Department for Education
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Decisions following consultation on GCSEs and A levels
Ofqual has confirmed the assessment arrangements for a number of GCSE, AS and A level subjects which will be taught from 2016.
The decisions follow a public consultation on the assessment arrangements for the reformed qualifications. They cover the following reformed GCSE subjects:
- Art and design
- Computer science
And reformed GCSEs, AS and A levels in the following subjects:
- Dance
- Music
- Physical education
Ofqual has produced a short document explaining the decisions it has taken. The key decisions are summarised below.
Summary of decisions
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Ofqual has previously confirmed that new AS and A level qualifications will not be tiered, and that new GCSEs should only be tiered where a single set of assessments cannot in a valid and manageable way assess students across the full ability range. None of the GCSEs included in yesterday’s announcement will be tiered.
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Ofqual has finalised the assessment objectives for all subjects included in yesterday’s announcements.
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The balance of exam and non-exam assessment for new qualifications in these subjects is detailed in the table below. The current % is in brackets*.
| Subject | GCSE weighting of non-exam assessment | AS weighting of non-exam assessment | A level weighting of non-exam assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art and design | 100% (100%) | N/A | N/A |
| Computer science | 20% (25 to 60%) | N/A | N/A |
| Dance | 60% (80%) | 50% (60%) | 50% (55%) |
| Music | 60% (60 to 80%) | 60% (60 to 70%) | 60% (60 to 70%) |
| Physical education | 40% (60%) | 30% (35 to 50%) | 30% (35 to 50%) |
Remaining 2016 subjects
Ofqual and the DfE have also recently consulted in parallel on the content and assessment arrangements for a further group of qualifications planned for first teaching in September 2016. These are:
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GCSEs in: citizenship studies, cooking and nutrition, design and technology, drama and religious studies.
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AS qualifications and A levels in: drama and theatre, and religious studies.
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The results of this consultation will be announced in February 2015.
Note
*The existing regulatory requirements for assessment in these subjects were not designed to our current definition of non-exam assessment. Instead they were determined by the amount of ‘internal’ and ‘external’ assessment permitted. Therefore, when we describe the current weighting of non-exam assessment, we refer to the amount of assessment that is seen or could be permitted in current qualifications and which falls under our definition of non-exam assessment.
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