The examination boards purport to offer a service, in setting and marking exams and awarding grades, however, in reality, all they are doing is rent-seeking, monetising their grade-awarding powers. This has been highlighted by the decision of the government that children "should not sit exams" in academic year 20/21 and that the grades should be awarded on coursework. However, the only way the exam boards can assess children on their coursework is to look at the results of, er, exams, except these are tests set by the educational establishments themselves, not the exam board. Despite the fact that the exam boards now have to do almost no work prior to awarding grades in GCSEs and A levels, their charges remain the same.
Debate Magazine
