We are working with a fraction of the prisoners we could be

The next prime minister must take radical action on prison education as evidence shows education providers face multiple barriers, writes Peter Brammall

“While talent is spread equally across our country, opportunity is not. Levelling up is a mission to challenge, and change, that unfairness. Levelling up means giving everyone the opportunity to flourish.”

So said the levelling up white paper, published to much fanfare back in February.

While the man behind the slogan, Boris Johnson, is living on borrowed time in Downing Street, the two rivals to be his successor – Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak – have both insisted that the mission of levelling up the UK continues.

But what none of the proponents of this policy seem to have grasped is that, if levelling up is to have any real meaning, it has to start at the bottom.

And this shouldn’t just be about “left-behind” provincial towns.

When we think of what education select committee chair Robert Halfon calls the “ladder of opportunity”, we must not forget those left behind and isolated – all too literally – from their communities. Prisoners.

Even by the time they walk through the prison gate for the first time, these individuals are all too often already at a disadvantage.

Many have had limited or negative previous experiences of education; Ministry of Justice data shows that 57 per cent of adult prisoners have literacy levels below those expected of an 11-year-old.

Prison education offers the best opportunity of providing prisoners with the support, training and skills they need to escape the cycle of reoffending by finding stable employment at the end of their sentence – not to mention a means of reducing the astonishing £18 billion-a year cost of reoffending to society.

So why does it receive so little focus from politicians and policymakers?

Analysis by Novus suggests that the funding rate for the male prison population stands at less than one fifth of the equivalent rate for students in community-based adult education.

Education providers in this most complex and challenges of contexts are, quite simply, expected to do more with less.

And it’s not just about money: insightful reports published this year by the education and justice select committees shine a light on the structural and cultural obstacles providers face in delivering the standard of education and support that prisoners so badly need.

But while it’s easy to look on in consternation at the list of issues which need to be addressed, there is no need to be despondent about the future of prison education.

As anyone who attended Novus’ ‘moving on’ Conference last month can attest, it’s impossible not to be caught up in the energy, enthusiasm and expertise which pervades the sector.

There is a real passion from those who are engaged with this cohort, helping to maximise their educational opportunity on a daily basis.

We are working with a fraction of the prisoners we could be supporting

As conference speaker Fred Sirieix, maître d’hôtel in Channel 4’s First Dates and founder of The Right Course, pointed out, there are myriad examples of outstanding practice which have emerged. That’s despite some of the systemic challenges and structures which exist.

Through its partnership with The Right Course, Novus helps to deliver professional hospitality and catering training using prison staff canteens as the vehicle for work experience.

We have many other innovative collaborations with employers across the country, including Green King, Willmott Dixon and Premier Waste Recycling.

But we are working with a fraction of the prisoners we could be supporting, often aided by relatively small pockets of discretionary funding, a bit of innovative thinking and leveraging the sector ‘nous’ and contacts of partners such as Fred and his team.

In pockets, this entrepreneurial approach works phenomenally well.

But with up to half of prisoners not having access to education in the first place, and many who are allocated to education regularly failing to find their way to the classroom, even the scarce resources in play are often not being used as effectively as they could be.

Collectively, we can, and must, do better.

As a national provider of prison education with a wealth of expertise developed through 30 years of supporting the hardest-to-reach learners, Novus is determined to be part of this conversation – and to contribute towards building a prison education service fit for the 21st century.

This is not the time for settling for how things currently are.

If things are to improve, we collectively have to make the case for ambitious change.

At our conference we were treated to valuable workshops from practitioners and employers, outlining what is working well and areas where real change is desperately needed.

We also heard insights by representatives from the likes of the Prisoners’ Education Trust, the Learning and Work Institute and Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service.

We are all aspirational for the system and the potential for real change it could offer and believe it is time for a New Deal for prison education.

Together, we can achieve so much more – and create a movement for genuine levelling up that starts at the bottom rung of the ladder.

The first T Level results mark a milestone in level 3 qualification reform

Yesterday’s T Level results show the new qualification is off to a fine start, writes Jennifer Coupland, CEO of the Institute for Apprenticeships & Technical Education

I would like to say a massive congratulations to all the trailblazing students who found out how they did with their T Levels yesterday.

