GCSE exams are they of a sufficiently high standard?

Question

I ask this question because now the exams are complete Iknow thatwwhen the results come out we will have the old augumentrs that more and more pupils have reached the required standard. We will also hearthat the standard has been lowered.

I do not dispute that our young ppeople have worked very hard for their results, but time and time agin ihearteachers saying that many who have got very good results are not worthy of them. Surely it is time to increase the standards even at the cost of a higher failure rate. Passing a dumbed down examination prevents those of greater ability attaining the standards they can reach

Answer 1

it does annoy me when ppl say that who have know experience of doing gcses- but i'm afraid i have to agree- thinking about it

they are "dumbed down" for the percentage of the british population who don't try

because it's based on a percentile scheme

I got a*s mainly (predicted anyway- last exam tomorrow) and i have found that in a few subjects i would be able to benefit from an extra grade above that- as the grade boundaries are SO large. (maths 75% edexcel, french 34/50 listening paper edexcel)

looking at the tiny percentage u have to get for a C or D i do wonder how anyone couldn't get it if they revised for like 30 mins...

but saying that- other exam boards are alot more difficult to get good grades in.

also as years pass teachers get more used to what kind of questions are in exams and so can teach us "to the exam" and basically know what will be in there (and past papers help too) this means we gradually get taught better.

that's the main reason in my opinion. but i do think they're a tad easy.

but then again its balanced out by the difficulty of a levels...

i dont know.

just from personal experience

Answer 2

Independent schools can choose IB and IGCSEs etc. but I go to a state school so we must stick to the normal qualifications.

I did my GCSEs this year and I probably won't even feel proud of my results in August because everybody says how easy they are, even when we have actually worked hard and put lots of effort in.

Now I will have to study even harder to try an aim for an A* in my A-levels, which probably won't help the situation.

I'm also worried about universities now as the ones I am interested in are all doing interviews, which I think must be very pressurising.

Answer 3

It just amazes me that these "exams" get so much publicity, they never used too.

Answer 4

No, they are not I'm afraid, and yes, it is time to raise standards.

I did O' levels in 1974 and I could not believe how easy GCSEs are in comparison when i read some of the past papers, eg formulae given in maths papers etc.  However, they are supposed to be a combination of the old CSE and O'level, so I suppose that initially one would expect to find the GCSE slightly easier in comparison to O' level.

Having said that (apart from the fact that, for example, vocab requirements for languages have reduced drastically over the last few years), I agree with the other answer which states that grades vary from year to year, so the fact that students are getting more A*s etc is no refelection that they are brighter.  If national teaching standards drop, then I am sure that it will be possible to get an A* with just 50%.

Also note that many independent schools are now opting for the IGCSE or International O' level as an alternative to the GCSE