Private schools warn of 'shocking' failure of exams system In today's report, they called for an urgent investigation by Ofqual, the exams watchdog, into marking standards to ensure examiners have the necessary qualifications and expertise needed to properly accredit pupils" work. Headmasters also demanded a sharp cut in the number of exams taken by secondary school pupils to minimise the scope for problems. The comments come amid continuing concerns over the examination and assessment system. Last week, the Government announced that competition between multiple exam boards was to be axed amid claims that it created a "race to the bottom." Commenting on the latest findings, Christopher Ray, HMC chairman and High Master of Manchester Grammar School, said: "The state of the examinations industry is truly shocking and is clearly no longer fit for purpose. The problems go far deeper than this year's disastrous mishandling of the English language GCSE grades. We are publishing this evidence on behalf of all students in state and independent schools in England who do not receive the marks or grades that accurately reflect their performance and achievement. The Department for Education said it agreed that there were "serious problems with marking and quality control." The study by HMC, which represents 252 schools including Eton, Harrow, St Paul's, Winchester and Charterhouse, was based on surveys of members and an analysis of existing research into the issue of exam marking between 2007 and 2012. The report - published before HMC's annual conference in Belfast next week - warned of seven failings of the "examinations industry." It told of significant year-on-year variations in the number of good grades being awarded. One-in-five members reported increases or drops of 10 per cent or more in the proportion of students gaining A* or A grades in GCSE English last summer compared with 2010 - even though the same staff have been teaching pupils with very similar abilities. Researchers also complained of "erratic and inconsistent" marking of exam scripts, with "significant problems" being reported with one or more particular examinations each year. This year, one-in-five HMC schools complained over marking standards in A-level history. HMC also said that exam boards were too secretive when schools attempt to challenge poor marking through the appeals process, allowing examiners to "hide behind protocol" rather than address failures. In a further disclosure, the report criticised varying standards between England's three biggest exam boards - the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance, Edexcel and OCR. The proportion of A*s awarded to HMC schools ranged from 14 per cent for one board to as many as 23.3 per cent by another, it emerged. HMC also attacked the "dumbing down" of exam questions, claiming that boards penalised pupils for coming up with imaginative answers. William Richardson, the organisation's general secretary, said: "You have to coach your brightest students to dumb down their answers to get an A*." A spokesman for the Department for Education said: "We have been clear that the exams system is in desperate need of a thorough overhaul. That's why we are consulting on EBCs, new, more rigorous exams for 16-year-olds, and why we are reforming A-levels, with universities and employers responsible for their design. We agree with HMC that there are serious problems with marking and quality control. Mark Dawe, chief executive of OCR, said "We continually work to improve teacher-examiner marking and have made significant investment in systems to support and improve marking quality - but there is further work to be done. One method which could lead to immediate improvement would be for fee-paying schools to encourage more teachers to take up assessment, helping ensure the high quality consistent marking as called for by the HMC.