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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/live/2016/aug/25/do-exam-results-really-matter-live-debate
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| Do exam results really matter? – live debate | Do exam results really matter? – live debate |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 12.47pm BST | |
| 12:47 | |
| What teachers are saying | |
| Sarah Marsh | |
| A few teachers shared their views on this topic with us:Ben Morse, former head of department | |
| Exam results matter in the following context: do you have an idea of what you want to study, or what job you want to do? Have you got the results you need to get there? If you haven’t, it’s not the end of the world, but take it for the lesson it is – either that’s not for you, or you didn’t try hard enough. You will face more exams in life. Defeat sucks, but is it’s own learning experience. If you got what you needed, congratulations. Hold onto that feeling and remember it when you’re face down in revision in the coming years. | |
| Paul Clark, teacher | |
| Are grades the holy grail of secondary school? Grades open a few doors. They give you a few more choices. However, they do not map out your future. They do not give you eternal joy or guarantee you success in life. They do not make you healthy and fulfilled. The choices that grades give you are still yours to make. You will learn more from the process of making those choices than by the results themselves. You will make mistakes, hopefully you will learn from them. Your biggest challenge is making the right choices with what you’ve got. | |
| Jo Grace, a sensory engagement specialist | |
| Today families will be celebrating the achievement of milestones held up by society. Relatives will ring to find out what mark was scored. Congratulations will be passed on. To all those who have triumphed in the examination process: a very well done. | |
| Many families never have this opportunity for public celebration. Their children will go through exams, but of the medical kind. This does not mean those children do not achieve. Indeed their achievements are plentiful and extraordinary, but they are mostly hidden. There is no day in their life where everyone wants to know how they did. Their achievements go unnoticed, except by a small few. | |
| And to those of you who didn’t get the letter on the page you were hoping for. There is achievement elsewhere in life that can’t be measured. Get up and push forward with what you are good at, try even though it is hard, and if you feel like you can’t, take a look at some of the children I work for and know that if they can do it, you certainly can. | |
| 12.35pm BST | |
| 12:35 | |
| 'Your grades are part of the story of your life' | |
| James Walsh | |
| We’ve been hearing from readers in the comments section below, as well as via our form, which you can contribute to by scrolling to the bottom of the live blog (or clicking here, if you’re that way inclined). | |
| I am a secondary school teacher and educator who has been working in many guises within education. | |
| I have spent a lot of time in different education systems and can say, hand on heart, from all of the experience that I have had, that the only people our current examination system benefits are league-table lovers and fans of computerised ranking systems that like having everybody categorised within the same system. | |
| Until we start educating in a way that explores “what are you good at?” rather than “how good are you at this?” we will forever be punishing our students to compete in a closed system wherein individual talent, creativity and passion are suppressed in favour of standardised expectations of what education is supposed to be. | |
| I have yet to see a system that runs on standardised testing that has benefited the majority - which speaks for itself really. | |
| Rachel Musson, Totnes | |
| Updated | |
| at 12.37pm BST | |
| 12.21pm BST | |
| 12:21 | |
| Grades do matter – although they are not a reflection of ability | |
| Abi Wilkinson | |
| In a system of entrenched social inequality, exam results are not an accurate reflection of ability, diligence or anything else they’re assumed to measure. They do, however, matter. Ironically, it’s actually the young people who face the most barriers to academic achievement who benefit most from good grades. | |
| For kids at prestigious public schools, failing their GCSEs or A-levels might be embarrassing but it will never be life-ruining. They always have other options. Perhaps their dad can give them a cushy role in his own business, bypassing the need for university altogether. Possibly, they might redo the year, with the help of expensive one-to-one tutors. Or maybe they’ll pursue a career in music or the arts, the financial support of their parents enabling them to undertake a series of unpaid internships to get their foot in the door. | |
| For young people without these advantages, it can be harder to recover from disappointing results. Partly, it’s a self-confidence thing. People from very privileged backgrounds tend to have such a surplus that they’re able to weather a few knocks. Also, though, the reality is that bad grades do limit your options somewhat. There are alternative routes (such as Access courses) which are accessible to everyone, so nobody needs to give up on their dreams at 16 or 18, but let’s not pretend that exam results are equally unimportant for everyone. | |
| 12.00pm BST | 12.00pm BST |
| 12:00 | 12:00 |
| The narrative that grades don't matter is entirely class blind | The narrative that grades don't matter is entirely class blind |
| Frances Ryan | Frances Ryan |
| It’s been 14 years since I got my GCSE results and I can still remember the butterflies in my stomach. | It’s been 14 years since I got my GCSE results and I can still remember the butterflies in my stomach. |
| I grew up in a family where I was taught education mattered, probably because few in my family were lucky enough to get a chance at one. Good grades represented more than a few letters on a page: they were a gateway to opportunities, experiences, jobs, and security. | I grew up in a family where I was taught education mattered, probably because few in my family were lucky enough to get a chance at one. Good grades represented more than a few letters on a page: they were a gateway to opportunities, experiences, jobs, and security. |
