23/01/2013

Changes To A-Level Exam System Confirmed

A-level examinations will now take place at the end of a two-year course, the Education Secretary has confirmed.

Michael Gove confirmed that from 2015 so called “bite sized” units would be scrapped with pupils instead sitting final exams at the end of two-years.

AS-levels will remain as they are, but the qualification will be recognised as a standalone exam.

The BBC reported that in a letter to exam regulator Ofqual, Gove said A-levels in their current form do not provide the solid foundation students need.

"The modular nature of the qualification and repeated assessment windows have contributed to many students not developing deep understanding or the necessary skills to make connections between topics," wrote Mr Gove.

However head teachers' leader Brian Lightman was reported to have said in response: "This is a classic case of fixing something that isn't broken."

(H/GK)

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