A Level Examination results

As with GCSE, the government made the decision that many exams and assessments could not be held fairly in 2021 as a result of the disruption students faced due to the pandemic.  Teachers instead submitted A Level grades to the exam boards, based on their assessment of what the students showed they knew and could do, enabling them to progress to the next stage of their education, training or employment.

Results below are given for the whole cohort of students who were in Year 13 and awarded final A Level results in Summer 2021.  Due to the nature of these results, further analysis is not expected on the government’s school comparison website, which is linked here.

Larkmead School’s Sixth Form forms part of the Abingdon Consortium for Education.  Results are published as a consortium and can be found below.  In addition, this link will take you to the ACfE website.

 

Attainment

	ACfE Results 2019	ACfE Results 2020	ACfE Results 2021	2019 National
A*-A	25%	42%	36%	26%
A*-B	54%	66%	61%	52%
A*-C	76%	88%	84%	76%
A*-E	98%	99.7%	98%	98%

 

The individual results of the students enrolled at Larkmead School are given below.

	Larkmead Results 2019	Larkmead Results 2020	Larkmead Results 2021
A*-A	28%	36%	31%
A*-B	59%	68%	55%
A*-C	76%	96%	87%
A*-E	98%	100%	100%
Average Grade	C+	C+	B-

 

We are once again proud of our contribution towards the Abingdon Consortium’s success and of the achievements of the students based at Larkmead School.  The decision by the government to base grades on the school’s teacher assessed grades was welcomed by all staff.  We are very pleased that the final grades awarded to our A Level students reflect what each student deserved, evidenced by assessments and NEAs, as well as classwork and homework produced across the two years.  These grades will enable them to successfully embark on the next part of each of their lives.  Many students have gone on to study at university while others have started work.  Meanwhile, the sixth form at Larkmead School continues to go from strength to strength and is a real asset to the school

 

Progress

Progress at A Level is measured in relation to each student’s average points score at GCSE, and compared to students nationally with similar KS4 attainment.  This year, national data has not been produced and so comparison with other students receiving Teacher Assessed Grades is not possible.  However, results can be compared to national results in the last formal examination year (2019).  This analysis is referred to as “Level 3 Value Added” and a value of +0.5 would represent students doing, on average, half a grade better in each of their subjects than students nationally.

	Larkmead Results 2019	Larkmead Results 2020	Lakmead Results 2021
Level 3 Value Added	+0.33	+0.21	+0.71

 

An incredibly thorough and robust moderation and quality assurance process was conducted both during 2020 with Centre Assessed Grades and 2021 with Teacher Assessed Grades.  These processes were scrutinised and approved internally, by the leadership team and governing body, and externally, by exam boards and the Department for Education.  The incredible progress made by the students last year reflects their dedication and resilience during the very difficult circumstances as well as the high-quality teaching and learning that Larkmead offers each of its sixth form students.

 

Further Analysis

Each of the students in Year 13 last year achieved results of which they should be proud.  Thirteen students gained grades of AAB or higher (or equivalent) and these students are listed below.

Evan Anapliotis	Luke Ball	Cameron Bullock
Hollie Desilva	Joe Garside	Poppy Harper
Erwin Lam	Alec McCrea	Ritesh Patel
Aswin Saji	Abbie Smith	Tia Smith-Nelson
Abby Wright

Special mention must go to Erwin Lam who gained the highest grade of an A* in each of his four A Levels.

 

A breakdown of grades for each subject for the students based at Larkmead is given below:

	Entries	A*	A	B	C	D	E	U	A*-A	A*-B	A*-E
Accounting	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0%	0%	100%
Biology	5	2	1	1	0	1	0	0	60%	80%	100%
Business Studies	23	1	2	6	12	2	0	0	13%	39%	100%
Chemistry	2	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	100%	100%	100%
Computer Studies	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0%	0%	100%
D&T Product Design	8	0	2	2	2	2	0	0	25%	50%	100%
Economics	13	1	2	6	3	1	0	0	23%	69%	100%
English Language	10	0	2	2	4	2	0	0	20%	40%	100%
English Literature	6	0	2	2	2	0	0	0	33%	67%	100%
French	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0%	100%	100%
Further Mathematics	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	100%	100%	100%
History	15	0	2	3	6	3	1	0	13%	33%	100%
Mathematics	15	6	3	3	2	1	0	0	60%	80%	100%
Media Studies	7	0	2	0	4	0	1	0	29%	29%	100%
Physics	7	2	2	1	1	0	1	0	57%	71%	100%
Psychology	3	0	1	1	1	0	0	0	33%	67%	100%
Sociology	8	1	2	2	3	0	0	0	38%	63%	100%
Sports Studies	2	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	50%	100%	100%

 

 

	Entries	Dist*	Dist	Merit	Pass	Other	D*-D	D*-M	D*-P
Engineering (BTEC)	2	1	0	1	0	0	50%	100%	100%
Health and Social Care (BTEC)	4	2	1	0	1	0	75%	75%	100%
Performing Arts (Cambridge Technical International Diploma)	1	0	1	0	0	0	100%	100%	100%

 

Retention

The proportion of students who get to the end of the main programme of study that they enrolled on at Larkmead School is 89% (affected by Covid-19).

 

Destinations

The percentage of students who continue in education or training, or move on to employment at the end of 16 to 19 study at Larkmead School is 98%.

 

We are proud of each and every one of our students for what they have achieved in their Sixth Form years at Larkmead, and for the contribution they have made to the school.  Progress at all levels shows the value that a Larkmead education adds to our students.  Many congratulations to our A Level students, who all showed incredibly impressive motivation, determination and resilience whilst coping with the many difficulties that presented themselves during 2020 and 2021.  We wish them every success for the future.