A guide to submitting GCSE History controlled assessment in summer 2017
This update contains a quick summary of how to submit GCSE History controlled assessment marks and samples. It includes a reminder of the submission deadline and the materials you need to send to the moderator, and lots of other useful advice and links. There is also one very important change to the process this year which teachers need to know about!
Let's start with the important change…
This year we will no longer be sending out hard copy OPTEMS forms (optically scanned mark sheets) for you to submit controlled assessment marks. This means that all marks will need to be submitted online via Edexcel Online.
So… no more waiting for OPTEMS to arrive in the post and instead you will need to familiarise yourself with the process of submitting marks online. This is a straightforward process which is covered below.
How do I submit my controlled assessment marks to Pearson?
You can no longer submit marks on an OPTEMS form (optically scanned mark sheets) so all marks must be submitted online via Edexcel Online.
For each student you should submit the raw mark out of 50. Please do not try to double the mark or convert it into a percentage, grade or UMS mark. Please also remember that there are no separate additional marks for SPaG (Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar) in controlled assessment.
Important: You may need to amend your Edexcel Online access to allow you to submit controlled assessment marks online. To do this your exams officer will need to go into your Edexcel Online account and under ‘profiles’ tick the box next to ‘Coursework and Portfolio’. If they also tick the ‘Results’ box you will be able to view your E9 moderator report on results day.
After submitting marks online you should print out a copy of the marks for the moderator and a copy for your own records.
Where is the Edexcel Online link?
Links can be found on the Edexcel website.
If you need to be set up with an Edexcel Online account please ask your exams officer.
If you’ve forgotten your Edexcel Online password you can generate a new one.
What happens if I make an error when submitting controlled assessment marks?
If you have already submitted a mark but it needs to be amended (eg because of an administrative error), please email courseworkmarks@pearson.com with details of the student and amended point score.
When will I be able to access Edexcel Online to submit marks and see the requested sample?
You should be able to start submitting marks now but you won’t be able to view the requested sample until the beginning of April 2017.
How do I identify the sample of work that needs to be sent to the moderator?
When you log in to Edexcel Online and go to the controlled assessment mark submission screen there will be a tick next to the candidates' names that need to be sent for moderation. You also need to send the work of the highest- and lowest-scoring candidates if they are not part of the requested sample.
If, for some reason, you're unable to send the work for a particular student, you should send the work of an equivalent student with a similar mark. You should also write a note to the moderator explaining the reason for the change.
What is the deadline for submitting controlled assessment marks?
The final date for submitting GCSE History controlled assessment marks and samples of work for the summer 2017 series is 15 May 2017.
This is the date by which you must have submitted your controlled assessment marks to us via Edexcel Online, and have sent your sample of student work to the moderator. Please note that your Exams Officer will have their own internal deadlines.
Where a centre has been affected by circumstances beyond its control, it may, in exceptional cases, be possible for us to grant a short extension. Requests must be sent to the history assessment team at history@pearson.com.
Who is my moderator and what is their address?
Moderators are randomly allocated to centres. You will be able to find out your moderator’s name and address from early April via Edexcel Online.
Your centre will receive a stationery send which will contain envelopes suitable for sending controlled assessment to the moderator.
Complete portfolio of work for one student must also be sent
Please note that for controlled assessment submitted in summer 2017 you are required to send the complete portfolio of work for one student. This is a requirement for the strengthened GCSE specification to ensure that all the required content is taught. The portfolio must include work carried out by the student and copies of all handouts and other materials provided by the teacher for the entire controlled assessment task.
The student whose portfolio of work is to be submitted will not be known until you have identified the requested sample via Edexcel Online. When the students who are required for the moderation sample are identified (with a tick next to their name), you need to find the student with the second highest mark total within the overall required sample and send this student’s complete portfolio of work.
If, for some reason, this student’s complete portfolio of work is unavailable, send the portfolio of next highest scoring student in the sample.
What other materials need to be sent to the moderator?
- Sample of student work
- Complete portfolio of work for one student
- Edexcel Online print out of student marks
- Relevant students' notes, plans and bibliographies
- Copy of your third representation
- Students' individual candidate authentication sheets
Where can I find the controlled assessment forms?
You can find the forms on the relevant qualification page under ‘forms and administration’:
Where is the mark scheme?
This may seem obvious, but we always get a lot of queries asking where the mark schemes are.
There are no topic-specific mark schemes for GCSE History controlled assessment. For GCSE controlled assessment, there is only a generic mark scheme. This can be found in the relevant specification. Please make sure you use the correct mark scheme for the 2013 strengthened tasks.
Do I need to carry out internal standardisation of marking?
In large centres with multiple teachers, it's essential that you carry out internal moderation before you finalise the coursework or controlled assessment marks. You should sample double-mark, selecting mark points within the same level from different teaching sets. The double marking should continue until you are satisfied that you have achieved comparability.
Small schools with only one teacher need not carry out internal standardisation.
How should I annotate the work?
It's important that you annotate the controlled assessment to show the moderator how you have interpreted the mark scheme and applied it to the students' work.
Indications in the margins as to where specific assessment levels are perceived, together with summative comments at the end of each part of the coursework or controlled assessment, are ideal.
You should mark and annotate the work in ink. Initial marking may be done in pencil until you're satisfied that you are applying the marking criteria accurately and consistently. Please then go over your marks and comments in ink. The colour of the ink is not important provided it is visibly different to the student’s work.
What are the grade boundaries?
You should not attempt to grade the work. You should be marking the work by applying the marking criteria in a consistent manner.
The controlled assessment grades will be awarded at the end of each examination series using the standard code of practice awarding process.
Grade boundaries are available to download from results day from the grade boundaries page.
Resitting linear GCSE and transferring controlled assessment marks
If a student is resitting the entire GCSE History qualification in summer 2017 and they certificated in summer 2016, then they do not need to retake controlled assessment. It is possible to transfer the controlled assessment mark across from the summer 2016 series.
In this is situation it is not necessary to enter for the controlled assessment unit - just enter for the examined units plus the overall cash-in code and last summer's controlled assessment mark will transfer across automatically.
E9 Moderator Report
While moderating your centre's controlled assessment, the moderator will write an E9 report which will give you detailed feedback on your marking and administration. You will be able to download this report on results day.
I will provide further guidance on how to access your centre's E9 Moderator Report in my results day update.
I hope you have found this update useful. If you have any further questions, please contact me.
