Key stage 2 English and mathematics tests: how to become a marker

MarkersClerical markers:

• will have at least 3 A levels or equivalent post-16 academic qualifications recognised in the UK
• are not required to be qualified teachers or graduates – Pearson will train them to accurately apply the mark scheme for clerical items at the 2026required standard

Regular markers will:

• have a degree or equivalent qualification
• have qualified teacher status (QTS) and a valid teacher reference number (TRN)
• be a primary school teacher, or a secondary school teacher in the relevant subject
• need at least one full academic year’s experience teaching the national curriculum testsfor willEngland
• have recent KS2 teaching experience
• demonstrate subject-specific expertise and knowledge for the relevant subject to mark pupil responses classified as ‘regular’ items
• use professional judgement and subject-specific knowledge to accurately apply the mark scheme

Specialist markers will:

• have a degree or equivalent qualification
• have QTS and a valid TRN
• be recruiteda byprimary Pearson,school teacher, or a secondary school teacher in the Standardsrelevant subject
• need at least one full academic year’s experience teaching the national curriculum for England
• have recent KS2 teaching experience
• demonstrate subject-specific expertise and Testingknowledge Agency’sfor externalthe supplierrelevant fromsubject Septemberto 2025mark onwards.pupil Pearsonresponses willclassified as ‘specialist’ items
• use professional judgement and subject-specific knowledge to accurately apply the mark scheme
• ideally have worked as a subject leader in a primary school for the relevant subject

Roles for experienced and high-graded markers

Experienced and high-graded markers can apply to become team leaders or senior markers.

Team leaders supervise other markers and will:

• have a degree or equivalent qualification
• have QTS and a valid TRN
• be, or have been, a primary school teacher or senior marker
• need at least 2 full academic years’ experience teaching the national curriculum for England
• have held the position of a supervisory marker role or achieved the highest grade as a marker in the subject
• demonstrate subject-specific expertise and knowledge to lead on the deliverymarking of pupil responses across all item types

Pearson may offer roles in the marking hierarchy directly to experienced markers, based on their grading. Markers can only progress through the hierarchy one role and subject at a time.

Apply to be a marker

You can apply to be a marker for the 2026 KS2 tests from December 2025.

If you have been a marker before, Pearson will contact you directly and invite you to apply for a role.

If you have not been a marker before, you will be able to apply for entry-level roles on the Pearson website.

Marker training

Successful applicants will receive full training on the marking processes and managehow to apply the relationshipmark withscheme markers.accurately. This will include mandatory e-learning, virtual mark scheme training and ongoing support from a marking supervisor.

WeThe virtual mark scheme training meeting for entry-level markers will updatetake place in May 2026, shortly after pupils take the informationtests. onThis thiswill pageensure withall moremarkers informationunderstand onthe accessingrelevant opportunitiesmark scheme and all marking procedures, and introduce them to becomethe support network available throughout the process. After the virtual mark scheme training, the successful applicants will practise their ability to mark accurately and consistently by marking a marker.set Pearsonof understandspractice test items. They must also successfully mark and pass qualification items to demonstrate that manythey can accurately apply the mark scheme, before being approved to mark pupil responses.

Marking the tests

Approved markers who have passed qualification will mark items from the 2026 KS2 test scripts between May and mid-June 2026. Markers are eagerexpected to continuemark their allocation within 3 weeks.

Supervisors will assess accuracy through seed items and provide feedback, where required, throughout the marking period. This ensures that all markers are working onat the nationalagreed curriculumstandard.

User testsacceptance testing

User acceptance testing (UAT) is part of Pearson’s rigorous testing of the marker training materials to ensure they are clear, useful and comprehensive.

From December, Pearson will contactappoint existinga small group of markers directlyfrom regardingeach thesubject recruitmentand processfrom fordifferent levels within the 2026 nationalmarking curriculumhierarchy tests byto test the endmarker oftraining Septembermaterials 2025.before marking begins in May 2026.

Markers who are contracted to complete UAT will be paid, in line with their UAT contract terms, and must be available from 8:30am to 5pm on:

• Friday 13 February 2026
• Saturday 14 February 2026
• Sunday 15 February 2026

Pearson will contact selected markers with more information in December.