lol
GCSE's and National Curriculum Scrapped by 2014.....O levels to replace them
- Thread starter Castiel
- Start date
lol
What vested interest does the the Commons education select committee have exactly?
Will be interesting to see what changes are proposed to GCSEs in light of this backtrack.
The current system is obviously flawed, I am unsure if a single exam is even able to properly measure all ability levels, I also doubt a system which requires the invention of the A* grade.
Multiple exam boards offering the same subject probably needs to change too, combined with league tables this provides an obvious incentive towards choosing the "easier" exam board. League tables themselves are also problematic, the information they provide is good but the pressures they impose have harmful effects, schools G&T systems or example seem to be paying lip service to the concept as those students are already on for the C+ grade the school needs. We can also see the impact this has with the GCSE English issues, some teachers were teaching to a C grade so when the boundaries moved it had a massive impact on results.
The current system is obviously flawed, I am unsure if a single exam is even able to properly measure all ability levels, I also doubt a system which requires the invention of the A* grade.
Multiple exam boards offering the same subject probably needs to change too, combined with league tables this provides an obvious incentive towards choosing the "easier" exam board. League tables themselves are also problematic, the information they provide is good but the pressures they impose have harmful effects, schools G&T systems or example seem to be paying lip service to the concept as those students are already on for the C+ grade the school needs. We can also see the impact this has with the GCSE English issues, some teachers were teaching to a C grade so when the boundaries moved it had a massive impact on results.
What a result, looks like common sense has won over unnecessary ideological reform. I can see the usual suspects are crying as expected…
This is the only decision Michael Gove has ever made that I agree with. Lets hope some of his other harebrained ideas are thrown on the pyre as well.
The current system isn't perfect but improvements can be made gradually in a considered manner. A wholesale replacement of the entire education system from Primary to University in the space of a few short years was never the right solution.
The only thing I am disappointed about is EU procurement law restricting the ability to form a single exam board.
This is the only decision Michael Gove has ever made that I agree with. Lets hope some of his other harebrained ideas are thrown on the pyre as well.
The current system isn't perfect but improvements can be made gradually in a considered manner. A wholesale replacement of the entire education system from Primary to University in the space of a few short years was never the right solution.
The only thing I am disappointed about is EU procurement law restricting the ability to form a single exam board.
No it isn't, I sat mine eleven years ago now, I was stoned for most of the second year, I put absolutely no effort in at all and achieve A*/6A/3B/2C.
Half of me wishes I tired as I reckon I'd have got straight A's like most of my peers. The other half of me realises how utterly useless they are unless I'm applying for a menial job at OCUK.
Because quite a few of he things he is doing are actually quite good. The changes to ICT, the improved links between Universities and Schools, the improvements in OFSTED etc.
For most of his proposed reforms the issue isn't really with the reforms themselves but the pace of them.
Soldato
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This is a shame.. the status quo is maintained by vested interests; unions protecting teachers from accountability, Lib Dems protecting students (who will be their core vote when they get to 18) from realising that actually, most of their progress has come from grade inflation and not something in the water.
Was hoping they would scrap the multiple exam board thing, nothing like schools cherry picking exams on the basis which ones are easiest to pass..
On the plus side yay for an embarrassing climb down over a return to o-levels, they were scrapped for a reason and I am glad they remain scrapped. Entire exam based courses prove nothing and make a 2 year course difficult to teach effectively (or learn from effectively).
It's also good to see that the government are slowly being shown that running on blind ideology and nothing to do with the reality of society is about as helpful as a dead horse.
On the plus side yay for an embarrassing climb down over a return to o-levels, they were scrapped for a reason and I am glad they remain scrapped. Entire exam based courses prove nothing and make a 2 year course difficult to teach effectively (or learn from effectively).
It's also good to see that the government are slowly being shown that running on blind ideology and nothing to do with the reality of society is about as helpful as a dead horse.
Soldato
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- Reykjavik, Iceland
I'm not sure there is a right way to do things to be honest. It's simply the wrong time in someones life to be doing any sort of end of school exams that have any meaning.
Personally, I would rather see kids simply being taught and doing work as they go along and then don't have any end of school exams etc. End of the day, no matter what they put in there it is totally and utterly irrelevant to that kids life from then on. (speaking from personal experience of myself and everyone I went to school with).
Not one persons life I know has been influenced in any way what so ever by their schooling or their exams at 15/16. It's just a basis to gain knowledge and understanding in the core subjects then when you leave decide on a possible path for your future.
I consider myself only slightly above average intelligence but the more I see of the education system from school, to A-Levels to Degree and beyond the more I think maybe i'm putting myself down too much there.
So I put it to everyone here a question I have thought to myself:
Should current GCSE and even early A-Level work be the standard at which a child should have reached by the age of 12 if give a proper education from an early age?
I think Yes.
Looking back now, it's frightening how poor the standard of teaching is in schools. To me they are concentrating completely on the wrong area. They need to gut the whole system and get it sorted out. It's not the 'end' that's the problem - it's everything before that point. You basically just go into a class where a teacher who knows nowhere near enough about the subject matter to be teaching it lumps an ancient and outdated text book in front of the kids and goes through that day after day for a whole year...
Maybe the schools in my area are just terrible but I have a feeling it's a country wide issue not just local to me.
Kids are learning at a far slower rate than they should be because the system and the teachers are not up to scratch. Every kid in in public schools are being held back - then on top of that many are being held back even more by being lumped in a massive class with other idiots
Personally, I would rather see kids simply being taught and doing work as they go along and then don't have any end of school exams etc. End of the day, no matter what they put in there it is totally and utterly irrelevant to that kids life from then on. (speaking from personal experience of myself and everyone I went to school with).
Not one persons life I know has been influenced in any way what so ever by their schooling or their exams at 15/16. It's just a basis to gain knowledge and understanding in the core subjects then when you leave decide on a possible path for your future.
I consider myself only slightly above average intelligence but the more I see of the education system from school, to A-Levels to Degree and beyond the more I think maybe i'm putting myself down too much there.
So I put it to everyone here a question I have thought to myself:
Should current GCSE and even early A-Level work be the standard at which a child should have reached by the age of 12 if give a proper education from an early age?
I think Yes.
Looking back now, it's frightening how poor the standard of teaching is in schools. To me they are concentrating completely on the wrong area. They need to gut the whole system and get it sorted out. It's not the 'end' that's the problem - it's everything before that point. You basically just go into a class where a teacher who knows nowhere near enough about the subject matter to be teaching it lumps an ancient and outdated text book in front of the kids and goes through that day after day for a whole year...
Maybe the schools in my area are just terrible but I have a feeling it's a country wide issue not just local to me.
Kids are learning at a far slower rate than they should be because the system and the teachers are not up to scratch. Every kid in in public schools are being held back - then on top of that many are being held back even more by being lumped in a massive class with other idiots
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I think you have no idea about the education system.
Soldato
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I know I spent 12 years in it and it was terribly structured and one of the least efficient systems I've ever had any involvement with.
So I know as much as I need to know about the education system I was part of in my local area to come to the conclusion that it was utterly pointless during my time in it. I learnt more in those 12 years myself outside of school. 15 minutes after school each night and I could learn more than I had that entire day.
If it's totally different elsewhere then I can't speak for that obviously.
As usual, any real change a government proposes is shot down. This is why I hate politics so much. Until the education system is changed from placing emphasis on regurgitation to actual understanding it will continue to head downhill.
GCSE's have been easy for a number of years now. I did mine just under 10 years ago now and they were a piece of **** even then. Like most people I didn't work for them, didn't do much homework and just generally larked about.
GCSE's have been easy for a number of years now. I did mine just under 10 years ago now and they were a piece of **** even then. Like most people I didn't work for them, didn't do much homework and just generally larked about.
Ignore my spelling, typing this at work and haven't the time to read and re-read.
I was in the first year intake of GCSE's and therefore the first year into A levels and Uni afterwards. Since then I have watched the levels decline and decline in a race to the bottom. I remember my first Maths exam in the first year of Uni and I knew the max possible score I could have got was 35% and i was marked as 80% (I was one of the top 2 in the lectures). They had to up all the grades for us first timer GCSE students otherwise all of the first year would have failed Physics / Maths and not progressed to 2nd year and hence been an econimical disaster for the Uni.
Since then I have been working 20+ years in computers and have seen many CV's come across my desk and over the years they have declined massively to the point that we now basically ignore any qualifications and get the people in to do practical work as a test of thier ability. This includes maths and English questions as well as computer problem solving.
It is a joke at the moment, everyone is equal = dumb everyone down to a useless state. Txt speak now rulz, we even see this in emails and CV's FFS. ()
Kids nowadays complain things are hard. Sure they are for them, they have nothing to compare it to. I have and looked at some of the papers throughout the years and it is obvious they are getting eaiser, but you will never convince the generation doing them and definately not the people responsible for organising the exams / system.
20+ years of grades constantly going up. comon, this is not statistically possible. We all know it, but it almost as bad as being racist to mention it.
Going backwards by bringing back O levels. Well they actually worked and we had the best education system. The last 20+ years were a mistake and congrats to the government for admitting it and sorting it out.
Will they go back to O'levels. I doubt it, it will be another fudge to save face.
I was in the first year intake of GCSE's and therefore the first year into A levels and Uni afterwards. Since then I have watched the levels decline and decline in a race to the bottom. I remember my first Maths exam in the first year of Uni and I knew the max possible score I could have got was 35% and i was marked as 80% (I was one of the top 2 in the lectures). They had to up all the grades for us first timer GCSE students otherwise all of the first year would have failed Physics / Maths and not progressed to 2nd year and hence been an econimical disaster for the Uni.
Since then I have been working 20+ years in computers and have seen many CV's come across my desk and over the years they have declined massively to the point that we now basically ignore any qualifications and get the people in to do practical work as a test of thier ability. This includes maths and English questions as well as computer problem solving.
It is a joke at the moment, everyone is equal = dumb everyone down to a useless state. Txt speak now rulz, we even see this in emails and CV's FFS. (
)Kids nowadays complain things are hard. Sure they are for them, they have nothing to compare it to. I have and looked at some of the papers throughout the years and it is obvious they are getting eaiser, but you will never convince the generation doing them and definately not the people responsible for organising the exams / system.
20+ years of grades constantly going up. comon, this is not statistically possible. We all know it, but it almost as bad as being racist to mention it.
Going backwards by bringing back O levels. Well they actually worked and we had the best education system. The last 20+ years were a mistake and congrats to the government for admitting it and sorting it out.
Will they go back to O'levels. I doubt it, it will be another fudge to save face.
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Since leaving comprehensive school I've flourished and got pretty much top marks on everything I've done since.
That's got to be saying something.