NSEAD received a large number of comments and concerns from members who were unhappy with their experience of GCSE moderation this year. We expressed concerns last year and were pleased to report that Ofqual launched an inquiry into visiting moderation. We shared information about how teachers could get involved with that process.
Teachers in teams with many years of experience are telling us that they are confused by the conflicting messages that they are getting between standardisation and their moderation visits. There is concern about both the accuracy of moderation judgements, and the quality of service from the exam boards.
We continue to support members as they press for answers from the exam boards. Meantime, we would advise any centre who feels that their experience of moderation has fallen short of the standards set by Ofqual, to contact them directly with your concerns.
Awarding organisations must comply with the requirements set out under Condition GCSE (Art and Design) 2.4. and comply with General Conditions of Recognition, which apply to all awarding organisations and qualifications;GCSE Qualification Level Conditions and all relevant Regulatory Documents.
In particular: 'the awarding organisation shall monitor whether or not the persons who are carrying out Moderation are –
(i) doing so in a manner which is compliant with guidance and
(ii) making determinations which are consistent over time and consistent with determinations made by each other,
(f) where the awarding organisation learns, through its monitoring or otherwise, that Moderation has not been carried out in a manner which is compliant with General Condition H2, or has been carried out inconsistently, it shall take all reasonable steps to –
(i) correct, or where it cannot be corrected, mitigate as far as possible the effect of the failure, and
(ii) ensure that the failure does not recur'
General Condition H2 refers specifically to the conduct of visiting moderation:
Full guidance and regulations can be found in the following documents: GCSE Subject Level Conditions and Requirements for Art & Design; GCSE subject level guidance for Art & design
and
