Edexcel is deeply concerned by the article in the TES today (Friday 7th April) which makes incomplete and biased comment about awarding body costs which we believe damage confidence in the examination process - one described by the regulator, Ken Boston, as the best in the world. 

Edexcel believes that its qualifications represent excellent value for money and DiDA is a great success because it is a great qualification – one designed with ICT professionals.  As we explained to the TES reporter, for a £29 registration for the Award in Digital Application, students and their teachers get a range of free support for the qualification which includes: specification, qualification, DiDA inset and personalised support for centres and LEAs from staff, assessments and moderation, certification, dedicated microsite access, OSCAR - exemplar materials and training sessions for teachers and assessment guidance with feedback  on assessment. 

It accuses Edexcel of “amassing £5m from its successful new diploma in digital application” but fails to mention, as we made clear to their reporter, that, before a single registration was made, Edexcel had invested over £1.5m in researching and developing the DiDA suite.  We also said that in 2006 a further £3m of investment is planned to develop e-portfolios to support DIDA and other qualifications – a move lauded by the TES in  FE Focus the same day.  And the investment does not stop there.  Millions of pounds of future investment in 2007 and beyond will continue, to include enhanced support for centres and the introduction of additional units into DiDA.  We're also developing virtual learning environments for internal school moderators, and ePlatforms for moderation and eAssessment. 

We are rightly proud of DiDA and delighted that it is the ICT qualification of choice for centres around the country.   If you read the article in the TES and have comments you wish to add, email us on corporatecomms@edexcel.org.uk