A pupil finishes a fluent, carefully prepared presentation. The ideas are sophisticated and the delivery assured. Then the teacher reaches the declaration and faces the harder question: can I authenticate this as the pupil’s own work?
AI has made that judgement more complicated, but not more mechanical. A polished script can conceal extensive assistance. A hesitant answer to a follow up question can also conceal genuine understanding. Some pupils simply find it harder to think aloud when they know that an adult is listening for evidence.
Teachers must make a fair decision from incomplete information. Pupils need to know what is expected of them, and parents need confidence that suspicion will not replace evidence. For Pearson Edexcel departments, this means changing the preparation process, not merely downloading a new form.
Pearson’s updated authentication sheets became mandatory from 1 September 2026 for GCSE English Language 1EN0 and 1EN2. For June 2027 spoken language endorsement submissions, Pearson says failure to use the new sheets will be treated as malpractice and replacement forms signed by candidates and teachers will be requested.
[Pearson subject update](https://qualifications.pearson.com/en/qualifications/edexcel-gcses/english-language-2015.news.html?article=/content/demo/en/news-policy/subject-updates/english/updated-non-examination-assessment-authentication-sheets-for-all-english-qualifications-with-coursework-or-the-spoken-language-endorsement&pageTypes=)
The endorsement discussed here applies to GCSE English Language specifications designed for England. It is reported separately and does not contribute to the GCSE grade. JCQ provides the common requirements, but awarding bodies use different paperwork and administrative arrangements.
The declaration belongs at the start
Under JCQ instructions effective from 1 September 2026, candidates must see the information notice and declaration before beginning their work. They sign only after the work has been completed and handed in for final assessment. Centres must explain referencing, their AI policy and the requirement to acknowledge AI use and the sources underlying AI generated material.
[JCQ assessment instructions](https://www.jcq.org.uk/knowledge-hub/instructions-for-conducting-non-examination-assessments-gce-gcse-specifications/)
Showing pupils the declaration after their presentation misses its educational purpose. They need to know in advance what counts as their own work, what help is permitted and what evidence they must retain. A short explanation to parents may also prevent confusion where school expectations differ from the casual use of AI at home.
This can sit within the normal preparation lesson. It does not need to become a lengthy policy presentation. The language should be clear enough for pupils to understand what they are declaring, while the signature remains part of the final assessment process.
Pearson departments should also remove old saved forms. The current sheet is marked “includes AI declaration from September 2026” and uses Pearson’s current light purple branding. The qualification page should be checked again before submission in case the documentation changes.
A process that teachers can actually use
Departments do not need an elaborate new system. They need four moments that are understood by everyone involved.
1. Brief pupils before preparation. Explain ownership, referencing, permitted AI use and the meaning of the declaration. Keep a simple record of when each teaching group received the briefing.
2. Collect source information before assessment. Pearson says candidates should provide written details of their sources, although they do not need to recite references during the presentation. Where AI has been used, JCQ requires candidates to retain prompts and generated content in a non editable format and explain how it was used. This evidence is provided for the teacher’s final assessment review.
[JCQ assessment instructions] (https://www.jcq.org.uk/knowledge-hub/instructions-for-conducting-non-examination-assessments-gce-gcse-specifications/)
3. Pause when authenticity is uncertain. Teachers must know enough about a candidate’s usual standard to judge authenticity and must not accept work they cannot authenticate. Pearson recommends comparing the presentation with examples of the pupil’s work and discussing its content to assess familiarity with the arguments. This contributes to professional judgement. It is not a scientific test of authorship.
[Pearson guidance] (https://qualifications.pearson.com/en/qualifications/edexcel-gcses/english-language-2015.news.html?article=/content/demo/en/news-policy/subject-updates/english/updated-non-examination-assessment-authentication-sheets-for-all-english-qualifications-with-coursework-or-the-spoken-language-endorsement&pageTypes=)
4. Sign after completion. Candidate and teacher declarations should connect to the assessment record, source evidence and recording status. They should not sit in a separate folder waiting to be discovered at the submission deadline.
The source record can be brief. It needs to show what was consulted, what material was used and how it contributed to the presentation. If AI was used, the required prompts and outputs should accompany that explanation. This record supports authentication. It is not another English assessment.
