Plan to ditch A-level re-sits

  • Dec. 9, 2010
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    • a-level
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    • re-sits
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Last week the coalition warned that the high number of re-sits taken by students in England is “educationally inappropriate” and undermining GCSE’s and A-levels.

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Research from 2008 suggested that between two-thirds and three-quarters of students re-sat at least one unit of their exam.

Ministers called in an Education White Paper for Ofqual to change the rules in order to prevent students re-taking large numbers of papers.

Isabel Nisbet, Ofqual chief executive, warns the government against rushing into major reforms of the examinations system, and making parallels to the driving test says that those who pass the exam first time are “not necessarily the best drivers.”

Speaking at a meeting in central London, Miss Nisbet suggested that figures in the document are outdated, and that reforms over the last two years have led to a drop in re-sits.

In English Literature, 42 per cent of students re-sat at least one unit this year, compared with 65 per cent in 2008.

“There’s a change there, less re-sits and almost all who re-sat, re-sat only once,” she said.

Miss Nisbet said that the duty of the exams regulator is to reflect the policy priorities of the present Government but insisted an independent watchdog should not be expected to “throw the baby out with the bathwater” by introducing ill-judged reforms.

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