[Omah]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-22841266

New-look GCSEs for schools in England are to be unveiled, with exams graded from eight to one rather than A* to G.

From 2015, GCSEs will move from coursework and continuous assessment to exams at the end of two years.

There will be an emphasis on more rigorous content, such as making sure that pupils studying English read the whole of a Shakespeare play, a 19th-Century novel and more poetry.

There is no sign of a change in name to I-level - as had been suggested.

The format, though, may be familiar to anyone who once took O-levels.

Wales and Northern Ireland are keeping GCSEs, but so far are not adopting the changes proposed for England.

The changes to GCSEs in England will be presented on Tuesday in two reports. Exam regulator Ofqual will explain how the exams will be structured and ministers will give details of the course content.

The reforms will initially apply to a group of core subjects - English language and literature, maths, physics, chemistry, biology, combined science, history and geography.

Hundreds of thousands of pupils will begin studying these revised GCSEs from autumn 2015 and the first candidates to take the exams will be in summer 2017.

Apart from exceptions such as practical experiments in science, there will be a strong push towards exams being taken at the end of two years, rather than in individual units during the course.

Grading will be numbers rather than letters - with eight at the top and one at the bottom. The pass mark will be pushed higher, with claims that it will be pitched at the level of the highest-performing school systems, such as Finland and Shanghai, which have topped international rankings.

The new GCSEs will represent a push for a more stretching, essay-based exam system, reminiscent of O-levels, taken by pupils until the late 1980s.

In history there will be more essays and fewer short-form questions, and the removal of a controlled assessment.

In English, responding to concerns that pupils were only reading chunks of books, there will be a requirement to read whole works and an expectation that pupils will study a wider range of of writing from different eras.

Maths will promote the idea of developing independent problem-solving skills, rather than setting types of questions that can be rehearsed.

This is the latest stage in Education Secretary Michael Gove's drive to reconfigure the exam system.

Last year, Mr Gove announced plans for the scrapping of GCSEs and their replacement with English Baccalaureate Certificates, with each subject to be set by a single exam board.

This re-branding was scrapped, with GCSEs to be retained but reformed instead.

These latest plans will be put out to consultation over the summer, with a timetable that will see the exam boards preparing to produce courses that can be accredited by Ofqual to be taught in schools from autumn 2015.

These changes are for exams in England.

Seems like a good idea .....

[Me. I Am Salman]

No, it doesn't. GCSEs were stressful enough

[Jack_]

From 2015, GCSEs will move from coursework and continuous assessment to exams at the end of two years.

Absolutely awful idea and for the record, none of Gove's plans could ever be described as 'good'.

[reece(:]

Thank god I've done mine and atleast BTECs are still an option.

[Omah]

For the record, educational standards need improvement - reading a WHOLE play and a COMPLETE novel may be a step forward .....

[Marsh.]

But we did read a whole play?

Do they only read one act or something nowadays? I only left school 6 years ago.

As for getting rid of coursework and continuous assessment is a big mistake. Not everyone copes well under exam conditions and won't show their true ability. At least the GCSE method actually tested you a variety of ways from timed tests to monitored progress.

[Jake.]

Completely stupid and awful idea. You have to wonder when Gove is going to get it into his thick mind that for some Vocational education is the better option whilst not so for others. Not every teenager is able to cope with the stress of exams and constant revision, coursework and assessments can help take the weight off of their shoulders.

[Jack_]

But leaving exams till the end of a two year course only benefits a small minority of students, it's going to exclude so many people and will, in the end, only make these changes look unsuccessful. Modular exams work much better and make much more practical sense, and of course not everyone can cope with the stress of exams and some prefer coursework.

[Jake.]

Originally Posted by Jack_

But leaving exams till the end of a two year course only benefits a small minority of students, it's going to exclude so many people and will, in the end, only make these changes look unsuccessful. Modular exams work much better and make much more practical sense, and of course not everyone can cope with the stress of exams and some prefer coursework.

Nail on the head

[Scarlett.]

Exams on the whole are terrible, they're basically memory tests.

[Kizzy]

Originally Posted by Jack_

But leaving exams till the end of a two year course only benefits a small minority of students, it's going to exclude so many people and will, in the end, only make these changes look unsuccessful. Modular exams work much better and make much more practical sense, and of course not everyone can cope with the stress of exams and some prefer coursework.

This is an excellent idea, as was the vocational skills idea.
I feel GCSEs have been simplified, if you read an old O level (higher GCSE equivalent) textbook you would be surprised at the difference in language and vocabulary used.

