Incorrect exam grades on the rise - Teather

8.37.45pm BST (GMT +0100) Thu 24th Aug 2006

New research has revealed a rise in the number of GCSE exam grades corrected after schools and pupils challenged the initial results.

Statistics uncovered by the Liberal Democrats show the number of pupils querying their GCSE grades has risen by 24% since 2003 and the number of final grades corrected has increased by 13%. This is the equivalent of 13 queries and 3 grade corrections for each secondary school in England.

The research also shows:

• Schools are paying an extra £42 million to enter students into exams, an increase of 27% from 2002/3.

• Over the same period, the cost to the taxpayer of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, the body that monitors the performance of the exam boards has increased by 70% to £135 million.

*Enquiries about pupils' A-level results in 2005 were equivalent to one in three of all pupils querying a final grade.

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Shadow Education Secretary, Sarah Teather MP said "Exam boards must get their act together.

"Every summer hard-working pupils have to endure newspapers and politicians saying that exams are getting easier and belittling their achievements.

"The stress increasing numbers of pupils endure after receiving the wrong grades goes unrecognised.

"Too many students are having to battle bureaucracy to correct mistakes made by exam boards. Students, who need those grades to secure jobs or places at college and university, deserve better.

"The Government must justify the rising costs of the exam system by demanding better performance from exam boards."