An exam board is planning to give GCSE students the option to take all its exams online by 2030.
Pearson Edexcel will kickstart the process of digital exams with GCSE English language and literature in summer 2025. It then intends for all Pearson Edexcel GCSEs to have an on-screen option by 2030.
The on-screen English GCSEs are subject to Ofqual regulatory approval. Schools will still be able to offer a paper exam if preferred.
Pearson Schools managing director Sharon Hague said students will be able to sit an exam in a core subject fully on-screen for the first time in summer 2025 “if they choose to do so”.
Pearson has had an on-screen component to its GCSE in computer science since 2022 and said it has been working with schools on the introduction of online assessment.
Ms Hague said feedback from teachers and students shows that most are keen to have a choice of screen-based assessments, but the move would not spell the end of pen-and-paper exams.
“It’s about opening up more ways for all students to best show what they know and can do,” she said, adding that the exam board is aiming to offer both paper-based and on-screen formats for all exams by 2030.
International GCSEs already available online
The exam board already offers some International GCSEs online, with more launching in 2024.
International students sat pilots of Pearson’s English language online iGCSE back in 2022.
Ms Hague added that online exams are easier for making accessibility adjustments, such as font size and colour filters. Students will also be able to copy and paste text, highlight and annotate their papers.
Meanwhile AQA plans to have online exams in GCSE Italian and Polish from 2026, with a major entry subject following suit by 2030.
OCR also announced in December that it plans to launch a fully digitally assessed GCSE for students starting their computer science courses in 2025, with the first exams taking place 2026-27.
Steve Rollett, deputy chief executive of the Confederation of School Trusts, said initiatives designed to increase accessibility and equity in exams were welcome, adding that his organisation hopes this development “will support children, while retaining the overall integrity of the exam system”.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said exam boards’ exploration of online assessment was “encouraging” as a sole pen-and-paper system was clearly “outdated”.
“As well as being more accessible for some students, digital exam papers should prove simpler to mark, easier to transport and hopefully less expensive to administer,” he said, but added that the move “does not come without challenges - including the ongoing disadvantage gap between those who may have more access to technology at home and therefore more familiarity with its demands”.
“It’s vital that schools are clearly guided through this process and have the necessary resources to put in place the digital infrastructure they need to deliver online exams going forward, said Mr Barton.
Sir Ian Bauckham, Ofqual’s chief regulator, said his organisation was “committed to supporting well-evidenced innovation in how examinations are taken”.
He added: “Above all, it is critical that examinations are both accessible and fair to all students taking them. We will evaluate in detail Pearson’s proposals when they are submitted for review.
“Our priority will be making sure the approach is fair to all students, whether they take their GCSE on-screen or continue to do so on paper.”
