In 1982 the A Level pass rate was 68.2 per cent. By 2001 it was 89.9 per cent. This year it is just shy of 100 per cent. Amazing isn’t it how much cleverer students are today? Or is it due to the sheer brilliance of teachers? Of course, neither is true, it is down…
Teenagers who have taken A Level and GCSE exams will now be waiting nervously for their results. They have endured curtailed schooling through the lockdowns and more recently because of teacher strikes. But when they get their results what will they mean? The problem with exam grading pre-existed the Covid pandemic and in fact, can…
The fall-out from the exams debacle during the pandemic lockdowns continues, with news that English students face stricter grading in their exams this year than students from devolved parts of the UK. Ofqual, England’s exam regulator, has decided to return to 2019 grading levels, but Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland’s regulators won’t. It means that…
We are now in the middle of exam results season and I’m afraid it’s a big FAIL for A Levels. The system is failing us all; students, universities and employers. This year A Levels had a pass rate of 98.4 per cent – just 1.6 per cent failing. A whopping 36.4 per cent of grades…
The pandemic and lockdowns have had a massive impact on children’s education – and continue to do so with many students having time away from classes. For the most part schools have been back ‘properly’ this term and we can assess what needs to be done to help students catch up. Firstly, there needs to…