Authentication should not become an ambush
Imagine a pupil preparing a presentation arguing that social media platforms should introduce stronger age checks. The centre’s policy permits the pupil to use an AI tool to suggest possible counterarguments. The pupil then researches those claims independently and writes the presentation.
Before assessment, the pupil provides the prompts, outputs and a short explanation of their use, together with the sources later consulted. The teacher asks why two counterarguments were accepted and another rejected. The answers provide evidence about how the argument developed.
During the assessment, the pupil gives the prepared presentation and responds to questions and feedback. The teacher must be part of the audience, and JCQ gives a guide of no more than ten minutes for the complete assessment. Questions can provide useful evidence of familiarity, but they should not be designed to catch the pupil out. JCQ says oral assessment may help a teacher decide whether work belongs to a candidate. It does not describe oral assessment as proof.
[JCQ plagiarism guidance] (https://www.jcq.org.uk/knowledge-hub/plagiarism-in-assessments-guidance-for-teachers-assessors/)
That distinction matters. A nervous pause is not evidence of misconduct. Nor should a confident response erase legitimate concerns about the preparation evidence. Fair authentication draws on what the teacher knows about the pupil, the retained sources and the assessed response.
If the teacher remains unable to authenticate the work, the concern should follow the centre’s established process before either declaration is signed.
Keep the evidence connected
Centres must internally standardise spoken language assessment. They must also provide complete, unedited audio visual recordings of the presentation, questions and audience feedback for candidates selected in the monitoring sample. Awarding bodies specify their own storage, naming and submission arrangements.
[JCQ spoken language requirements] (https://www.jcq.org.uk/knowledge-hub/instructions-for-conducting-non-examination-assessments-gce-gcse-specifications/)
A department therefore needs one reliable place to connect the candidate, presentation title, assessment date, assessor, endorsement decision, source review, declaration and recording. This could be an existing school system or a simple spreadsheet. What matters is that staff are not reconstructing evidence from memory months later.
Responsibility should remain sensible. English teachers make judgements about authenticity and standards. Exams officers check the correct form, qualification code and submission package. They cannot be expected to repair missing educational evidence at the final deadline.
Check the rules for your awarding body
Pearson’s June 2027 warning is specific to Pearson. Departments should not copy its forms into another awarding body’s process.
OCR currently requires centres entering GCSE English Language J351 to retain candidate and centre authentication forms and a teaching group record, while submitting specified monitoring evidence and an NEA centre declaration.
[OCR submission requirements] (https://www.ocr.org.uk/administration/general-qualifications/assessment/non-exam-assessment/submission-requirements/)
AQA states that its usual candidate record form requirements do not apply in the same way to spoken language endorsement 8700/C. It provides separate centre declaration and internal record guidance.
[AQA record form guidance] (https://www.aqa.org.uk/exams-administration/coursework-controlled-assessment-nea/candidate-record-forms-and-centre-declaration-sheets) and
[AQA spoken languag guidance] (https://www.aqa.org.uk/resources/english/gcse/english-language-8700/assess/non-exam-assessment-guide-spoken-language-endorsement)
Use JCQ as the foundation, then check the current specification and administration instructions for the relevant board and series. Centres must also maintain an NEA policy covering planning, responsibilities, risks and authentication, reviewed annually by a senior leader and communicated within the centre.
[JCQ assessment instructions](https://www.jcq.org.uk/knowledge-hub/instructions-for-conducting-non-examination-assessments-gce-gcse-specifications/)
Begin with the preparation lesson
The most useful first step is a small one. Update the preparation lesson, introduce a short source record and agree where evidence will be stored. Then remove obsolete forms before they find their way into another cohort’s folders.
Regular spoken explanation can also help teachers see pupils’ thinking before the formal endorsement. A carefully chosen follow up question may reveal what sits behind a polished script, or what an anxious pupil struggled to put on paper. That is the gap we are trying to close at HeyCleo through curriculum aligned voice responses, live follow up questions and individual pupil insights. These do not replace the official assessment, required recordings, paperwork or teacher judgement.
[HeyCleo educator page] (https://heycleo.io/)
The new declaration need not make assessment colder. Used well, it gives teachers better evidence for a difficult decision and gives pupils a fairer opportunity to show where their thinking came from.