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| GCSEs will allow pupils to compete with contemporaries in Asia, says Gove | GCSEs will allow pupils to compete with contemporaries in Asia, says Gove |
| (4 months later) | |
| Michael Gove's shakeup of GCSEs will mix 19th-century traditionalism and a modern concern to match Britain's economic rivals, with an end to modular coursework, an emphasis on final exams and a new grading system. | Michael Gove's shakeup of GCSEs will mix 19th-century traditionalism and a modern concern to match Britain's economic rivals, with an end to modular coursework, an emphasis on final exams and a new grading system. |
| Details of the redesigned exam – tentatively to be called "GCSE (England)", a sign of the England versus Wales and Northern Ireland education policy rift – will be unveiled by the Department for Education and exam regulator Ofqual, with the education secretary making a statement to the House of Commons on Tuesday. | Details of the redesigned exam – tentatively to be called "GCSE (England)", a sign of the England versus Wales and Northern Ireland education policy rift – will be unveiled by the Department for Education and exam regulator Ofqual, with the education secretary making a statement to the House of Commons on Tuesday. |
| The content of the proposals has been published by the DfE in a series of subject consultation papers, with input from experts and a call for public response, while Ofqual is to publish a separate consultation paper outlining major changes to the structure of GCSEs, many of which have already been made public. | The content of the proposals has been published by the DfE in a series of subject consultation papers, with input from experts and a call for public response, while Ofqual is to publish a separate consultation paper outlining major changes to the structure of GCSEs, many of which have already been made public. |
| The 600,000 pupils a year who take GCSEs in England will from 2015 face what the DfE describes as more challenging course content, with the first of the revised exams being sat in 2017. The department highlights changes to mathematics that will involve a greater amount of advanced algebra and statistics. | The 600,000 pupils a year who take GCSEs in England will from 2015 face what the DfE describes as more challenging course content, with the first of the revised exams being sat in 2017. The department highlights changes to mathematics that will involve a greater amount of advanced algebra and statistics. |
| The DfE's consultation paper on the content of GCSE history says a minimum 40% of content will be British history, and include at least one study "from the medieval (500-1500), early modern (1450-1750) or modern (1700-present day) periods", and a minimum of 25% will be on world history. | The DfE's consultation paper on the content of GCSE history says a minimum 40% of content will be British history, and include at least one study "from the medieval (500-1500), early modern (1450-1750) or modern (1700-present day) periods", and a minimum of 25% will be on world history. |
| DfE officials likened the new examination structure to the O-level format, which was replaced by GCSEs in the late 1980s but a version of which is still used in Singapore, and which had a heavier emphasis on essay-based exam questions. | DfE officials likened the new examination structure to the O-level format, which was replaced by GCSEs in the late 1980s but a version of which is still used in Singapore, and which had a heavier emphasis on essay-based exam questions. |
| The revised English literature GCSE will require study of at least one Shakespeare play, a selection of Romantic poetry, a 19th-century novel, a selection of poetry since 1850, and British fiction and drama written since the first world war. | The revised English literature GCSE will require study of at least one Shakespeare play, a selection of Romantic poetry, a 19th-century novel, a selection of poetry since 1850, and British fiction and drama written since the first world war. |
| "GCSEs will again be exams at the end of two years instead of being broken up into low-quality modules. Coursework, corrupted by cheating, will be limited," a Whitehall source said. "Exams will test higher-level skills, such as more essay writing, problem solving and mathematical modelling, that universities and businesses desperately need." | "GCSEs will again be exams at the end of two years instead of being broken up into low-quality modules. Coursework, corrupted by cheating, will be limited," a Whitehall source said. "Exams will test higher-level skills, such as more essay writing, problem solving and mathematical modelling, that universities and businesses desperately need." |
| One climbdown by the DfE at the urging of Ofqual has been the retention of so-called tiered papers in maths and science, after earlier reports that they would be abolished in all subjects. | One climbdown by the DfE at the urging of Ofqual has been the retention of so-called tiered papers in maths and science, after earlier reports that they would be abolished in all subjects. |
| Brian Lightman, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and College Leaders, said the changes were "harking back to a bygone era" of O-levels. | Brian Lightman, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and College Leaders, said the changes were "harking back to a bygone era" of O-levels. |
| "Creating one untiered examination for all students, from those with learning difficulties to potential Oxbridge candidates, is an immense challenge with no guarantee of success," he said. "Simply making exams harder does not guarantee higher standards nor mean that students will be prepared for a job." | "Creating one untiered examination for all students, from those with learning difficulties to potential Oxbridge candidates, is an immense challenge with no guarantee of success," he said. "Simply making exams harder does not guarantee higher standards nor mean that students will be prepared for a job." |
| The reforms will first be applied to the eight core subjects of English language and literature, maths, combined science, physics, chemistry, biology, geography and history. Other subjects will be added in subsequent years. | The reforms will first be applied to the eight core subjects of English language and literature, maths, combined science, physics, chemistry, biology, geography and history. Other subjects will be added in subsequent years. |
| The biggest change is the end of modular course structures and an end to the use of classroom assessment in pupils' final grades. Of the first batch of subjects only science will retain a coursework element, but it is possible that other subjects such as foreign languages will retain some assessed component. | The biggest change is the end of modular course structures and an end to the use of classroom assessment in pupils' final grades. Of the first batch of subjects only science will retain a coursework element, but it is possible that other subjects such as foreign languages will retain some assessed component. |
| In an opinion piece published in the Times, Gove said that under the new regime pupils would have to study complete Shakespeare plays as well as "display a command of proper spelling, punctuation and grammar" to aid their future employers. | In an opinion piece published in the Times, Gove said that under the new regime pupils would have to study complete Shakespeare plays as well as "display a command of proper spelling, punctuation and grammar" to aid their future employers. |
| "In maths and science, questions and content will be more demanding, so that state school students can compete with their contemporaries in Singapore and Shanghai, acquiring the skills that the rich pay handsomely to pass on to their children and that are the guarantee of future opportunity," Gove wrote. | "In maths and science, questions and content will be more demanding, so that state school students can compete with their contemporaries in Singapore and Shanghai, acquiring the skills that the rich pay handsomely to pass on to their children and that are the guarantee of future opportunity," Gove wrote. |
| Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers union, said the proposals would do little for the 40% of young people who failed to achieve five A*-Cs under the current system. | Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers union, said the proposals would do little for the 40% of young people who failed to achieve five A*-Cs under the current system. |
| "We have serious concerns that the new-style GCSE will not give all children the chance to demonstrate what they have learned and will particularly disadvantage children with difficult home lives. End-of-course exams on a single day test recall and memory rather than the range of skills that young people need in the 21st century," Bousted said. | "We have serious concerns that the new-style GCSE will not give all children the chance to demonstrate what they have learned and will particularly disadvantage children with difficult home lives. End-of-course exams on a single day test recall and memory rather than the range of skills that young people need in the 21st century," Bousted said. |
| An early suggestion that the exams could be renamed I-levels has proved to be false, but the unorthodox new grading system, ranging from eight as the highest mark to one as the worst, is set to replace the more conventional A* to G marks currently in use. | An early suggestion that the exams could be renamed I-levels has proved to be false, but the unorthodox new grading system, ranging from eight as the highest mark to one as the worst, is set to replace the more conventional A* to G marks currently in use. |
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