GCSE History Grade Boundaries Summer 2023
This update provides further information to Edexcel GCSE History teachers on Summer 2023 grade boundaries.
Teachers can access Summer 2023 grade boundaries on our website from results day. In addition to the official grade boundaries that are produced at subject level, we also provide notional grade boundaries at paper level.
This table summarises the two different types of grade boundaries documents:
| Subject level boundaries | Subject level boundaries are the official grade boundaries for the overall subject. There is one set of boundaries for each possible route through the specification. Because each option is awarded separately, the overall subject boundaries may differ depending on which topics students have been entered for. |
| Notional paper boundaries | The notional grade boundaries document contains component boundaries at paper level for all GCSE papers to help you mark and grade mocks in future series. These grades are not displayed on official/formal results documentation. Because the GCSE 9-1 History specifications are linear, students are not given grades for each paper they sit. Notional grade boundaries do not always add up to the overall subject level boundaries because some are set arithmetically and have to be rounded to whole numbers. |
Paper 2 notional boundaries
The Paper 2 notional boundaries are provided for each combination of period study and British depth study. The paper codes for each set of notional boundaries are as follows:
| Paper 2 paper code | Period study | British depth study |
| 2A | P1: Spain and the New World | B1: Anglo-Saxon and Norman England |
| 2B | P1: Spain and the New World | B2: King Richard I and King John |
| 2C | P1: Spain and the New World | B3: Henry VIII and his ministers |
| 2D | P1: Spain and the New World | B4: Early Elizabethan England |
| 2E | P2: British America | B1: Anglo-Saxon and Norman England |
| 2F | P2: British America | B2: King Richard I and King John |
| 2G | P2: British America | B3: Henry VIII and his ministers |
| 2H | P2: British America | B4: Early Elizabethan England |
| 2J | P3: The American West | B1: Anglo-Saxon and Norman England |
| 2K | P3: The American West | B2: King Richard I and King John |
| 2L | P3: The American West | B3: Henry VIII and his ministers |
| 2M | P3: The American West | B4: Early Elizabethan England |
| 2N | P4: Superpower relations | B1: Anglo-Saxon and Norman England |
| 2P | P4: Superpower relations | B2: King Richard I and King John |
| 2Q | P4: Superpower relations | B3: Henry VIII and his ministers |
| 2R | P4: Superpower relations | B4: Early Elizabethan England |
| 2T | P5: Conflict in the Middle East | B1: Anglo-Saxon and Norman England |
| 2U | P5: Conflict in the Middle East | B2: King Richard I and King John |
| 2V | P5: Conflict in the Middle East | B3: Henry VIII and his ministers |
| 2W | P5: Conflict in the Middle East | B4: Early Elizabethan England |
The Paper 1 and 3 codes match the specification (papers 10-13 for Paper 1 and 30-33 for Paper 3).
Because the notional grade boundaries for paper 2 cover both the Period study and British depth study it is not possible to provide a grade boundary for one Paper 2 topic, eg Superpower relations. Teachers can come up with a quick estimate for boundaries for each Paper 2 topic by simply dividing the overall paper boundary by two. In September we will be providing global ResultsPlus data showing how each paper performed, and it should be possible to refine these estimated boundaries to take into account the relative challenge of each topic’s paper.
How do the GCSE papers add up to make a total subject mark?
- GCSE History Paper 1 has a total raw mark of 52 and is weighted at precisely 30.9524% of the qualification.
- GCSE History Paper 2 has a total raw mark of 64 and is weighted at precisely 38.0952% of the qualification.
- GCSE History Paper 3 has a total raw mark of 52 and is weighted at precisely 30.9524% of the qualification.
- The total GCSE raw mark is therefore a mark of 168.
- Your students’ marks on GCSE Papers 1, 2 and 3 are simply added together to give the total subject mark out of 168.
- The overall grade boundaries are presented as marks out of 168 and the notional boundaries are presented as marks out of 52 (Papers 1 and 3) and 64 (Paper 2).
Please note: the paper weightings above are the precise weightings of each paper. These have been simplified in the specification to reflect the content weightings before including marks for SPAG.
Summer 2023 grade boundaries for GCSE History
For 2023, the approach all exam boards have taken was to return to pre-pandemic grading while giving students protection against any impact of disruption. To ensure this protection was achieved, statistical evidence was used. When viewing the grade boundaries from this summer, teachers may notice that some GCSE History boundaries are higher in Summer 2023 than in 2019. As in any exam series, grade boundaries are set each year to reflect differences in both the demand of the question papers and the ability of the cohort. The outcomes of the GCSE History award this summer were in line with 2019, which was the required approach that all exam boards have taken. This is explained in our ‘Understanding grade boundaries in 2023’ document below:
Ofqual blog on Exam results in 2023
You may also find this Ofqual blog useful in helping to understand how grades were awarded this summer.
Summer 2023 grade statistics
In addition to grade boundaries you can also download provisional statistics showing the percentage outcomes at qualification level from our website.
More detailed global statistical data is can be found using ResultsPlus and we will make this available on our website in early September.
If you have any further questions please email our History Subject Advisor, Mark Battye, at teachinghistory@pearson.com
Subject advisor
Mark Battye
History
