Will academic concessions lead to more trouble for O/A level students?

As the dust finally settles on this year's O level results, students find themselves facing the difficult transition into the A levels. With the main exam session of May-June returning for the first time in three years, 2022 was always supposed to be a transitional period.

The prolonged closure of in-person classes, along with the emotional stress students went through, prompted both CAIE and Edexcel to make assessments fairer. This resulted in the implementation of certain concessions in the evaluation process.

While their decisions are justified, the execution of these concessions may be flawed.   

Due to overwhelming widespread demands, the boards set this year's grade thresholds at a lower standard compared to pre-pandemic levels. On average, the marks required to achieve a particular grade was lowered by 10-12 percent.

Lower grade thresholds played a massive role in this year's results. The amount of top grades increased manifolds compared to 2019. Some students claimed they achieved top marks in the exam, despite getting C's or B's in mocks. While it is to their immense credit that they turned things around, the grades may not quite truly reflect the reality of the situation.

This instead exposes a major flaw in the evaluation process — it fails to show the students' depth of knowledge. A mad rush of memorizing question papers and notes can indeed drive the grades up, but developing a deep understanding of the concepts needs time and effort to develop.

Getting higher grades under lowered grade thresholds can instead have the negative effect of distancing students from studies, as they may feel like putting in more effort is unnecessary.

The pandemic-induced learning gap has been further enhanced by the absence of lab-works. As there were virtually no lab classes in the last two years, students were offered the chance to be exempt from both the practical and alternative to practical (ATP) assessments altogether. Many availed this option, thinking this would boost their grades. While that is what ultimately happened, it has left those students at a major disadvantage.

Practicals are crucial for A levels. There is a mandatory practical paper in AS, while in A2, students have to design complex experiments in the Planning, Analysis, and Evaluation paper. Having no practical assessments in O levels has means students struggle to perform in lab work, despite performing brilliantly in written exams.    

Studying under these conditions has led to shaky foundational knowledge. With lab related knowledge gaps to contend to, especially for those who aspire to study science, the transition from basics to the advanced stages of education becomes tougher.

Students who achieved top grades under these circumstances might become stop studying seriously, causing their results to plummet in A levels and higher education. They might even become disillusioned from studies, performing poorly in the all-important A levels and university courses, or worse still, drop out of studies altogether.    

Making the leap from O to A level can be harsh for anyone. Passing through a transitional exam session might only make it more difficult. After all, universities and A levels will not be making concessions for students just because they had it tough in O levels. In a more standard environment, the risk of struggling academically looms large. It's high time we prioritised quality of education over the quantity of top grades we receive.    

Inqiad is a long suffering Manchester United fan and a self-proclaimed Targaryen. Contact him at inqiadali007@gmail.com