What is the Matching page?
Each cohort has one universal Matching page for all types of grades data, such as Exams, Targets, Assessments, etc. This is the area where your EAPs, and hence Grade Methods are assigned to each qualification. Completing the Matching process ensures your qualifications count accurately towards figures in the reports and allows you to publish your grades data.
Q: Can I set up Level 2 qualifications in KS5? A: Yes, you can. If you have any students sitting L2 qualifications in KS5, whether this be resitting GCSE English/Maths, or taking additional L2 qualifications such as BTECs, you can upload these grades and complete the Matching process for them in the same way as your L3 qualifications. To do this, you would need to ensure you have created an appropriate L2 grade method (CONFIG. > Grade Methods > KS5 Methods) and an EAP (KS4/EAP > EAP/ Baselines > EAP). |
Completing the Matching page
Once you have created at least one EAP and uploaded grades data for a cohort, the Matching page will become available in DATA > select key stage 5 and cohort > GRADES > Matching.
To begin the matching process, click ‘Edit’.
1 / Select whether each qualification should be included in the Reports
By default, qualifications will be set to 'Yes' to ensure they appear/count in your reports, which we recommend for official qualifications.
However, you can change a qualification to 'No' if you do not want this to be included in the reports. Qualifications that are not included don't need to have matching completed in order to proceed.
2 / Match the qualification to the official DfE qualification
You then need to match your qualifications to the official DfE qualification in the QN/Qual Title column.
Here you can search by QN code (e.g. 000/0000/0) - which we recommend for accuracy - qualification name (such as Art & Design), syllabus title, performance cohort, or any combination of these.
Then, select your qualification from the list provided.
If your qualification is not listed, this suggests it’s unapproved and would not count towards school performance measures for that cohort. For more information on matching unapproved see our article - KS5 Matching: Unapproved Qualifications (Admin) |
Q: Can I edit my qualification names? A: This is taken from your grade file(s) and appears in reports, however you can amend these in edit mode by typing directly into the Qualification box. We would recommend using clear and concise names that don’t include the QN code / data type. For example, “Art” rather than “Art Y13 AP1”. We would also recommend including ‘L2’ at the start of any L2 qualifications. |
3 / Select an EAP
Next, select an appropriate EAP in the EAP column, taken from those you have created for that cohort in the KS4/EAP section.
This is used to define the grade method (grade structure, points, and size) the qualification will use such as GCE A Level, AS Level, L3 BTEC Ext Cert, L2 GCSE 9-1, L2 BTEC, etc. It also determines ‘on track’ analysis in the reports if you have entered expected grades into your EAPs.
Note, if the row turns red, this suggests the grade method in the EAP selected and the grade method expected for the select qualification do not match, covered later in this article.
4 / Select a Faculty (Handy for Head of Department/Faculty staff!)
You can also set up faculties to group qualifications together, allowing you to view a summary of their performance in the reports. For example, qualifications such as Biology, Chemistry, and Physics could be grouped within a “Science” faculty.
If you do not have faculties available, these are optional and can be set up in CONFIG. > Faculty. For more information, see our article - Creating Faculties (Admin).
You can then repeat steps 1 to 4 for each qualification, then click Save Changes.
5 / Check and resolve issues
Based on your selections, Analytics will perform checks and highlight each row either green, amber, red, or grey.
All included qualifications must be matched and highlighted green in order to publish your grades data, so we recommend resolving any issues shown, explained below:
Qualification has been matched to an EAP using a correct grade structure and can be included in the reports. | |
Matching has not been completed for the qualification (QN/Qual Title or EAP column are blank) and therefore publishing will not be available. To complete Matching, click 'Edit' and ensure an EAP is selected and a QN Title has been entered/selected, covered above. | |
The qualification has been set to 'No' in the Included column and will be excluded from reports. You can still continue with your setup if this is intended. | |
Qualification has been matched to an EAP using an incorrect grade structure. This could be due to an incorrect QN/Qual Title selected, an incorrect EAP selected, or the wrong grade method selected in your EAP |
We recommend double checking the QN/Qual Title and EAP columns are selected correctly, and, if you have saved, you can also click the magnifying glass next to the qualification name for more details:
For further help troubleshooting this specific issue, we recommend viewing our article here - |
Once matching has been completed, we recommend then checking Grades Management for further setup issues (which Analytics can flag with warning icons) before publishing. For more information on grades management, see our articles in the Grades Management section here.
Thanks for reading!