Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the ISC, responds to a statement in today’s Guardian which said: “Schools that benefited from the biggest grade uplift during the pandemic are likely to see the sharpest falls, among them independent schools where the proportion of top grades rose by nine percentage points to 70%, compared with six percentage points elsewhere.”
Said Lenon:
“As announced by Ofqual last year, overall results are lower this year than in 2021 when grades were awarded by teacher assessment, reflecting the move back towards pre-pandemic grading. Like all schools, independent schools have been affected by a lower grade profile. As was the case last year, all schools were subject to the same system in terms of quality assurance.
“The results of independent school pupils tend to be clustered at the top end of the grade scale which has seen the greatest levels of grade deflation this year – the overall percentage of A*-A grades has fallen by 8.4%, compared with 5.9% for A*-C grades.
“Our focus should be on celebrating the achievements of pupils throughout what has been another unusual and challenging year, and ensuring they have the support they need to take their next steps.”
Read more: Independent schools did not manipulate exam grades
