THREAD: hundreds of you emailed in anguish about the unfair grading algorithm. This case affects you all, and we are asking for crowdfunding support (gofundme.com/f/fairgrades20…), so we wanted to post our letter as soon as possible. It’s at foxglove.org.uk/news/grading-a…. Key points:
Ofqual just hasn’t got the power to mark students based on an algorithm which actively ignores individual student performance for cohorts over 15. In law-speak, this is called ‘ultra vires’.
The algorithm is irrational – it treats teachers’ rankings as sacrosanct, yet teachers’ assessed grades are treated as either everything (under 5) or nothing (over 15).
By binning teachers’ grades for many students, and substituting in school performance + rank without meaningful appeal on academic basis, Ofqual violated Art. 22 GDPR (and similar UK provisions).
Ofqual said it was going to give teachers’ grades at least some weight, but on Thursday changed tack (disregarding teachers’ grades for so many). This was a big change. They had to consult about it. They didn’t.
The algorithm helps pupils at small independent schools and harms pupils at large state schools. Ofqual’s concerns about grade inflation don’t seem to apply to smaller, independent schools, whose results this year have shot up.
There are other points in the letter, which we encourage you to read. We want to thank our solicitors and barristers, who have worked extremely hard on a tight timetable to do this.
We are fighting for all of you. A successful judicial review lifts all boats. We’re still taking evidence from possible witnesses/additional claimants. We’re getting back to people as quickly as we can: info@foxglove.org.uk.
