With days until A-level results are announced, many are predicting that newspaper headlines will contrast sharply with the usual gallery of 18 year olds celebrating record results. As the clampdown on rising results starts to bite, the Government’s new changes to the A-level system could mean even fewer achieve A2.
From 2015, students would be required to sit one exam upon completing the two year course, and the first year of the course could not be “banked” as an AS-level. Academics have criticised the proposals, claiming the removal of modular exams will prevent students from benchmarking their progress before the final exam. Concern has been expressed about the speed with which the changes come in to force in 2015, with details only being available a year before.
Whether the changes will affect the courses students choose will remain to be seen but, for those with an anxious Wednesday night ahead of them, will they dwell on when they sat exams or what results they achieved?