Coronavirus: A-level pupils in Wales post record top grades - BBC News

Top grades at A-level have gone up in Wales, after a chaotic summer when schools shut and exams were cancelled.

But final results are on average significantly lower than those estimated by teachers, which the exams watchdog said were "too generous".

The education minister stepped in to pledge grades would be no lower than pupils' earlier AS results, and up to 4,500 may now be given improved grades.

Qualifications Wales said last week that teacher estimates had been "generous", resulting in thousands of grades being adjusted down.

Education Minister Kirsty Williams said she had to make sure that those changes did not disadvantage Welsh students, and so she was giving a guarantee that a final A-level grade cannot be lower than a pupil's AS grade.

The qualifications watchdog found that the estimated grades by teachers had been too generous in Wales.

Proportion of final A-level grades relating to original assessments.

Students who get their grades today are being told if their results are lower than their earlier AS level grades, they will be issued with revised ones by the WJEC as soon as possible.

Qualifications Wales chief executive Philip Blaker said this year's process had not disadvantaged particular groups of pupils.

The results show Wales has proportionately more pupils with top grades and grades A* to C than in England, but fewer than in Northern Ireland.

"We thought the teacher's predicted grades were final but then we found out that there was a bit more than that," she said.

Qualifications Wales has been asked to quickly make any relevant adjustments to the appeals process and liaise with other exam regulators

It will not allow schools and colleges to rethink their estimated grades or ranking of pupils

If other mistakes are highlighted through an appeal, the other pupils affected will not see their grades lowered, the exam board has said

"If we feel that there are learners that have been disadvantaged in any way then we would be looking to use the appeals process," she said

If pupils have concerns about bias or discrimination in allocating those grades, they can appeal to the WJEC and a process similar to a malpractice complaint would be followed, but those are expected to be rare