Category Archives: Exam Focus: AS-Levels

Private schools to dominate new £18,000-a-year university

Posted on April 23, 2012 by dchan

Two-thirds of candidates given provisional places at the New College of the Humanities – established by a series of leading academics to rival Oxford and Cambridge – are independently-educated, figures show. Just a fifth are from state schools. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

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Would ranking pupils against each other restore faith in exams?

Posted on March 20, 2012 by dchan

Bringing back exam results which rank pupils against each other might be the only way to raise public confidence and stop the sniping about standards, says Mike Baker.  Have you noticed that when you talk about schools to almost anyone … Continue reading →

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Education reforms risk ‘mass failure’, says exams chief

Posted on October 12, 2011 by gmckechnie

Mark Dawe, chief executive of OCR, said that attempts to force all children to study academic subjects would alienate thousands of pupils who were more suited to vocational qualifications. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

Posted in Assessment / Exams, Exam Focus: AS-Levels, Government Policy, Vocational Qualifications | Leave a comment

Wide back-lash against AQA’s A-level ranking plans

Posted on September 28, 2011 by tburr

Following our report yesterday on AQA’s plans for A-Level ranking changes; today it seems this has caused a bit of a stir as The Guardian and The Telegraph are reporting on it this morning. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

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AQA plans to penalise private schools

Posted on September 27, 2011 by tburr

The UK’s biggest exam board, AQA, have today announced a radical overhaul to how students are ranked based on their A-Level results. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

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Ofqual questions English Literature Exams

Posted on September 26, 2011 by tburr

Exam watchdog Ofqual have criticised A-Level exams in English Literature. Having reviewed papers from 2005 and 2009 showed formulaic questions led to some papers being less demanding. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

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University clearing places are filling faster than last year

Posted on August 25, 2011 by SLovatt

FIGURES from the admissions body at UCAS shows this week that almost more than a third of the UK university places has been filled through clearing compared to last year. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

Posted in A-Level, Academies, Assessment / Exams, Awards, Exam Focus: AS-Levels, GCSE, Girls, Ofsted, Secondary Schools, Sixth Forms, Teachers professional development / careers, University | Leave a comment

‘I’m so glad I had the chance to take the International Baccalaureate’

Posted on July 21, 2011 by MThompson

Budget cuts mean fewer state schools will offer the International Baccalaureate. But it would be a shame if this tough but stimulating course was only available to the children of the wealthy, argues student Nastassia Dhanraj in The Independent. {lang: … Continue reading →

Posted in A-Level, Exam Focus: AS-Levels, Government Policy, International Baccalaureate, University | Leave a comment

Teachers claim “thousands” got wrong SATs grades

Posted on July 15, 2011 by MThompson

A survey of teachers uncovered serious concerns with grading amid claims of widespread marking errors of exams for 11-year-olds in England, reports Andrew Hough in The Telegraph. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

Posted in A-Level, Assessment / Exams, Exam Focus: AS-Levels, GCSE, KS2, Primary Schools, SATs, Secondary Schools | Leave a comment

Exam boards to be fined over errors

Posted on July 14, 2011 by MThompson

Exam boards face being fined over blunders in GCSEs and A-levels under Government plans to improve qualification standards, it is reported by Graeme Paton in The Telegraph. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

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UCAS chief: students applying to universities months too early

Posted on July 11, 2011 by MThompson

Increasing numbers of schools encouraging pupils to submit forms as early as September, says The Guardian’s Jessica Shepherd. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

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Schools quit ICT over ‘impossible’ AS-level

Posted on July 5, 2011 by MThompson

An ICT qualification with coursework tasks so difficult that even experienced teachers find them “impossible” is leading many schools to quit the subject altogether, reports the TES. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

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Doubts raised over sixth forms’ value for money

Posted on March 23, 2011 by CHoward

Ministers cannot be sure they are getting value for money from the full range of education for 16 to 18-year-olds in England, reports BBC News. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

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Brightest pupils to skip GCSEs

Posted on March 21, 2011 by CHoward

Michael Gove is considering plans to allow the brightest pupils to skip GCSEs and start studying for A-levels at 14, Jessica Shepherd reports for The Guardian. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

Posted in Academies, Exam Focus: AS-Levels, GCSE, Government Policy, Secondary Schools, Sixth Forms | Leave a comment

A call for the end of hand-written exams

Posted on February 25, 2011 by CHoward

BBC News reports that the head of England’s exams watchdog has said that computerised exams should replace pen and paper tests for a generation used to digital learning. {lang: ‘en-GB’}

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Could Easter revision courses give A-level results a boost?

Posted on February 3, 2011 by LWhitehill

With A-level grade offers for university entrance this autumn certain to be even higher than they were last year, more students are signing up for Easter Revision courses to maximise their chances of summer success. Competition for places at good … Continue reading →

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Getting Thinking Skills Into Your Lessons

Posted on September 28, 2010 by hkingman

Get one step ahead in the government’s ‘deep thinking’ revival with Will Ord’s 10 step framework! Getting thinking skills into your lessons For more resources like this, click here Will Ord is an experienced, inspiring and enthusiastic speaker. His training … Continue reading →

Posted in Creative Curriculum, Exam Focus: AS-Levels, Philosophy for Children, Primary Schools, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Government ‘deep thought’ revival

Posted on September 28, 2010 by hkingman

Julian Baggini: What is deep thought? The Independent, 5 July 2010 I think most people are more sceptical than ever. We are learning to test out claims for ourselves How it warms the cerebrum to hear of Education Secretary Michael … Continue reading →

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AS-Levels to be scrapped as part of government’s ‘deep thought’ revival

Posted on September 28, 2010 by hkingman

Education secretary Michael Gove wants to limit the modularisation of A-levels and scrap AS-levels guardian.co.uk, Sunday 4 July 2010 Michael Gove wants to see A-levels become more rigorous and to scrap AS-levels. Ministers called for a “revival of the art … Continue reading →

Posted in Assessment for Learning, Exam Focus: AS-Levels, Philosophy for Children | Leave a comment