It took guts to invest their futures in something completely new but it’s fantastic to think of them being repaid with seriously enhanced career prospects. 

They have also of course paved the way for thousands of other people to follow in their footsteps.

We started intentionally small in terms of numbers taking the first T Levels launched in September 2020.

We now know that students have achieved a 92% pass rate and most who applied to university were accepted. T Levels are also proving to be a really good way into apprenticeships and skilled work. The thing that students we’ve spoken to have been most fired up about has been the substantial industry placements, typically lasting 45 days. It’s what makes T Levels stand out and has in many cases led directly to job offers.

T Levels must be a brilliant springboard onto even bigger and better things and we’ve worked with employers and industry experts to develop new progression profiles as a guide to where they can lead for the next generation of students. 

Feedback on these new qualifications has also been really encouraging from the FE sector – which I was delighted to read about in FE Week.

The next step will of course be to scale everything up and make sure there is good coverage of T levels across the country and that they are accessible for people from all backgrounds.

As of October 2021, there were around 100 schools and colleges providers offering T Levels. It’s widening out to many more from September 2022 which will obviously make a big difference.

Make no mistake, we want to get to a point where equal numbers of young people take T Levels as A Levels. I know that’s a long way off, but we have made a fine start and it can be done.

With regards to defunding of alternatives, the reform process isn’t about targeting a particular type of qualification, it is about making sure all the qualifications available are really high quality and match up to employers’ skills needs. That’s best for students because it will ensure they are taught skills that are relevant and truly needed by employers. 

Only a small number of qualifications that overlap with T Levels are being retired at present and IfATE will introduce a new employer-led approval system for upholding the quality of technical qualifications in future.

A provisional list of 160 level 3 qualifications up for retirement was published in May. This is a small proportion of the qualifications available at this level – so does not represent the cull feared in some quarters. What it does amount to is recognition of the vital importance of T Levels and setting a higher employer-led quality bar for all qualifications which will benefit everyone.

So, the first T Level results day has been a massive positive, but it is just the beginning and must point the way to even better things ahead. 

Let’s capitalise together on all the goodwill and positivity around what they have delivered to date, the dedication and hard work of providers, and the wonderful young people who made up that first cohort. We can and will ensure that the wider rollout of the programme is a big success.

T Level results are welcome but need further scrutiny

Almost a third of T Level students did not receive their university offer which merits closer investigation, writes Lisa Morrison Coulthard

We are delighted to see the results for the first three T Levels in construction, digital and education and childcare. They offer the first insights into the impact of the government’s flagship technical alternative to A-levels.

With an overall pass rate of 92.2 per cent (compared to 98.4 per cent for A-levels), we congratulate this first cohort – not just for taking the new qualification but for overcoming the challenging impacts of Covid-19.

However, in addition to the actual results achieved, we feel it is important to reflect on the view of the students completing these qualifications.

The findings of the first Technical Education Learner Survey, commissioned by Department for Education and undertaken by NatCen and NFER, provide unique perspectives and rich data from over 700 students.

Students’ views were positive with high levels of satisfaction reported both overall and with different course elements, including the industry placement, despite the impact of Covid-19 on programme delivery and securing placements.

The results published by DfE show that, despite the difficulties arising from the pandemic, 94 per cent of learners successfully completed their industry placement.

Our research also showed that most students found the workload to be manageable and their course suitably challenging.

The results published by DfE for both the core component and occupational specialist elements of the course are promising – with 99.5 per cent achieving an E or above (for the core component) and 97.5 per cent a pass or above for the specialist course elements.

More than 34 per cent of T Level students receiving results today were awarded a Distinction or Distinction* overall.

It will be important to evaluate whether students’ positive experience of T Levels carries through to successful progression into higher education, apprenticeships and employment.

It will also be crucial to see how valuable they are perceived to be by industry and HE.

The news from UCAS today is that 71 per cent of T Level university applicants have received their places.

This suggests that 29 per cent of T Level students did not. The reasons for this require some investigating.

