Exam board apologises to 5,700 BTec students for exam result delays

2022-08-25

Exam board apologises to 5,700 BTec students for exam result delays after others were left waiting a week to learn if they had passed or failed

Pearson confirmed that earlier there would be delays to thousands of results
It has claimed Covid has created ‘more complexity’ and it needs more info
240,000 students received their results for BTecs and additional 5,420 results
But 5,700 students registered for the qualification are ‘ineligble’ to get grade

An exam board has apologised to 5,700 BTec students who were deemed ineligible to be awarded grades after others were left waiting a week to learn if they had passed or failed.

Pearson said some thousands of students were awaiting for Business and Technology Education Council results on Thursday, on the same day as GCSE results day.

The organisation previously blamed teaching and learning disruption during the pandemic for adding ‘complexity to the process’ of awarding grades as a headteachers’ union said it was ‘dismayed’ to learn of the latest delay.

This means it does not have the full information to award students, who focus on skills-based learning, their results.

The latest update follows a week-long delay for some other students, who were not issued their BTEC National Level 3 results as planned last week on the day A-levels were published.

Pearson said some 5,700 students were awaiting BTec (Business and Technology Education Council) results on Thursday, on the day hundreds of thousands of pupils were receiving their GCSE grades

In an update on Thursday, a spokesperson for Pearson said: ‘Today, around 240,000 students received their results for BTec Firsts, Technicals and Tech Award qualifications.

‘In the last 24 hours, we have issued an additional 5,420 results, which were sent overnight to schools and colleges to be shared with students today. We also received thousands of new claims for student grades from schools and colleges.

‘As of 10pm yesterday, there are 5,700 students registered for the qualification who are currently ineligible to receive their grade – meaning we need to work with schools and college to resolve queries, run eligibility checks and confirm if the student still wishes to claim a grade.

‘We apologise to any student waiting for a result. We have a dedicated team in place whose focus is to provide any results as quickly as possible to eligible students. As always, we are grateful to the partnership of schools and colleges who are tirelessly supporting us in this work.’

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said the body was ‘dismayed’ to learn of the latest delay

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: ‘This is the last thing these young people need after so much disruption over the past two years.

‘It is imperative that this situation is resolved swiftly and that this does not happen again.

‘We are pleased that Ofqual has committed to reviewing what has gone wrong. It is clear that lessons must be learned.’

Pearson said the BTec results are entirely separate to GCSE results awarding.

They are modular qualifications and can be completed in up to five years.

The organisation said the majority – around 60% – are internal modules, assessed by their college or school, while the other 40% are external assessments which Pearson marks and awards a unit grade.

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