20th February 2013 9:00
By Blue Tutors
In September last year, the government decided to introduce radical changes to the current GCSE system to create more subject breadth and increase standards. The plan is to replace GCSE examinations with the new English Baccalaureate Certificate (ECB) from 2015. But is this new system really going to be superior to the established one we have been using successfully for 25 years?
The Government believe that the current system has been discredited and perhaps it is easy to agree with this considering the continual increase in pupils achieving top grades at GCSEs. As with A levels, it does seem that the system has been in place for too long bringing with it a sense of complacency. To me, the GCSE exams seem more similar to the IB and perhaps a move to the ECB might prepare more students for the fact that the UK is likely to move over to that system from the A levels we currently have.
Examinations will be sat in the core academic subjects of English, maths, science, foreign languages, history and geography. So where are the changes from the current structure? It would seem that modules are to be scrapped, examinations will be marked with a six point A* to E scale and there will be a more marked difference between brighter and weaker students. I personally welcome a system that stretches bright students while still allowing those who are unable to sit any exams to leave school with some form of certification.
However, this would seem more like a return to the old two-tier O level system, which left children jobless, and with nothing on their horizon at the age of 16. Perhaps it would do better for the government to realise that teaching and education is global. We should use the IB so we can keep our place in world education rather than separating ourselves off with our own almost-IB system that doesn’t quite cut it.