We also note that around a fifth of learners did not complete their T Level course and this also merits further scrutiny.

We note that a fifth of learners did not complete their T Level course and this merits further scrutiny

In considering the experience and grades achieved by this cohort, it is important to be mindful of the unique characteristics of this first intake and remember that the first two years of T Levels have been far from “normal”.

Covid-19 aside, the cohort size was quite modest (around 1,300 students in 2020 compared to 5450 in 2021), in turn, class sizes were much smaller than would be anticipated for future intakes.

All providers were rated good or outstanding by Ofsted and, due to the smaller intake, there was less competition for industry placements than will be the case in the future as T Levels are rolled out.

So, it would be reasonable to consider the experiences of the 2020 cohort to not be representative of those of subsequent intakes.

It is, therefore, still early days for T Levels and how well they are received and valued both by industry and higher education needs to be carefully monitored.

The longitudinal Technical Education Learner Survey which NFER is working on with NatCen will continue to provide decision-makers with survey-based evidence capturing T Level students’ experiences, journeys and outcomes until 2024.

Nevertheless, this year’s results are testament to the hard work and dedication of both students and providers during a very difficult and unique set of circumstances.

We wish these students every success in their next steps, whether in higher education, an apprenticeship or employment.

A-level results 2022: 6 key trends in England’s data

Results from the first formal A-level exams held since 2019 have been published.

Here’s what we know…

1. Overall performance in England

The proportion of A* and A grades has dropped this year compared to 2021 (when teacher-assessed grades were used) from 44.3 per cent to 35.9 per cent. However, this is still way above the 25.2 per cent getting top grades in 2019. 

For grade C and above, 82.1 per cent achieved this this year compared to 88.2 per cent in 2021 and 75.5 per cent in 2019.

However, the number of A-level students who achieved 3 A* grades has remained high at 8,570 but dropped a third from 2021 at 12,865. It’s still higher than 2020 – 7,775 – and much higher than 2019 – 2,785.

2. A-level grade distribution: 2019 to 2022

3. North-south divide widens

London has seen the sharpest rise in top grades since 2019 – rising 12.1 percentage points from 26.9 to 39 per cent. However, the north east has only seen a 7.8 percentage point increase from 23.0 to 30.8. 

It is bound to raise questions about whether this was down to the pandemic, which hit some areas harder than others.

4. FE colleges see biggest drop in top grades

Ofqual data shows private students in FE establishments saw the biggest drop in top grades following the reintroduction of summer exams.

The proportion of candidates awarded an A and above in all subjects fell by 12.7 percentage points. Independent schools saw the next biggest drop – 12.4 percentage points.

Despite this, the proportion of top grades awarded was once again highest in private schools. This year, 58 per cent of grades issued to private school pupils were As or above, down from 70.4 per cent last year but up from 44.7 per cent in 2019.

In comparison, the proportion of top grades was 50.4 per cent in grammar schools, 45 per cent in free schools, 35 per cent in academies, 31.9 per cent in sixth form colleges and 30.7 per cent in comprehensive schools.

The lowest proportions of top grades were issued in secondary modern schools, which are non-selective schools in selective areas, at 27.8 per cent, tertiary colleges (27.5 per cent) and FE establishments (16.5 per cent).

5. Which subjects are gaining/losing popularity?

Across the UK, there has been no change to the top five most popular subjects. But some subjects have increased in popularity while others have fallen.

Design and technology saw the biggest increase in entries, up by 14.3 per cent this year, closely followed by computing (13.5 per cent), PE (11.4 per cent) and political studies (11 per cent).

English literature saw the biggest decrease, with entries falling by 9.4 per cent. It dropped out of the 10 most popular subjects for the first time, replaced by geography.

English language and literature entries dropped by 5.8 per cent and French fell by 5.4 per cent. Entries to further maths also dropped by 3.8 per cent.

6. Which subjects have the biggest gender gap in entries?

JCQ has published data on the differences between boys’ and girls’ A-level subject choices, which as ever makes for interesting reading.

Computing continues to have far more entries from boys, who make up more than eight in 10 entrants, while physics, further maths, ICT and design and technology are also much more popular among boys than girls.

