapply next year, which is unusual for her school.
She felt that some students had underperformed their potential because online learning had not reached the same standard as face-to-face lessons and they had been deprived of exam experience in their GCSEs.
“I know a lot of teachers did their best. I tried my best but the content I provided is not comparable to what you can do face to face. Even the best students said they turned the lesson on and then turned it off. It is very difficult to follow. They had a full schedule and a lot of learning was lost,” she said.
“I think most of them, if you talked to them, would say they had a unfair deal. On the other hand, they are all in the same position. Most of them understand that it is not their fault, but some life choices were taken away from it.
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