GCSE Business (9-1) Grade Descriptors (Ofqual)

Ofqual have published the following grade descriptors for GCSE Business (9-1).

1. Grade 8

To achieve grade 8, candidates will be able to:

• demonstrate relevant and comprehensive knowledge and understanding of a wide range of business concepts and issues
• apply knowledge and critical understanding to select relevant information from a wide range of financial and non-financial sources to investigate business organisations and concepts in familiar and unfamiliar contexts, using a wide range of subject specific terminology
• use a range of relevant quantitative skills
• critically analyse and evaluate available information and evidence to make reasoned, substantiated judgements and conclusions, and, where appropriate, suggest viable recommendations for future activity

2. Grade 5

To achieve grade 5, candidates will be able to:

• demonstrate mostly accurate and appropriate knowledge and understanding of a range of business concepts and issues
• apply knowledge and understanding to select information from a range of sources to investigate business organisations and concepts in familiar and some unfamiliar contexts, using some appropriate subject specific terminology
• use some relevant quantitative skills
• analyse and provide some evaluation of information and evidence to make plausible judgements and conclusions which may extend to suggesting some viable recommendations for future activity

3. Grade 2

To achieve grade 2, candidates will be able to:

• demonstrate basic knowledge and understanding of some aspects of business concepts or issues
• apply, in a limited way, knowledge and understanding to investigate business organisations and/or concepts, using everyday language
• use some obvious, simple quantitative skills
• use and describe some information to draw basic lines of reasoning, make straightforward judgements and, possibly, offer simple suggestions for future activity

Source: Ofqual (Sept 2017)