At the other end of the scale, performing and expressive arts, English literature, sociology and art and design subjects had much higher entries from girls than boys.

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A passport into industry: First T Level graduates praise flagship qualifications

As the first ever T Level graduates collect their results on level 3 results day, senior reporter Jason Noble went along to City College Norwich to find out how students fared in the inaugural – and pandemic-impacted – years…

When the T Level qualifications were first set up two years ago, one of the biggest selling points was the 45-day industry placement to help students get a foot in the door of their future industries.

And as buoyant students wander through the reception doors at City College Norwich to collect their results, the impact that work has had on their next steps becomes abundantly clear. Some of the graduates for the design, surveying and planning for constriction T Level – dressed in employer-branded polo shirts – can’t even hang around because they are heading straight off to work with the employers they did their placement with.

“The bit of paper and grade is important, but it is only a passport to the next stage of your life,” said new principal Jerry White, who served as deputy since 2013 before taking on the top job over the summer.

“When I see young people going off into brilliant degree apprenticeships, or great work, the doors have been opened by their placement as part of their T Level, or going off to universities with them being prepared to embrace T Levels, that is brilliant.”

Libby Smith, who passed her education and childcare T Level and is eyeing a career in teaching, added: “The experience has helped me a lot because I have not really done much around the school environment, but getting that practise in was really helpful because I have now got a part time job at Busy Bees [a local nursery] and that’s really boosted my confidence a lot working with children.”

Jerry White, principal at City College Norwich

Nationally, around 1,300 students signed up for the first three T Level courses two years ago – the aforementioned education and childcare and construction qualifications, as well as digital production, design and development – with just over 1,000 completing courses.

City College was among a handful to go for all three courses from the start. It had 70 students across the three qualifications, with nearly three quarters (73 per cent) achieving a merit or higher and 34 per cent getting a distinction.

Its overall pass rates were 94 per cent for construction, 96 per cent for education and childcare and 100 per cent for digital.

Interestingly, the digital course was the one with the lowest pass rate nationally at 89.7 per cent, meaning Norwich students performed above average.

White said the college was keen to be a trailblazer for the new qualifications, and even now the leaders for the new T Levels which launched last year or will do this September are learning from the experiences of the first cohort.

“We supported the vision for T Levels which was around challenging the dominance to A-levels, and trying to bring a parity of esteem to technical and vocational education,” White said.

“The T Level does offer us the ability to have a conversation with a parent, a school, a young person , that says you have got a real choice and they are both really well recognised.

“We thought that by being at the forefront of that we would firstly be able to help shape how they developed, and perhaps add something to that, and secondly we felt that for a large general further education college like this, the implications of T Levels for when they are all rolled out it’s worth getting in early and understanding how to do them well.”

Given the natural feet-finding with new courses coupled with the disruption of the Covid-19 pandemic, it hasn’t been without issues.

Some more clarity between the colleges and awarding bodies on assessments is one area for development, White says, after some confusion with the final digital exams.

Some digital T Level students also had to quickly switch to online industry placements as offices closed down during the pandemic.

Elsewhere, second year construction students faced teaching disruption in the first term when two of the course delivery staff left, resulting in some students saying they had more of an onus on their own learning and a greater reliance on the industry placements during that time.

Going forward, more employers will need to be recruited to fulfil the placements, but staffing may also be a barrier under the current funding arrangements where more competitive salaries can be offered in their industries of expertise or higher education.

City College Norwich T level graduates Libby Smith, Josh Demark, and Brad Reese

“It could quickly become the limiting factor on what T Level colleges can offer,” White said. “We may find we can’t meet the demand for T Levels from students because we haven’t got and cannot retain the highly qualified industry experts to deliver the courses.”

But for now, despite the challenges – which like the A-levels did result in a level of generosity in grades at the request of the Department for Education for this year – the outcomes for students have been largely positive.

Their future destinations appear to be a wide mix of university courses, apprenticeships, further study or employment, depending on career preferences and modes of study.

