Ofqual’s ‘Future assessment arrangements for GCSE Computer Science’ consultation 2018

Ofqual is calling for responses to proposals on ‘how the programming skills of students taking GCSE Computer Science should be assessed’ in a new consultation launched on 5 November 2018. These are ‘longer-term’ proposals, to replace the current arrangements introduced in January 2018.

Consultation dates

4-week consultation period: 5 November 2018 – 3 December 2018 (4pm deadline)

Ofqual consultation decision: January 2019

The four proposals

1. The assessment of programming to be conducted under exam conditions (potential formats for exam boards to consider include paper, on-screen, online, or pre-release tests)
2. In at least one exam, students must complete 4 steps: i) design a program, ii) write a program, iii) test a program and iv) refine a program, as separate or combined activities 
3. The original assessment objective weightings for GCSE Computer Science that reflect the importance of programming will be reinstated 
4. Current assessment arrangements to remain in place for students taking exams in summer 2021, with new arrangements in place for 2022 exams.

Next steps

Ofqual states in the consultation that assessing programming skills by exam is its preferred approach. Whatever the decision announced in January 2019, we will support you through future changes. To make sure your views are reflected in our consultation response, please feel free to share your response to the consultation with us by emailing: policy@ocr.org.uk. We will also be sending out a short survey to capture your views directly.

Qualifications

• Computer Science (9-1) - J276 (from 2016)