Nearly £400,000 has been spent in a bid to avoid public confusion over a new system for the way GCSEs are graded in England.
From this summer, GCSE results will begin switching from letter grades such as A* or G to a numerical system, with 9 the highest grade.
The government wants to "promote understanding" of the new grades.
The exams watchdog Ofqual says explaining the new system to the public is "essential".
In a parliamentary written answer, ministers revealed that more than £380,000 would be spent on information for students, parents and employers about the new 9 to 1 grades.
This summer will see pupils getting their English and maths results in numerical grades, with other subjects to convert over the next few years.
It will end letter grades for GCSEs, used since the 1980s.
This switch will apply only in England, with GCSEs awarded in Wales and Northern Ireland to retain their letter grades.
The question about spending on the new format was asked by Labour's former shadow education secretary, Lucy Powell.
She warned that the changes could cause "chaos and confusion" and labelled the switch to number grades as an "expensive vanity project".
"With just weeks to go before GCSE results are announced, parents, business and pupils remain unclear on what these new GCSE grades mean in practice," she said.
The new grading system is intended to send a signal that these are a different type of GCSE, moving away from coursework and modules to results based on final exams.
But there have been warnings over confusion in what will constitute a pass in the new grading arrangements.
There are going to be two different pass grades - a grade 4 as a "standard" pass and a grade 5 as a "strong" pass.Universities which can require a pass at maths and English GCSE as a requirement have varied in which "pass" they are accepting.
