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Not all students will be jumping for joy this week |
GCSEs a piece of cake? Think again
The ‘fiasco’ seen in the reporting of examination results each year is a distraction from the real outrage that Britain’s schools are still failing a large proportion of their students, argues Conrad Landin
FOLLOWING the latest news of improving A-level results, yet again large sections of the media claimed that exams were becoming ever easier.
No doubt these claims will be repeated when I, and thousands of others, receive my GCSE results today (Thursday).
Reading this, you’d think one could breeze through the GCSE years.
However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Many students at my school, William Ellis in Highgate Road, stayed after school as late as 7pm in order to complete coursework.
These were not the usual high achievers, many being from under-privileged backgrounds where parents, for various reasons, are unable to support their children through their education.
If people in such circumstances have been successful, this is remarkable.
But rare good feeling about academic success could easily be stunted by reports alleging that grades are worthless.
In reality students are putting in as much effort as ever before. Patrick Welsh, head of art at William Ellis, who has been teaching for 17 years, agrees.
“I hate the debate each year in the press. It’s very hard on the students after they’ve worked so hard,” he says.
“Overall, I think [academic] standards have remained about the same.”
In his own subject, Mr Welsh believes the GCSE-level course has become more challenging than it once was, with the introduction of coursework, which now counts for 60 per cent of the final grade.
“It’s harder than the old O-level course, where brighter students could just turn up on the day of the exam and do well.”
With art among my subjects, I am quite familiar with the heavy workload of GCSEs. But in contrast to the square miles of column space covering “grade inflation”, issues like this get little attention in the press.
Although commentators frequently complain of a “prizes-for-all” culture, inevitably many students will be highly disappointed with the grades they receive today. Last year, over half of candidates failed to gain five GCSEs above C grade including English and maths.
While there are a few genuine concerns with regard to standards, such as in some elements of the current GCSE science course, too often we are distracted by the annual results fiasco from the real outrage, which is that Britain’s schools are still failing a large proportion of their students, and that the gap in achievement between the state and private sectors is widening.
Unfortunately, when we attempt to tackle this, further accusations of grade inflation will likely follow.
It is improbable that the introduction of the super-grade at A-level will have a positive impact in promoting academic success.
Indeed, it is likely that universities will end up taking more students from the private sector, owing to them having the support and intensive tutoring required to make the A* mark.
Unlike in the current climate where we can identify the gross bias in the admissions systems of the top universities, with the introduction of the super-grade the
A-levels system will justify the inequality.
Whatever direction we now take must recognise the inequality between the systems in Britain today.
Talking down exam results is not only disparaging to students on results day but reduces their worth both in Britain and abroad.
We must swiftly iron out any genuine issues of falling standards, so that Britain does justice to the thousands of students who put as much effort into achievement as every generation before them, and we can put an end to students’ efforts being rewarded annually being dispirited by the media’s exaggeration of the issues at stake.
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