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31 August
GCSE Results 2009: Coursework, Exams and The Gender Difference
GCSE Day Arrives With Record Results.
by
SoftwareGuru
It's been a busy few weeks in the education
industry.
UCAS has been dealing with university offers following A-level results and the
subsequent clearing process for university places. Now the
release of GCSE results to UK pupils throws the spotlight onto
younger pupils.
In terms of A-Levels it was business as usual, with record
numbers of high grades awarded and the annual debate over
whether exams are getting easier and exactly how fair are
university aptitude tests.
Today's GCSE results however presented some interesting changes.
The Guardian newspaper coverage leads with "Boys
bag top grades in maths" while the Independent coverage is
quick to point out that "there
was a drop in the number of English entries being awarded at
least a C, and the number of pupils taking a foreign language
continued its steady decline."
It poses the question: should we evaluate the progress of our
children based on their grades alone or do we analyse the bigger
picture and question the decline of neglected subjects?
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The Move Away From Maths Coursework
This year's GCSE results highlighted again that while girls are
performing better than boys in many subjects, boys are actually
doing better than girls in maths for the first time since 1997.
The move away from maths coursework is believed to be the reason
behind the change.
BBC News GCSE results coverage compares the difference
between the home nations.
"66.9% of entries from England achieving A* to C grades and
21.5% getting and A or A*.
In Wales, 65.5% of entries were awarded A* to C and 18.9% were
awarded As or A*s.
Northern Ireland's students are still the best performers, with
75.1% of entries gaining A* to C grades and 27.1% gaining As or
A*s."
It is certainly encouraging to see an improvement in Maths.
The 21st century digital era needs students who can go on to
excel at advanced maths so that innovation, research and new
technologies can be created to stimulate the UK economy.
The decline in English language grades is disappointing,
especially when foreign languages are not excelling either.
We
are now living in a global village and when it comes to future
employment, those extra language skills could make all the
difference in a competitive careers market.
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Have GCSEs outlived their purpose?
Some education industry experts have put forward the view that
following the Government's decision to extend the education
leaving age to 18, is there still a need for GCSEs?
The complex nature of the system required to successfully carry
out the exams combined with the resulting cost are two of the
reasons offered for considering a new alternative.
The UK is not in the 1970s anymore. Less pupils leave school at
age fifteen or sixteen, fewer couples are getting married
younger, it is taking longer for young adults to get on the
property ladder and, in the bigger scheme of things, people are
living longer.
All of which does suggest that while some type of ongoing
examination system is needed to monitor pupil progress, the
nature of the GCSEs themselves may have outlived their
usefulness.
The bottom line is whether employers really care what results
you got at GCSE.
Compared to A-levels, university degrees and, more importantly,
relevant industry skills and experience...the
answer is probably not.
Therefore, instead of abandoning subjects where the pupil
underperformed so as to concentrate on A-levels, shouldn't
pupils concentrate more on the areas that need the most
improvement?
Are we sacrificing real learning in the pursuit of higher
grades?
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Posted by
admin
at
09:11
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Read more about UK pupil and student issues at Software4Students.