| As I wrote last week, the narrative that qualifications somehow don’t matter is entirely class blind: pretending that life chances look the same no matter where you sit on the socio-economic ladder. As if opportunities work the same for a kid from a council estate whose parents stack shelves and the offspring of a private school alumni with connections at a leading law firm. | As I wrote last week, the narrative that qualifications somehow don’t matter is entirely class blind: pretending that life chances look the same no matter where you sit on the socio-economic ladder. As if opportunities work the same for a kid from a council estate whose parents stack shelves and the offspring of a private school alumni with connections at a leading law firm. |
| There’s far too much pressure on teenagers around exam results and it’s vital there’s opportunities beyond traditional academic qualifications. | There’s far too much pressure on teenagers around exam results and it’s vital there’s opportunities beyond traditional academic qualifications. |
| But to ignore the importance of qualifications is to ignore how inequality really works. When it comes to life chances, Britain is still largely a closed shop. For working class children, qualifications are a rare way to break in. | But to ignore the importance of qualifications is to ignore how inequality really works. When it comes to life chances, Britain is still largely a closed shop. For working class children, qualifications are a rare way to break in. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 12.16pm BST | at 12.16pm BST |
| 11.04am BST | 11.04am BST |
| 11:04 | 11:04 |
| Welcome to our debate | Welcome to our debate |
| Sarah Marsh | Sarah Marsh |
| It’s the day met with a mix of fear and anticipation by students everywhere: GCSE results day. It comes shortly after A-level grades are released, and marks the end of exam result season for many. But how much does what you get really matter? | It’s the day met with a mix of fear and anticipation by students everywhere: GCSE results day. It comes shortly after A-level grades are released, and marks the end of exam result season for many. But how much does what you get really matter? |
| The Guardian’s Secret Teacher argued earlier this month that bad grades are not the end of the world. “What do exams actually test anyway? Memory, certainly. They test time management. They test elements of competence in individual subjects. But, ultimately, they really test how good a person is at sitting exams,” they wrote. | The Guardian’s Secret Teacher argued earlier this month that bad grades are not the end of the world. “What do exams actually test anyway? Memory, certainly. They test time management. They test elements of competence in individual subjects. But, ultimately, they really test how good a person is at sitting exams,” they wrote. |
| It’s true that academic success isn’t the be-all and end-all. After all everyone from successful writer Julie Burchill to media mogul Simon Cowell dropped out of school. Even Jeremy Clarkson spoke out about disappointing A-level results last week, tweeting: “Don’t worry. I got a C and two Us, and I’m currently on a superyacht in the Med.” | It’s true that academic success isn’t the be-all and end-all. After all everyone from successful writer Julie Burchill to media mogul Simon Cowell dropped out of school. Even Jeremy Clarkson spoke out about disappointing A-level results last week, tweeting: “Don’t worry. I got a C and two Us, and I’m currently on a superyacht in the Med.” |
| Sometimes not getting the grades you want can lead to better things. Carrie, 28, spoke to the guardian about missing out on her first choice university because of not getting the right grades, and ending up on a completely different path. She took a year out and eventually enjoyed a fulfilling art degree, instead of English which she’d originally set her sights on. She said: “It will only be okay – maybe even bloody amazing – if you make it work for you ... There is a reason for everything and a huge adventure awaits.” | Sometimes not getting the grades you want can lead to better things. Carrie, 28, spoke to the guardian about missing out on her first choice university because of not getting the right grades, and ending up on a completely different path. She took a year out and eventually enjoyed a fulfilling art degree, instead of English which she’d originally set her sights on. She said: “It will only be okay – maybe even bloody amazing – if you make it work for you ... There is a reason for everything and a huge adventure awaits.” |
| However, Frances Ryan argued that grades do matter for some – especially in our unequal society. She wrote: “Of course, a formal education is no guarantee of a fulfilling career or decent wage, and disappointing A-level results are not the end of the world (really, they’re not). But focusing on individual examples of success distracts from the bigger picture: the multiple obstacles that rig the system and lets society off the hook for eliminating them.” | However, Frances Ryan argued that grades do matter for some – especially in our unequal society. She wrote: “Of course, a formal education is no guarantee of a fulfilling career or decent wage, and disappointing A-level results are not the end of the world (really, they’re not). But focusing on individual examples of success distracts from the bigger picture: the multiple obstacles that rig the system and lets society off the hook for eliminating them.” |
| What’s more, others have argued telling students exam results don’t matter is dangerous because there is still a value placed upon academic success in the highly competitive modern workplace. | What’s more, others have argued telling students exam results don’t matter is dangerous because there is still a value placed upon academic success in the highly competitive modern workplace. |
| What do you think? Do grades still matter or are they less important in modern times? Did you succeed through other means? Join us from 12pm-2pm today to discuss. You’re also able to take part by filling out the form below. | What do you think? Do grades still matter or are they less important in modern times? Did you succeed through other means? Join us from 12pm-2pm today to discuss. You’re also able to take part by filling out the form below. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 11.46am BST | at 11.46am BST |