As reported in the Daily Mail at the weekend, exam chiefs have admitted that the marking of SATs is no more reliable than judging on TV talent shows. A study found that a third of pupils are given the wrong grade in their primary school English tests. Borderline candidates whose marks are close to a grade boundary had a 50-50 chance of being mis-graded.
A report from the exams watchdog Ofqual said marking was no more consistent than Simon Cowell and the other judges on Britain's Got Talent. It suggested that examining in SATs, GCSEs and A-levels could be renamed 'Strictly Come Marking'. The report went on to call for the public to be educated about the potential for grades to vary according to the examiner who marked the papers. It said complete consistency can never be guaranteed because marking involves a series of fine judgments by individuals.
The report, compiled for Ofqual by the National Foundation for Educational Research, said: ' Saturday night viewers must be familiar with the inconsistency of personal judgments from such shows as Britain's Got Talent.
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