THE way the controversial GCSE English language exam will be assessed in future years has been changed in the wake of the 2012 regrade.

The Welsh Government said it has put in place measures to ensure candidates will not be subjected to problems in the way grades were awarded after the issues this year.

Leighton Andrews, skills and education minister, had earlier directed Welsh exam board the WJEC to re-grade this year’s GCSE English language results after a review discovered the issues.

Candidates currently in Year 10, and who face their final GCSE English language assessments in the summer of 2014, will see elements of the qualification that are assessed externally raised from 40 to 60 per cent of the grade.

The value of controlled assessment elements – parts marked by the school – be cut from 60 per cent to 40 per cent.

Mr Andrews said: “The decision to change the regulatory criteria for GCSE English language in Wales is an important step towards ensuring that the injustice suffered by our learners won’t happen again in the future.”