Pearson Edexcel GCSE Music: April 2024 update
Read the latest information on Edexcel GCSE Music, including key dates and latest news.
You will need to complete either the PDF version of the PAS and CAS forms or the Excel file version of the PAS and CAS forms.
If you have any candidates that have a performance submission or composition submission that doesn't meet the time requirements then you must complete the under-length submission form and submit this too.
Do I need to carry out internal standardisation?
In large centres with multiple teachers, it's essential that you carry out internal standardisation before you finalise the NEA marks. You should sample double-mark, selecting mark points within the same band 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.
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.
Grade boundaries, which are subject to change each exam series, are published on the website on the grade boundaries page. For summer 2024, they'll be available to download from results day: 22 August 2024 for GCSE.
To receive a result for a linear qualification, all of the marks achieved from different components are added together and the candidate receives a grade for the qualification. There is no need for a uniform mark scale - a single grade is issued to each candidate.
A score of zero should only be used if a candidate has submitted work that is found to meet none of the assessment criteria. An X should be used for any candidate who is absent.
Submitting marks to Edexcel
All marks must be submitted online via Edexcel Online.
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.
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 2024.
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.
How do I submit the sample?
How to present the material is detailed in the Administrative Support Guide. You will need to upload all material through the Learner Work Transfer (LWT) portal. There are guides on how to use the LWT system.
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.
Summer 2024 support for students
Help your students feel as prepared as possible for the upcoming exam season.
In addition to all the support you provide, both Ofqual, JCQ and Pearson have a range of information to help inform and guide your students during this busy time. Please take a look at the information we’ve summarised below and pass it on to your students.
Support from Ofqual
The Ofqual Student Guide 2024 provides students with information about this year’s arrangements for GCSE, AS and A level qualifications, and explains what support is in place when taking exams and assessments.
Read the Ofqual Student Guide 2024
Support from JCQ
The JCQ has a range of information and support for students – from coursework and onscreen exams to written exams, along with a checklist for exam day.
Take a look at all the support JCQ have to offer for students
Support from Pearson
As the revision season is now fully under way and students begin to turn their focus towards the summer exam series, we’d like to share our Getting ready for exams guide that includes some top tips and advice including:
- preparing for exams
- what happens on exam day
- where to find further support
- what happens once exams are over.
Take a look at the guide and please pass it on to your students
You can stay up to date with all our support for 2024 on our Qualifications assessment support page
KS4/Level 2 qualifications questionnaire
We are carrying out some research on KS4/Level 2 Music qualifications and would like your feedback.
Please take a few minutes to complete this short questionnaire
Difficulty level booklet
As part of our ongoing work to support centres delivering Pearson Edexcel Music qualifications, we are updating the Pearson Edexcel GCSE and A level Music Difficulty Levels Booklet (DLB). The updated document will be uploaded to the website shortly after 15 May, 2024 and will be used for assessments from the 2025 summer examination series onwards. The current DLB, available on our website, will be used for assessment in the 2024 summer examination series.
The updated DLB will mostly include additional pieces from recently published practical performance syllabi across a range of music exam boards. The difficulty level of a small number of pieces in the current DLB will change in this update, with some going up in difficulty level and some coming down. We advise centres to check the difficulty level of all performance repertoire carefully when preparing students for 1MU0/01 and 9MU0/01 assessments in 2025 and onwards, even in cases where centres have submitted performances of the same piece year on year.
By uploading the updated version of the DLB after the 2024 coursework deadline, we hope this will give centres the longest possible time to prepare students for the following examination series.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 15 May 2024 | Final date for submission of coursework marks and moderation samples |
| 17 June 2024 | Component 3: Appraising exam |
| 21 August 2024 | Results released to centres |
| 22 August 2024 | Results released to candidates |
Subject advisor
Jeffery Hole
Music and Music Technology
