Are A levels getting easier??
Discussion
Beaten by a minute so un advance of the lock on my thread I'll transfer most of my comment over here:
Best ever A-level results, more A grades.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/aug/14/al...
Research by Durham University suggests that most subjects have got two grades easier over the past two decades - this means an A is the new C grade. The same research revealed marked differences between subjects.
All must have prizes, nobody can lose, so nobody can win either, so everybody loses. No fault of teachers or students as the article shows.
Good luck to PHers looking for a uni place.
Best ever A-level results, more A grades.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/aug/14/al...
Research by Durham University suggests that most subjects have got two grades easier over the past two decades - this means an A is the new C grade. The same research revealed marked differences between subjects.
All must have prizes, nobody can lose, so nobody can win either, so everybody loses. No fault of teachers or students as the article shows.
Good luck to PHers looking for a uni place.
My middle daughter is picking up her results today, so looking forward to doom and gloom when I get home! She's been offered a conditional place at Sheffield to do Russian, and believe me the stress she's endured has not been pleasant. When I went through school, at least the lower 6th meant you could relax for a year. These days its poxy exams all the way through.
It's certainly true that some of the more prestigious departments are starting to introduce entrance exams. When I started at university (10 years ago) I was about the only person on my course without at least 4 As, the huge majority had 5 or more... I dread to think what it's like now.
The thing to remeber...
Since they introduced the modular AS-A2 system where by you sit exams every 6 months for your two year sixth form period...
If you fail a module you simple retake it the next time around....So (Although they are not the same papers), by repetition you get better grades...
The system seems a bit odd, as those who are really slow and fail most modules the first time around are fist fed the information they need so they dont fail that module again...
Gone are the days where you had to study hard for two years and remeber everything...and then sit down in the summer and do your exams..
The old system makes more sence, it forces you to rember everyting...whereas the new system means you just have to learn and then forget for each module....
Oh, and teaching in non-linked modules is not really good for thought flow between subjects/topics...
Since they introduced the modular AS-A2 system where by you sit exams every 6 months for your two year sixth form period...
If you fail a module you simple retake it the next time around....So (Although they are not the same papers), by repetition you get better grades...
The system seems a bit odd, as those who are really slow and fail most modules the first time around are fist fed the information they need so they dont fail that module again...
Gone are the days where you had to study hard for two years and remeber everything...and then sit down in the summer and do your exams..
The old system makes more sence, it forces you to rember everyting...whereas the new system means you just have to learn and then forget for each module....
Oh, and teaching in non-linked modules is not really good for thought flow between subjects/topics...
tegwin said:
The old system makes more sence, it forces you to rember everyting...whereas the new system means you just have to learn and then forget for each module....
There was nothing wrong at all with the old O/A level system. Its worked for the "older" generations (god, that feels terrible to say now, I'm not *that* old am I?), so why should it need to be changed? The only obvious change is the continual updating of the syllabus to keep the content relevant.If it ain't broke, don't fix it ....
Of course, nobody ever seems to consider that just maybe, perhaps, the students are working harder and putting in even more effort to achieve.
These exact same headlines were running when I did my A-levels 10 years ago. Which was annoying, because I'd worked my arse off to get the results I did, as did a lot of my friends. Not un-surprisingly, those who didn't do the work didn't get the results. Funny that. The people who had dicked-about during their GCSE's weren't even doing A-levels - they had either left school after a bunch of D's, E's, F's and U's (!) or the best of them were studing the (at the time) much-maligned GNVQ's. So the crop of students who were left at my 6th form were those who were more inclined to academia and study, and dare I say it, more ambitious to boot.
Furthermore, mine was the first year to be hit by university tuition fees and the reduction in grants (and the establishment of student loans to compensate). I was very conscious at the time of getting value for money from my education, and I can only assume that current students are even more value-aware and determined to get in to the best university possible, given that the cost of higher education has increased since my time.
Let's face it, with these headlines and the perception (real or not) that university entrants are of a poorer-standard than they were in the past, students have to make more of an effort to differentiate themselves from the mass.
These exact same headlines were running when I did my A-levels 10 years ago. Which was annoying, because I'd worked my arse off to get the results I did, as did a lot of my friends. Not un-surprisingly, those who didn't do the work didn't get the results. Funny that. The people who had dicked-about during their GCSE's weren't even doing A-levels - they had either left school after a bunch of D's, E's, F's and U's (!) or the best of them were studing the (at the time) much-maligned GNVQ's. So the crop of students who were left at my 6th form were those who were more inclined to academia and study, and dare I say it, more ambitious to boot.
Furthermore, mine was the first year to be hit by university tuition fees and the reduction in grants (and the establishment of student loans to compensate). I was very conscious at the time of getting value for money from my education, and I can only assume that current students are even more value-aware and determined to get in to the best university possible, given that the cost of higher education has increased since my time.
Let's face it, with these headlines and the perception (real or not) that university entrants are of a poorer-standard than they were in the past, students have to make more of an effort to differentiate themselves from the mass.
The number of people taking more than 4 A levels goes to show that they are getting easier. When I did mine you were hard pressed to do the standard three and only those pupils getting private tuition managed to attempt four. Certainly some of the students we're getting at Kingston really shouldn't have been allowed in as their knowledge seems very basic, only above GCSE standard. There are still quite a few though that really are brilliant, which makes the job so much nicer.
clonmult said:
tegwin said:
The old system makes more sence, it forces you to rember everyting...whereas the new system means you just have to learn and then forget for each module....
There was nothing wrong at all with the old O/A level system. Its worked for the "older" generations (god, that feels terrible to say now, I'm not *that* old am I?), so why should it need to be changed? The only obvious change is the continual updating of the syllabus to keep the content relevant.If it ain't broke, don't fix it ....
I actually found my end of year exams at university easier than my A-Levels. Not sure if it was because by that point I was used to exams, or if the questions were more straight forward, or if I was more interested in the subject. Either way, I got very stressed over my A-Levels and ended up with insomnia and palpitations for 2 weeks, for my university exams I tended to just feel nervous in the morning.
Gassing Station | The Pie & Piston Archive | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff