Tories call for QCA to be made 'independent'

The Conservative Party have called for the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) to be made independent to "prevent politically convenient intervention" in school exams.

Secretary of State for Education and Skills Damian Green said today that giving the QCA independence is part of Conservative proposals to reform the examination system, which include the abolition of the AS Level and plans for a simpler and clearer way of testing.

Mr Green said: “Last year’s row over results led to the then Secretary of State Estelle Morris sacking Sir William Stubbs, the head of the QCA, destroying confidence in the system and exposing the organisation’s vulnerability to politics. If Ministers want to avoid accusations of meddling, they should remove themselves from temptation.

“We would give the QCA the same kind of independence as the Bank of England giving them a legal guarantee against political interference and restoring confidence in our exam system.

“A simpler exam system needs to be introduced to spare students from the annual debate about A Level standards. Students today face the drudgery of an exam treadmill marked by continuous assessment. The current A Level system confronts young people with exams every term."

Mr Green said that confidence in A Levels and GCSEs needed to be restored to "challenge the most able candidates" and marked in a way that lets "all levels of ability be clearly demonstrated".

“If the GCSE is abandoned by the most academic children, it will become a second-class exam. That would be damaging to academically bright children in schools that kept the GCSE,” he said.

(gmcg)