“The course as a whole was a pretty decent course considering you get an industry placement, which is now leading to the fact that I get a contract on Monday. It opened a lot of doors within one industry, I am ready for a career in construction and the T Level has allowed me to move forward,” said Brad Reese a construction graduate.

Fellow course-mate Josh Demark added: “I think it is the way forward. I have got a route into industry that doesn’t involve university, which I am quite glad about.”

BTEC delays wreck results day for some

Anxious BTEC students have been left in limbo after receiving blank results slips from their colleges this morning.

Essential final results needed to confirm university places and next steps should have been confirmed to students hours ago alongside results for other level 3 qualifications like A-levels and T Levels. 

Pearson, the awarding body for BTECs, has been bombarded by worried BTEC students and their parents over the course of the day.

FE Week has received numerous reports from students and parents that received blank overall grade sections on their results slips. 

Blank BTEC results slip received on results day
Blank BTEC results slip received by a student

One student told FE Week that they have even been trying to get a place through clearing as their UCAS status is still “awaiting confirmation” and they are worried that the admin blunder could lose them a place at university altogether. However without their final grade confirmed by the awarding body, they were advised by a clearing adviser that nothing could be done.

One college with affected students has published a statement explaining the situation. 

Manchester principal defends students

The Manchester College said: “There has been a delay in receiving some of the BTEC National results from the awarding body, Pearson. This means that some students who say their BTEC exams in June and July this year will not have received their results this morning as originally scheduled.”

Principal Lisa O’Loughlin stated: “Our students have worked so hard over the last few years, in challenging circumstances and do not deserve to be facing this lack of clarity and uncertainty during what is already an anxious time.”

A spokesperson for Pearson told FE Week it has “awarded grades today to hundreds of thousands of BTEC students” but it is aware of “a very small percentage of BTEC students are experiencing a delay in receiving their results”, going on to appear to lay the blame at schools and colleges. 

“BTECs are a modular qualification and in order for us to award an overall grade, we require unit grades to be provided for each module studied. Where unit information is missing, we are working closely with schools and colleges to resolve this and provide any outstanding results as soon as we can.”

Pressure mounts as Pearson process results ‘by the hour’

Pearson has refused to share the exact number of students affected, though tells us that results are being sent to students “by the hour”.

“We urge any student waiting for their results to please call us on 0345 618 0440 where our team is standing by to help. If you have a UCAS application the advice is to speak directly to your university first (or we can contact your university for you) and encourage them to follow UCAS advisory guidelines to hold offers until 7 September,” a spokesperson said.    

There is a growing number of calls for a full investigation in to what’s happened from students, politicians and sector leaders.

In a letter sent to Pearson’s senior vice president for qualifications, Freya Thomas Monk, the Association of Colleges (AoC) has asked Pearson to be “open and clear about how many students have had and still have delayed results … to allow everyone to understand the scale of problem”.

David Hughes, the AoC’s chief executive, also calls for an open investigation to find out how so many students’ results have been delayed to “ensure this cannot happen again”.

Several politicians, including Labour’s shadow minister for further education and skills Toby Perkins, have taken the case to the education secretary.

In his letter to James Cleverly, Perkins says he is concerned that students haven’t been given a timescale to expect to see their confirmed final results. He also calls for “a full investigation in to what has happened and how such issues can be prevented from happening in the future”.

As well as calling for an investigation, the Sheffield Hallam MP Olivia Blake has called on Cleverly to “put measures in place to mitigate any detrimental impacts to the students affected”.

An Oxfordshire parent tweeted about her experience at Abingdon and Witney College this morning, where her daughter was one of several students that wasn’t provided with their final grade and so can’t confirm their place at university. 

“Still no news despite contacting Pearson direct, and Abingdon College who say they are chasing Pearson. This is absolutely crazy,” she wrote. 

Abingdon and Whitney College principal Jacqui Canton apologised for the delay and said students should have been emailed their results this afternoon.