[Kizzy]

I would welcome a move back to secondary modern and grammar schools, and bring back the middle school system where you go to higher school at 13. I wouldn't bring back the 11+ , by 13 though there is a distinct difference between those who are academic and those who would benefit from a more vocational based education.

[Z]

So basically turning GCSEs into Scottish Standard Grades; which when I was at school were being phased out in favour of Intermediate 1 and Intermediate 2 exams which worked more like GCSEs. Bizarre.

[Samuel.]

Originally Posted by Chewy

Exams on the whole are terrible, they're basically memory tests.

^^^

Honestly struggled with GCSE's more than A levels or level 4 education. Glad I don't have to worry about this.

[Kizzy]

Originally Posted by 08marsh

But we did read a whole play?

Do they only read one act or something nowadays? I only left school 6 years ago.

As for getting rid of coursework and continuous assessment is a big mistake. Not everyone copes well under exam conditions and won't show their true ability. At least the GCSE method actually tested you a variety of ways from timed tests to monitored progress.

My dtr brought photocopies of 2 acts home, they spoke of the literary devices but they did not read the play.... they watched the film!

[Marsh.]

Originally Posted by Kizzy

My dtr brought photocopies of 2 acts home, they spoke of the literary devices but they did not read the play.... they watched the film!

That says it all.

My cousin is in year 10 so has started all their GCSE work and for a novel they are reading they read a chapter, then watch the equivalent of the movie. Back and forth, back and forth most likely in an attempt to hold the student's attention.

[Kizzy]

This has all sprung up from the recent debates about grammar, kids don't know enough, I also think that there is a really limited vocabulary spoken by high school kids. In top set English at 10 we had to learn 10 new words a week, we basically were forced to read a dictionary haha.

[Omah]

Originally Posted by Kizzy

My dtr brought photocopies of 2 acts home, they spoke of the literary devices but they did not read the play.... they watched the film!

Originally Posted by 08marsh

That says it all.

My cousin is in year 10 so has started all their GCSE work and for a novel they are reading they read a chapter, then watch the equivalent of the movie. Back and forth, back and forth most likely in an attempt to hold the student's attention.

How often does the movie bear little or no resemblance of the play or novel - I am reminded of "The Comic Strip Presents..." The Strike (1988), in which Paul, a former miner, writes a hard-hitting left wing screenplay about the 1984 miners' strike. It is accepted by a Hollywood film company but gets turned into a distorted action film in which Arthur Scargill, portrayed by Al Pacino with Meryl Streep as his wife, performs motor-cycle stunts, rescues his daughter from a flooded mine and saves his pit from closure after an impassioned speech to parliament. The film cleans up at the Oscars but Paul is disillusioned - and a wanted man in his home village.

[Tom4784]

Moronic ideas.

Focusing more on tests is incredibly ****ty, they should be moving away from exams not emphasising them.

[Z]

Originally Posted by Dezzy

Moronic ideas.

Focusing more on tests is incredibly ****ty, they should be moving away from exams not emphasising them.

I agree, I think exams are stupid. Having said that, I always cope really well in exam situations and get ace grades in them and I'm actually pretty rubbish at coursework; so it benefits me the way schools and universities operate. In principle, though, I think exams are stupid, they're glorified memory tests for the most part.

[Nedusa]

I can't believe it..........yet more changes to the Education system. why don't they stop messing around with the system, changing it every 2 or 3 years helps no one.

There should be no further changes for at least 5 years....!!!

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by Nedusa

I can't believe it..........yet more changes to the Education system. why don't they stop messing around with the system, changing it every 2 or 3 years helps no one.

There should be no further changes for at least 5 years....!!!

Completely agree.. the constant messing around with it is not fair on the students or the parents.

[jackc1806]

Stupid idea... How do they expect students to memorize 15 or so 2 year courses? It just makes it unnecessarily hard and excludes loads of students.

[Kizzy]

GCSE's including the books studied for English haven't changed since 1988, options have though, we didn't have to choose PE or religious studies or a science. We got 5 options, 3 hours of maths and English a week and half a day at college.

[Tom4784]

Originally Posted by Zee

I agree, I think exams are stupid. Having said that, I always cope really well in exam situations and get ace grades in them and I'm actually pretty rubbish at coursework; so it benefits me the way schools and universities operate. In principle, though, I think exams are stupid, they're glorified memory tests for the most part.

They should make a more flexible system for it all really, give preference to the child's strengths. You'll never get an accurate depiction of what a student has learned with an exam if they don't test well and vice versa.