Regulating on-screen assessments

Protecting standards in a digital age

Ofqual is consulting on proposals for how on-screen assessment should be regulated in GCSEs, AS and A levels in England. The approach supports responsible innovation, while ensuring that changes to assessment are carefully managed to protect standards, fairness, public confidence, and reliable delivery. We are proposing a controlled introduction of on-screen assessment, with pen-and-paper remaining central to most exams.

GCSEs, AS and A levels: respected qualifications at the heart of the system

GCSEs, AS and A levels sit at the heart of England’s education system. They signal academic achievement and open doors to further study and work. More than a million 16 to 19-year-olds take these high stakes exams each year, supported by the commitment and expertise of teachers, schools and colleges across the country.

Students, families, employers, and wider society trust these qualifications, because they are rigorous and reliable. They help shape futures, support economic growth, and contribute to England’s strong international reputation for educational standards. For these reasons, any changes to how these exams are taken must be handled with exceptional care.

Potential benefits of technology

The government has signalled that technology is at the forefront of its mission to modernise the education system, support teachers, and deliver better educational outcomes for children. Effective use of technology can improve curriculum delivery, overcome barriers to learning for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and better prepare young people for a digital future. Research we have undertaken jointly with the Department for Education (DfE) suggests that on-screen exams could benefit some students, including those with SEND.

Technology already permeates the work of the qualifications industry, including the 4 exam boards that deliver all GCSEs, AS and A levels in England.  For example, technology is increasingly used to assist with setting question papers, digitising scripts for marking, training and quality assuring markers, and aggregating and processing data for results. Awarding organisations tell us that carefully deployed AI will be able to play a greater role as technology develops and improves.

Ofqual welcomes these developments, as they have the potential to further improve the quality of exam papers and marking, and deliver efficiencies at scale.   

Curriculum and Assessment Review

The Curriculum and Assessment Review (CAR) Final Report noted calls for greater integration of technology in assessment. It further recognised potential benefits from wider use of on-screen assessment in the future, but it also noted that evidence is still limited and that wider implementation would have considerable delivery implications for schools and colleges. 

The report concludes by recommending that the government: “ensures that the DfE and Ofqual continue to work together to explore potential for innovation in on-screen assessment in GCSE, AS and A level qualifications, particularly where this could further support accessibility for students with SEND and where this could reduce exam volume in the future. We recommend they continue to review the evidence and carefully consider risks and benefits.”

The government accepted this recommendation in its response to the final report of the CAR and the Secretary of State’s steer further emphasises that any “wider use of on-screen exams must be fair for students, proportionate, and manageable for schools and colleges to deliver with the staff, infrastructure and resources they have at present.”

The international picture

Some countries have introduced on-screen assessments for national secondary exams, but these examples reflect different contexts to England. Typically, student cohorts are smaller and overseen by a single state examination body, and national programmes have invested specifically in technology infrastructure to support the delivery of on-screen assessment, as part of a wider, integrated drive to digitise the whole school system. Importantly, there is no conclusive evidence that all the anticipated benefits have yet been fully realised elsewhere.

The importance of fairness, standards and delivery

It is critical that GCSEs, AS and A levels are fair and are seen to be fair. On-screen assessment could benefit some students, for example by improving accessibility or enhancing the assessment experience. However, research tells us that students may perform differently on paper and on screen. Moreover, students do not have equal access to digital devices or digital skills. Schools and colleges also face practical challenges, including variable digital infrastructure. These factors could widen existing gaps in achievement if any move to on-screen assessment is not carefully managed.

Maintaining standards across on-screen and paper-based exams is complex. Digital delivery introduces new risks. These include cyber-security threats, technical failures—which can be stressful for students and compromise valid outcomes—and new forms of malpractice, which could compromise the reputation of the qualifications. Maintaining standards and the safe, secure delivery of these important qualifications is a key consideration for Ofqual.

The current GCSE, AS and A level system

The 4 exam boards delivering GCSEs, AS and A levels in England are regulated by Ofqual to ensure that standards are maintained and that exams are high quality, valid, reliable and fair. When new GCSE, AS or A level specifications are proposed by exam boards, they must be scrutinised and accredited by Ofqual before they can be delivered to young people.

Ofqual’s regulations currently do not specify whether exams should be taken on paper or on screen. This reflects the fact that most exams are taken with pen and paper, and so the regulatory framework has not needed to restrict digital approaches. As a result, there is currently nothing to prevent exam boards from submitting any number of on-screen specifications for accreditation.

The approach set out in this consultation has been developed through close engagement with the DfE and a range of stakeholders and informed by the Secretary of State’s steer. While our proposals focus on GCSEs, AS and A levels, we are also seeking views on how this approach might apply to vocational and technical qualifications (VTQs). We will consult further on our regulatory approach to VTQs as government policy develops.

Given the risks noted above, it is important to take a proactive regulatory approach to on-screen assessment.

The approach we propose to take

In balancing these considerations, we believe pen-and-paper exams will continue to be central to the assessment of GCSEs, AS and A levels. We are not proposing that handwritten exams will disappear in favour of on-screen exams.

Instead, we propose a controlled approach to further adoption of on-screen assessment in GCSE, AS and A level qualifications. This will enable Ofqual, as the regulator, to set clear expectations that must be met before any proposed on-screen assessments can be taken by students. These guardrails will ensure that only high-quality assessments are available. This will protect against unfairness and help maintain the reputation and value of our national general qualifications.

At the same time, this approach would allow exam boards to innovate with on-screen assessment, but only those proposals that meet rigorous expectations will be accredited for use in schools and colleges. The high bar we set for accreditation will incentivise exam boards to invest in quality and lay the foundations for responsible innovation.

Because on-screen assessment in GCSEs, AS and A levels would be largely new, and readiness across schools and colleges to deliver on-screen exams varies significantly, the scale and pace of innovation must be carefully managed. While any on-screen assessments will not be considered ‘pilots’, there will be learning from early examples, informing any future developments.

Scale applies both to the number of qualifications accredited and their entry size. In addition to requiring a rigorous quality standard, we propose a further guardrail: each exam board may submit proposals for up to 2 new specifications for on-screen assessment, but, in line with the Secretary of State’s steer, these will not be permitted in the highest-entry subjects[1].

A proportionate regulatory approach

The changes we are consulting on will mean that any introduction of on-screen assessment is fair to students, protects the reliability and validity of our highly regarded and trusted GCSEs, AS and A levels, and is done at a scale and pace which are appropriate to this type of innovation.

Any proposal must meet stringent expectations for standards, fairness, deliverability and public confidence, and will be subject to robust scrutiny and accreditation by Ofqual to ensure that risks are appropriately managed and the interests of students, schools and colleges are protected.

This is a cautious, common-sense approach. By setting clear boundaries and high standards, Ofqual’s priority is to protect the integrity and reputation of our qualifications system, and to ensure fairness for students and deliverability for schools and colleges.

Have your say

This consultation sets out Ofqual’s proposed approach to regulating on-screen assessment in GCSEs, AS and A levels, and seeks views on how these proposals might apply to vocational and technical qualifications, where on-screen assessment is already more widely used. Subject to the outcome of this consultation, detailed rules and guidance will follow in 2026. If you have an interest in on-screen assessment or in general qualifications, please respond and share your views.