Onscreen assessment update for International History qualifications
This update provides the latest information on our onscreen assessments for International GCSE and IAL History, including the availability of onscreen papers, links to guidance and details of new familiarisation materials.
Explore our qualifications and subjects offered onscreen
Our onscreen assessments are the same as the paper-based assessments. The questions are the same and the exams are taken at the same time - the only difference is the format.
Students will take their assessments at a centre, under exam conditions, working on devices.
Onscreen exams have been available for International GCSE History since 2024 and IAL History onscreen assessments will be availalable for the first time in Summer 2026.
Get to know the platform
Sample Assessment Materials (SAMs) for subjects that we currently deliver onscreen are available for you, your teachers, your students and their parents/guardians/carers to look at within our Sandbox environment.
It gives the opportunity to experience the platform and the functionalities available*.
To set up an account:
- go to the Sandbox environment
- click on ‘Don’t have an account’
- enter your email address as your User ID
- wait for an automatic email to confirm your email address
- proceed to log in.
*Any responses submitted within the Sandbox are not saved.
The onscreen toolkit
This is where you can:
- update candidate information for the Mocks Service
- assign familiarisation material
- manage invigilator accounts
- access submitted student scripts.
For an account to access and assign materials, please complete the Booking App Account Request form.
This is where you can:
- view invigilation sessions
- monitor student connectivity
- track progress through familiarisation material, mock assessments and live exams.
View our Invigilator video guide about navigating and using the Invigilator App.
This is where students can:
- access all assigned assessments
- view current, upcoming and completed assessments.
There is a guided tour video that demonstrates how students interact with the onscreen platform and you can also view support videos for specific tools available.
Our ‘Ask us Anything’ webinar is still available to view and includes hearing from some of our schools who were among the first to deliver our International GCSE English onscreen assessments. At a time stamp of approx. 26mins you can see how the Invigilator App and the Assessment Player interact during a live assessment.
Technology Set Up
The assessment player is compatible with multiple browsers and operating systems on both centre-owned and candidate-owned Windows and MAC devices. Only centre-owned Chromebooks are supported currently.
Devices must be capable of receiving and installing the latest software updates to ensure they remain supported and secure. You can find full technical guidance on our website.
New familiarisation materials now available
We're pleased to share that additional onscreen assessments have been added to the familiarisation library of our onscreen platform. These resources are freely available and ready for centres to use with learners.
Familiarisation materials are digitised versions of past papers designed to support both teachers and students in gaining confidence with the format, layout and features of our onscreen platform ahead of their high stakes assessments.
They can be assigned directly through the platform’s Booking App. If you need any help assigning assessments to your students or getting started with the onscreen platform, our Onscreen Assessment Team is here to support you – just email internationalonscreen@pearson.com.
The familiarisation material currently available is given below:
| Subject | Paper Titles | Available assessments (familiarisation) |
| International GCSE History 4HI1 | Paper 1: Depth Studies Paper 2: Investigation and Breadth Studies |
November 2025 (Standard only) Summer 2025 (Standard & Regional) Summer 2024 (Standard & Regional) Summer 2023 (Regional only) Summer 2022 (Standard & Regional) |
| IAL History YHI01 | Unit 1: Depth Study with Interpretations Unit 2: Breadth Study with Source Evaluation Unit 3: Thematic Study with Source Evaluation Unit 4: International Study with Historical Interpretations |
Summer 2025 Summer 2024 Summer 2023 |
Text-to-Speech (TTS) Functionality
We are pleased to confirm that within the onscreen platform, the text-to-speech tool will be available as an access arrangement for eligible students in selected assessments during the May/June 2026 series. This feature will be available for the following qualifications and subjects:
- International GCSE Business
- International GCSE English Language A
- International GCSE English Literature
- International GCSE History
If you would like more information on this feature, please contact us at internationalonscreen@pearson.com.
Upcoming Drop-in Q&A Sessions
The onscreen team are here to help with any general onscreen queries you may have, so please feel free to join their friendly drop-in sessions. Just remember to sign up in advance - we look forward to seeing you there!
| Date | Time (GMT) | Registration Link |
| Wednesday 25 February | 4:00pm – 5:00pm (GMT) | Register for session |
| Wednesday 11 March | 8:00am – 9:00am (GMT) | Register for session |
Subject advisor
Mark Battye
History
