23rd August 2010 9:00
By Blue Tutors
The BBC’s website has recently confirmed that a handful of state schools will offer International GCSEs (IGCSEs) for the coming academic year. Michael Gove announced last month that state schools would now be allowed to offer the qualification, which had previously been prohibited by the Labour government because the courses didn’t meet national targets in Maths, English and Science.
The IGCSE is more linear in structure than the normal GCSE, with exams taken at the end of the year, and coursework submitted at the same time. The existing GCSE is more modular, with more regular assessment. Teachers claim that the IGCSE gives them more freedom in the classroom, allowing topics to be tackled as they see fit, and being able to tailor lessons for a particular class.
In July 16 state schools signed up for the IGCSEs, with another 50 asking for more information. This has now grown to 350 registered schools, and Cambridge International Examinations (CIE), one of the awarding bodies of the IGCSEs, expects this number to reach 500 before the start of the academic year. CIE are also running teacher training events for the unfamiliar qualification, and over 200 teachers from 90 schools have signed up so far.