“Unfortunately, a small number of BTEC students received an incomplete results slip this morning but were emailed their full results this afternoon.  We are sorry for the slight delay in being able to provide their full results and for any worry that this has caused but we are confident that everything is now resolved. If any students have outstanding queries they should contact the college exams team as soon as possible and we will provide any support that we can,” Canton told FE Week.

https://twitter.com/GeorgeKooper2/status/1560220875630206976?s=20&t=51BFOtY3zoDhaFjfphWW5Q

“Absolute joke or a results day for the BTEC kids. Six hours and still don’t my son’s results. Shambles,” a parent in Lancashire tweeted. 

Another distressed student told FE Week they were cut off while on hold with Pearson. 

And another student, also with a place at university at risk, told us that their university simply cannot accept their results without the overall grade – which was missing from their results slip – and told them to “hope for the best”.

Pearson is asking those affected to contact them on 0345 618 0440 and say they can contact universities on behalf of affected students to ask that they hold places until results can be released.

But Pearson is not alone in taking steps today to remedy delays to results.

Fellow awarding giant OCR has said students still waiting for results of its Cambridge Technicals qualifications will be regularly updated on the situation.

“While most results were delivered on time, we are sorry for a delay in issuing Cambridge Technicals for some students,” an OCR spokesperson said.

“In these exceptional cases, we are working with schools and colleges to deliver results as soon as possible and to keep UCAS informed where results are needed for university offers. We will provide regular updates to those affected”.

Exams regulator Ofqual said it is “monitoring Pearson and OCR to ensure they are taking all necessary steps to work with any affected schools and colleges to resolve these issues as soon as possible”.

A spokesperson added: “Where an exam board fails to issue results to students and the board is ultimately found to be at fault, we could choose to take regulatory action.”

Pearson’s public statement in full (via Twitter at 9.07pm on results day)

“We are aware that a very small percentage of BTEC students didn’t receive their results today. We’re working closely with your school or college to deliver your results to both you and the university you’ve applied for.

“If you’d like us to contact the university to let them know, we’ll be pleased to do so. We’re doing everything we can to ensure that you receive your result as soon as possible.

“For further support, please contact us on 0345 618 0440 (from 08.30am-6.00pm), or DM us via @PearsonBTEC on social media, or via our online portal for further support.”

A-level results are no disaster – but the system is not out of the woods

The vast majority of young people who wanted to attend university now can – after that there are some tricky questions, writes Tom Richmond

Although A-level results day is always a special moment across thousands of schools and colleges, we should remember that today is particularly special for the young people who took their exams this year.

After their GCSEs were abandoned in 2020 due to COVID, many of this year’s students have faced the ever-daunting challenge of high stakes examinations for the first time.

That is a noteworthy achievement, even before their grades were awarded.

After two years of eye-watering grade inflation, especially in the proportion of top grades awarded in 2020 and 2021, the exam regulator Ofqual decided in advance that 2022 was going to be a halfway house.

This year results would be graded somewhere between the entirely unrepresentative grades in 2021 and the grades achieved in the last set of normal exams back in 2019.

In general, this is precisely what we have seen today.

The proportion of A or A* grades fell from 44 per cent in 2021 to 36 per cent this year, with another step down needed in 2023 to get back to something like the 25 per cent achieved in 2019.

Similarly, the proportion of A* grades fell from 19 per cent in 2021 to 15 per cent this year, although a big drop is required next summer to return to eight per cent of grades being an A* as in 2019.

Inevitably, the sharp rise in top grades at private schools attracted a lot of attention last year, with their proportion of A/A*s leaping from 45 per cent in 2019 to 70 per cent in 2021.

In 2022, this process has inevitably gone into reverse as the grade distribution across all schools and colleges begins to return to normality, with 58 per cent of private school pupils achieving A/A*s this year.

FE colleges have also experienced a noticeable drop in A/A*s, from 29 per cent last year to 17 per cent in 2022.

That said, this drop means there is only a small adjustment needed in 2023 to bring them back into line with the 13 per cent of A/A*s achieved in 2019.

Other institutions such as grammar schools and private schools have much further to fall in 2023.

So has this year been fair on students, with fewer top grades available than last year?

I would point to the absurdity of last year’s grades for any ‘fairness’ concerns rather than Ofqual’s reasonably sensible solution

I would point to the absurdity of last year’s grades as being the source of any ‘fairness’ concerns rather than Ofqual’s reasonably sensible solution implemented this year.

