 |
|
Giving a helping hand to your local businesses
|
|
|
|
|
New Grades Set to Raise A Level Standards
Every year at result time it seems the same debate raises it head: are exams getting easier? Is it easier to score an A grade now than it was say 10 or 15 years ago? Whatever your view, there’s no arguing with the statistics: more than a quarter of this year’s A level students were awarded an A – the 25th year in succession that the pass rate has risen.
But if education ministers have their way, a new scale of grading could raise the bar for the nation’s top performers once the introduction of A* and A** grades are formalized.
Whether the exams have become easier or people have simply become ‘cleverer’ is open to question (although many claim that today’s A level questions are not dissimilar to the O level questions of years gone by) but this year almost 3 in 10 candidates passed with A grades – which traditionally meant they were good enough to earn a place at one of the top universities.
As a result, 316,549 pupils were able to confirm their university places on results day – in itself a record. And a huge jump from last year’s figure of 294,567. Not surprisingly, the successful students have been rightly commended for their grades; improved teaching – and indeed learning – techniques have been cited as the driving forces behind the outstanding results achieved.
Still the question remains for the examination boards: if more and more people are passing with A grades, doesn’t this make it harder for the brightest students to gain places at their preferred universities? The B grade that was once considered a healthy score is almost regarded as a failure by some.
It’s clear then - a new measure should be introduced to highlight the very brightest students from amongst the ever-growing A-graders, hence the proposed introduction of the A* and A** grades for those achieving a minimum 90% score. The new grading system may be introduced for 2010.
| DOWNLOAD | | [ New Grades Set to Raise A Level Standards ] |
EMAIL THIS PAGE
PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION
|
|