UAE pupils get good International A-level and IGCSE results despite months of online study

The exams were held in early 2021 and the final grades can be used for university placements

A pupil in Abu Dhabi receives her exam results as children across the UAE discovered how they fared in IGCSE and International A-level exams they sat in January. All photos by Victor Besa / The National

Pupils in Abu Dhabi receive their IGCSE and International A-level results after sitting exams in January. They were the only external tests the schoolchildren will sit this year.

School staff applaud as pupils open their exam results.

Staff show their support for pupils in Abu Dhabi who received their exam results. For many pupils, these are the final grades they will use to seek a place at university.

Zayaan Siddiqui celebrates his results. Two major UK exam boards have cancelled IGCSE and International A-level tests in the summer because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

An Abu Dhabi pupil calls loved ones after receiving her exam results.

Grade 9 pupil Farah Nour calls her mother after getting her results.

Pupils were excited to share their results.

Pupils who sat the exams in January are not set to sit any more external tests this year.

An Abu Dhabi pupil studies his exam results.

Pupils celebrate after receiving results.

Abu Dhabi pupil Jessica Parsons says she is happy with her grades.

Thousands of pupils in the UAE celebrated their success after receiving their International A-level and IGCSE results on Thursday.

Children sat these exams in early 2021 and their final International A-levels and AS-level grades can be used for university placements.

While the UK government cancelled GCSEs and A-level exams in 2021 because of the pandemic, some international boards conducted modular exams in January for IGCSEs and international A-levels – the global equivalent of UK curriculum exams.

IGCSE is equivalent to the GCSE qualification, which is taken by pupils in Years 10 and 11.

An A-level is a qualification offered across several subjects to pupils in Years 12 and 13.

With modular courses, pupils can re-sit some of the modules if they fail to obtain good grades and the results do not influence the final results.

Pearson Edexcel and Oxford AQA, two major UK exam boards, cancelled A-level and international GCSE tests this summer.

At Gems Cambridge International School in Abu Dhabi, 269 pupils received either final grades or modular results.

At the school, 145 pupils sat the Year 11 IGCSE maths exam and 87 per cent received grades between nine and four.

For Year 13 psychology pupils, 75 per cent secured grades A or B in International AS and A-levels.

“I am very happy with the mathematics grades achieved by the pupils," said Kelvin Hornsby, principal at the Gems Cambridge International School.

“Some pupils have been in distance learning for a year and have managed to get great results.

“These grades give the teachers a wealth of externally validated evidence."

Pupils also took tests in International A-level biology, chemistry, physics, Arabic and English literature.

Those who sit IGCSEs and international A-levels are assessed throughout the year instead of taking one major exam in the summer.

This differs from the typical UK model, in which the main test is taken in summer.

International A-level pupils receive grades on a scale from A* (highest) to E (minimum required performance) and IGCSEs are graded from nine to one around the world.

At Al Yasmina Academy in Abu Dhabi, 70 pupils received their final results for IGCSE maths and 35 got their International AS-level grades.

"I am really happy after getting a score of nine in my IGCSE mathematics. This is the only exam I will be able to sit this year," said Jad Yacoub, a 15-year-old Year 11 pupil.

He scored 176 out of 200 in his maths exam.

"It feels great. Now, I can focus on my science subjects as I want to study medicine," he said.

"We are already celebrating and I will have a treat later today."

Jared Nolan, principal at Al Yasmina Academy, said pupils had their lives turned upside down by the pandemic but had the confidence to sit their exams.

For the IGCSE maths exam, 42 per cent of grades at the school were between eight and nine.

All year 13 pupils received grades form A* to B in the international A-level in biology.

Sixty-seven per cent of pupils who sat the chemistry and physics International A-level exams achieved grades from A* to B.

"To get these grades under the circumstances is incredible," Mr Nolan said.

"It’s a massive thumbs-up to families who have supported pupils."

Farah Hammad, a 16-year-old pupil at Cambridge International School, was ecstatic after she earned As in biology, chemistry, Arabic and maths in International AS-levels.

Her Arabic grades were final, while others were based on modular tests.

"It feels good knowing I worked so hard and achieved a good grade. I am definitely going to celebrate," she said.

"I was so scared because I did not know what to expect. I have never sat a board exam let alone A-level exams.

"It was hard work but it paid off."

She was unable to sit her GCSEs last year because exams were cancelled.

She said exams were a quintessential part of school life and she was glad to sit her tests.

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