National Reference Test
The 2026 National Reference Test results are out. They show a long-term trend of slightly improved attainment in GCSE maths, but not in English language. To ensure standards are maintained, we told exam boards to take the NRT results into account when setting some GCSE maths grade boundaries. Here we explain what that means.
On Thursday (22 August), students will receive results for GCSEs and level 1/level 2 vocational and technical qualifications (VTQs). Students should be proud of their achievements as they receive their results. The qualifications they have gained provide trustworthy evidence of …
On Thursday, more than half a million students will receive results for GCSEs and Level 1 and Level 2 vocational and technical qualifications (VTQs). Students across the country have told us that they wanted to sit exams and assessments to …
This week, the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) will begin contacting the schools that have been selected to take part in the 2023 National Reference Test (NRT). What is the NRT and what should selected schools expect? The NRT …
In recent weeks we have begun to write to 348 schools to say that they have been selected to take part in next year’s National Reference Test (NRT). In 2017 the Government introduced legislation which requires that the head teacher …
In February and March year 11 students from over 300 schools in England took part in the third National Reference Test (NRT) in English and maths. This blog explains how the NRT evidence will be used when the exam boards set grade boundaries in GCSE English language and maths this summer.
Making sure that qualifications are fair requires careful design, analysis and evaluation of all aspects of qualification delivery. Fairness sits at the heart of our work and is something we are thinking about all the time.
Around England, a sample of schools are about to take the third annual National Reference Test (NRT). This test provides a valuable and unique source of evidence about the performance of year 11 students in English language and maths. From …
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