On that basis we should be comfortable with the grades achieved in 2022 – not least because this year’s students did not suffer the extent of school and colleges closures experienced by the previous two exam cohorts.

There were inevitably question marks about how universities would react this summer to falling top grades after last year’s spike.

From the data released by UCAS, it appears that any such fears were misplaced.

Some 374,580 applicants have been accepted onto their first-choice university degree, which is admittedly 20,000 fewer than the 395,770 in 2020.

But it is nothing like the scale of disaster that some commentators were predicting.

Similarly, the number of students accepted onto either their first or second choice degree is the second highest on record at 425,830 – only two per cent lower than 2021.

We can therefore say with some confidence that despite Ofqual bringing down the proportion of top grades this year relative to 2021, the vast majority of young people who wanted to attend university will be able to do so.

Needless to say, our A-level system is not out of the woods yet as we emerge from the pandemic.

If Ofqual do indeed bring the proportion of top grades back to 2019 levels in the summer of 2023, they will have to cut the proportion of A* grades in half in one go.

As ever, do not underestimate the politics of grade inflation – both as grades go up, and as grades go down.

But that’s for another day. For now, let’s just enjoy the achievements of so many young people.

T Level results 2022: 6 key findings

The first T Level results are out – here’s what we know.

  1. Overall performance

The total number of T Level students receiving results today was 1,029. A 92.2 per cent pass rate was achieved overall.

Overall T Level grades are calculated from core component grades, occupational specialism grades and industry placement completion status.

The proportion of students receiving a Distinction or Distinction* was 34.6 per cent, while Merit was 39.8 per cent and Pass was 17.8 per cent.

The data shows that 7.4 per cent (76 students) “partially achieved” at least one component of their T Level but not yet all three. These students will receive a “statement of achievement” listing the components and grades they have achieved, but it will not include an overall grade. The government said it will still have “value to employers, higher education providers and others”.

The remaining 0.4 per cent (four students) have been marked as “unclassified” because they have attempted at least one at least one component but not yet achieved any.

So as of today, there are 949 people with a T Level.

  1. Digital was the toughest subject

The first T Levels were available from September 2020 in three subjects: education and childcare; design, surveying and planning for construction; and digital production, design and development.

Today’s data shows that 89.7 per cent of the 340 students on the digital pathway passed, compared to 93.4 per cent of the 482 learners on education and childcare, and 93.7 per cent of the 207 students on construction.

The proportion receiving top grades – Distinction or Distinction* – in digital was 25.9 per cent, compared to 35.8 per cent for construction and 40.2 per cent for education and childcare.

  1. Uneven gender split

Of the 1,029 T Level students receiving results, 523 were women and 506 were men. But the figures show participation was skewed by gender stereotypes.

A huge 97 per cent of education and childcare students were women, while men made up 90 per cent and 89 per cent of construction and digital T Level learners respectively.

Overall, across all three subjects, 93.5 per cent of women achieved at least a Pass compared to 90.9 per cent for men.

Women also out-performed men in achieving the top grades, with 41.1 per cent of women getting a Distinction* or Distinction compared to 27.9 per cent of men.

  1. 6% didn’t complete an industry placement

A 45-day industry placement must be completed by each student in order to achieve a T Level. This first cohort of students were, however, allowed to spend up to 40 per cent of their placement hours remotely after the Department for Education temporarily watered down the policy to reflect the impact of Covid-19.

Today’s data shows that 62, or 6 per cent, of the 1,029 T Level students did not complete an industry placement.

Construction had the highest rate of industry placement completion at 94.2 per cent, followed closely by education and childcare at 94 per cent. In digital, 93.8 per cent of students completed an industry placement.

Women in digital had the highest rates of industry placement non-completion, 8.3 per cent, but it is worth noting that only 33 of the 304 digital T Level students were women.

There was a 100 per cent completion rate for women that passed the T Level in construction, however this only amounted to 20 students.

  1. A fifth appear to have dropped out

The Department for Education previously said that around 1,300 students started a T Level in autumn 2020.

