Free online portal to be launched for marked exam scripts
From next year schools, will be able to download all marked Edexcel GCSE and A-level exam scrips for free, a move that SCHOOLS NorthEast called for in the exam board consultation response.
A new online portal to make all of Edexcel’s marked scripts available free of charge has been confirmed by parent company Pearson, which currently provides GCSE scripts when they’re requested but only after the deadline for enquiries has passed, and for a fee.
SCHOOLS NorthEast recommended this change back in March, in a response to Ofqual’s consultation on marking reviews, appeals, grade boundaries and Code of Practice. Branded as an Intelligent Review System, this was proposed by the education charity to “improve the speed and efficiency of sharing assessments with centres”.
The consultation response stated that “All exam boards convert their operations to digital to a) eradicate administrative errors; b) enable the sharing of scripts instantaneously to markers and, later, to centres; and, c) to standardise the on-script markings so centres have clarity where marks are awarded”. You can read the entire proposal for an Intelligent Review System here (page 9).
SCHOOLS NorthEast Director Mike Parker commented on the move to digital: “We applaud Edexcel acknowledging the need for significantly easier access to marked scripts free of charge. This is a fantastic development that schools will undoubtedly appreciate.
“This change should be mandatory for all exam boards, and we urge the rest to follow suit from 2017 onwards.”