Why grade inflation is much higher in A levels than the IB

The Tes headline ”IB results day 2020: Average score up to four-year high”, while technically accurate, is nevertheless misleading. The International Baccalaureate Diploma global average has, indeed, increased from 29.62 to 29.90 this year, but, seen from an historical perspective, it is very much within the range that has hovered around 30 points for the past 40 years. IB Diploma results are effectively a zero-sum game: for a school to do better than previously, other schools will have to do worse. It is understandable that this would not be popular with governments or schools. 

The same cannot be said of A level. Research by the University of Buckingham Centre for Education and Employment Research (CEER), analysing A-level grade inflation, found that the percentage of A grades rose steadily from 9 per cent in 1984 to 27 per cent in 2010. Indeed, 8.3 per cent of students achieved an A* at A level, which is approximately the same percentage that achieved an A grade in the years 1964 to 1984. There is little doubt that the politicisation of education in the UK from the late 1980s was a significant factor in this.

Smithers - A levels: 1951-2014, CEER (2014), page 2

Indeed, grade inflation is almost inevitable in educational systems run by governments, especially where the examination boards are commercial entities. Any attempt to maintain standards is faced with an alliance of government, schools, exam boards, parents and students, all of whom want higher grades. Governments and schools want improved results to prove that they are doing a good job; profit-making examination boards want to attract more customers; and parents and children want to do well to gain access to good universities and jobs. 

The comparison in grade inflation between the International Baccalaureate Diploma and A level reminds us that there is much to be gained from educational policy being set by educationalists rather than politicians.

Mark S Steed
Principal and CEO, Kellett School, The British International School in Hong Kong