Foundation or Higher: how schools decideFoundation or Higher: how schools decide

According to Ofqual's student guide (Ofqual):

• Foundation tier awards grades 5 to 1.
• Higher tier awards grades 9 to 4.
• A Higher tier student who just misses grade 4 may be awarded a grade 3.

Below that safety net, a Higher tier student gets an unclassified result (U) (Ofqual blog). A student can be entered for only one tier in an exam series (AQA).

The papers look alike on both tiers. With AQA, for example, it's three papers of 1 hour 30 minutes, one without a calculator (AQA). Higher papers include harder topics and fewer of the early-grade questions.

Ofqual says the school or college decides whether a student is entered for Foundation or Higher (Ofqual student guide). In practice it's usually the maths department, using what they know of each student.

Parents and students can still ask questions and share what matters to them, such as the courses your teenager is thinking about after Year 11.

In its guidance on tier entry (first published for 2020), Ofqual recommended that students expected to achieve a grade 4 or 5 should usually be entered for Foundation tier (Ofqual blog).

For a student aiming at grade 6 or above, Higher is the only tier that offers it. Ofqual has said schools will want to bear that aim in mind while keeping the risk of an ungraded result low.

To judge this, teachers usually look at:

• mock results across all three papers
• classwork and homework over Years 10 and 11
• how steady the student's marks are, not just their best result
• which topics are secure and which still need work

Some sixth forms and colleges ask for a particular grade in maths, especially for A level Maths or science courses. Requirements differ, so check the course pages of the places your teenager is considering. If a course asks for grade 6 or above, that's worth mentioning to the maths teacher, because only Higher tier offers those grades.

A short conversation with the maths teacher is the best place to start. Useful questions:

• Which tier are they likely to sit, and why?
• What would need to change for the other tier to be the right one?
• When are exam entries finalised?

Tier entry is about giving your teenager the best chance of showing what they can do on the day. It isn't a judgement on their ability or their future.

NextJen's GCSE Maths practice comes in Foundation and Higher too. Not sure which tier? Their maths teacher will know which tier they're likely to sit. As a rough guide: Foundation if they're working towards grades 1 to 5, Higher if they're aiming for grade 6 or above. You can switch tiers at any time.

The practice tier is separate from the exam entry, which stays with the school. Practising at the tier that fits now, and switching when things change, keeps the questions at the right level.

Practice adapts within the tier: three right answers in a row move the questions up a grade level, and two wrong ones drop back a level and show the worked method. Each NextJen practice paper shows the mark and an estimated grade, always labelled as an estimate, and the parent view shows an estimated grade for the level your teenager is working at.

You can try a question to see how the typed answers and worked steps feel, or see what's included in GCSE Maths. GCSE Maths on NextJen is £25 a month per student (£20 a month for founding families), paid monthly. You can cancel at any time and keep access to the end of the month you've paid for.