But today’s data shows that 1,029 students received T Level results – suggesting that a fifth dropped out.

The DfE refused to share the exact drop-out figure.

  1. Over a quarter that applied for uni got rejected

UCAS said 370 students have been accepted onto a university course following their results. This is 71 per cent of all T Level learners that applied for a higher education place, however.

It means that more than a third (36 per cent) of the T Level students receiving results today will be going to university.

A-level results 2022: Top grades drop 19% but remain higher than 2019

The proportion of top A-level results achieved by students in England has dropped 19 per cent after the first summer exams in three years, but remains much higher than in 2019.

Today’s data shows 35.9 per cent of grades handed out this year were A* or A grades, down from 44.3 per cent in 2021 and 38.1 per cent in 2020 – when teachers decided grades. 

But top grades are still up on 2019 results (25.2 per cent) – the last year summer exams were held.

The proportion of grades at C and above fell to 82.1 per cent from 88.2 per cent in 2021 and 87.5 per cent in 2020, but again, this was higher than in 2019, when 75.5 per cent of grades were at that level.

Students receiving three A* grades fell to 8,570, down from 12,865 in 2021.

However, this still remained higher than the 7,775 seen in 2020, and more than triple the 2,785 students who reached that benchmark in 2019.

The Joint Council for Qualifications has published the results from the first summer A-level exams since the pandemic began. Students were awarded centre-assessed grades in 2020 and teacher-assessed grades in 2021 because of Covid disruption.

Grades ‘broadly midway’ between 2021 and 2019

The drop in top grades was expected. Exams watchdog Ofqual instructed exam boards to peg the results in between those received in 2019 when formal exams last happened and 2021, which saw by far the highest top grades on record.

Exam boards are publishing grade boundaries today, which are generally lower this summer in 2019. However, Ofqual says not all grades boundaries are lower since “position of the boundaries also reflects the difficulty of the assessment”. 

Dr Jo Saxton, chief regulator, said the class of 2022 “can be so proud of what they have achieved”. 

“I felt strongly that it would not have been right to go straight back to pre-pandemic grading in one go but accept that we do need to continue to take steps back to normality. 

“These results overall, coming as they do broadly midway between 2021 and 2019, represent a staging post on that journey.”

Ofqual is aiming to confirm grading plans for 2023 summer exams in September.

Private schools and London students fare best once again

The proportion of top grades awarded was once again highest in private schools. This year, 58 per cent of grades issued to private school pupils were As or above, compared to 35 per cent in academies, and 30.7 per cent in comprehensive schools.

As was the case last year, students in London fared the best in the exams, with 39 per cent of grades at A* to A, compared to 30.8 per cent in the north east.

London also enjoyed the greatest rise in top grades between 2019 and 2022. Over the three years, the proportion of A* and A grades rose by 12.1 percentage points in the capital, compared to 7.8 percentage points in the north east.

This will likely prompt questions about the uneven regional impact of the pandemic on students during the last two years. 

However we will have to wait until the autumn to see how other different groups of students, such as those on free school meals, fared.

This is because Ofqual has had less time to analyse the results than in the last two years, when grades were submitted earlier.

Today’s data also shows the gender gap in top grades has widened since 2019 across the United Kingdom.

This year, 14.8 per cent of grades issued to females were A*s, compared to 14.4 per cent of grades issued to males. This contrasts to 2019 when males’ outcomes were higher.

The proportion of A* to A grades issued to females was 37.4 per cent, compared to 35.2 per cent for males, whereas outcomes were the same in 2019.

Don’t ‘fixate’ on grades, says leader

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the ASCL school leaders’ union, congratulated those receiving results. 

“To say they deserve great credit is an understatement given the context of a global pandemic which has caused huge disruption to their studies over the past two-and-a-half years.”

However, he warned it was “likely that results at the level of schools, colleges, and students will be uneven because of the highly variable impact of the pandemic with those affected more by infections potentially faring less well than others”. 

“Adaptations were made to exams to try to mitigate this impact in as far as that is possible but this is not a normal year by any measure and it is important that we focus on supporting the progression of students rather than fixating too much on grades.”