9 to 1 GCSE grading

What's changing and when?

As part of the government’s reform of qualifications, exam results for new GCSEs will be graded in numbers from 9 to 1 (with 9 being the top grade), instead of A* to G.

Up until 2019, students may get GCSE results in a mix of 9 to 1 and A* to G grades.

The new 9 to 1 system aims to:

• allow greater differentiation between students
• help distinguish the new GCSEs from previous versions.

How will the new system work?

• The bottom of the new grade 4 will be aligned to the bottom of grade C. Broadly the same proportion of students will get a grade 4 or above who currently get a grade C or above.
• The bottom of the new grade 7 will be aligned to the bottom of grade A. Broadly the same proportion of students will get a grade 7 and above as currently get a grade A and above in the subject.
• The bottom of grade 1 will be aligned to the bottom of the current grade G. Broadly the same proportion of students will get a grade 1 or above who currently get a grade G or above.

Under the new 9 to 1 system, there are fewer grades for the lower ability ranges – grades 1, 2 and 3 – compared to current grades G, F, E and D. For the mid to higher ability ranges however, there are more numerical grades. Close to 20% of students across all subjects who achieve a grade 7 or above will be awarded the grade 9. Fewer students will get the new grade 9 than currently get A*.

Performance table measures

DfE policy (updated in March 2017) distinguishes between grade 4 as a ‘standard pass’ and grade 5 as a ‘strong pass’. Both grades will be reported in school performance tables. Students achieving a ‘standard pass’ grade 4 or above in English and maths will not be required to continue studying these subjects post-16.

According to Ofqual, grade 5 will be positioned in the top third of the marks for a current grade C and bottom third of the marks for a current grade B. This will mean it will be of greater demand than the present grade C. Ofqual’s chart compares the new 9 to 1 and current A* to G grades:

Download Ofqual’s chart

Grade standards for new 9 to 1 GCSEs

Grade boundaries will not be known in advance of the exams. To protect the interests of the first students taking new exams, grade boundaries for new 9 to 1 GCSEs will be set on the basis of statistical prediction, after the exams have been taken. This approach, called comparable outcomes, which is followed by OCR and all exam boards, is designed so students are not disadvantaged because they are in the first year of new exams.

Tiering

New GCSEs in subjects including maths, combined science, biology, chemistry and physics have overlapping foundation and higher tiers. For the higher tier, students will be able to get grades 9–4. A student who just misses out on a grade 4 will be awarded a grade 3. For the foundation tier, students will be able to get grades 1–5, so that students who are entered for the foundation tier can still achieve a ‘strong pass’.

You may be interested in the following blog posts:

• Reviews of marking for centre-assessed marks: Your questions answered
• How will the new 9-1 GCSEs be graded?
• How linear qualifications and grade boundaries work
• GCSE 9-1 grades: What’s new in 2018?

More information from Ofqual

• Grade standards
• Grade descriptors for individual subjects