GCSEs to be replaced with Baccalaureate exams

[Guest sibon]

And I would also like to add the fonze (Henry winkler) to that list of luminaries. But they had drive and ability to succeed anyway and support could easily pay for itself. But a Call centre worker ? Why spend the money when there are no doubt 20 other people could do the job without the expense to the employer. Not saying its fair or right but from a cold hard business perspective it must be valid.

 

And Michael Heseltine.

 

There are jobs that dyslexics are suited to, and those that they are not. Just as there are jobs that suit highly numerate people, or liguistically skilled people etc etc. As long as the jobs market doesn't mitigate against one group of people in total, I can't see the problem.

 

I'll never make a living as an artist. Mind you, I'm pretty shocking at drawing:)

[Guest sibon]

I think that you have misunderstood something there.

 

Re-sits probably will be allowed.

 

However, by doing away with the modular design of many GCSEs, the ability to improve one's grade by resitting/resubmitting low scored units will no longer be possible.

 

Most qualifications ever devised allow unlimited resits. There is a huge difference between resitting an entire qualification and resitting 20% of a qualification.

[Darth Vader]

I think that you have misunderstood something there.

 

Re-sits probably will be allowed.

 

However, by doing away with the modular design of many GCSEs, the ability to improve one's grade by resitting/resubmitting low scored units will no longer be possible.

 

On SkyNews it was declared there would be no re-sits. Students will be able to decide whether to take the Baccalaureate or E-Bac - (sounds like a good name for the tobacco my mate buys from the pub!) at age 16, 17, or 18, but there will be no resits.

[Darth Vader]

And Michael Heseltine.

 

There are jobs that dyslexics are suited to, and those that they are not. Just as there are jobs that suit highly numerate people, or liguistically skilled people etc etc. As long as the jobs market doesn't mitigate against one group of people in total, I can't see the problem.

 

I'll never make a living as an artist. Mind you, I'm pretty shocking at drawing:)

 

But are you ok for the exams system to mitigate against dyslexics as a population? As this is what will happen.

[llamatron]

On the face of it, the idea is a good one. Final exams and an end to coursework are both good things in my opinion. I'm pleased to see that Gove hasn't moved to a two tier system.

 

It will need careful introduction. All students need motivating and setting the pass bar too high will not help with that.

 

At the same time, we need an exam system that identifies and rewards the brightest and the best. A huge drawback with GCSE is that you can get top grades by sheer hard work, without any outstanding ability.

 

I really need to see more before commenting further, but I'd probably give it 7/10. Quite Good:)

 

why is a two tier system bad? Also in GCSEs it was three tier when I did it so why will this bring a "dreaded" two tier system back:huh:

 

It sounds good to me. I have had to teach a degree level engineering student what y=mx+c means!

[llamatron]

I can understand teachers being in favour of this, as it will definitely mean less work for them. However, I think it is very unfair to go back to 'end exams' rather than assessed coursework and/or exams at different stages.

 

'End exams' put a lot of pressure on pupils, often during the early summer, all at once (at a time when many are suffering from hayfever).

 

'End exams' are not a test of understanding, but a test of how good pupils are at remembering. This puts many very bright pupils with memory problems and conditions such as dyslexia which are often associated with memory problems at a distinct disadvantage.

 

Also, bright pupils with handwriting problems will suffer, some of those who are left-handed, some who have problems due to pen holding and pressure, some with both. Dyslexics as well as the majority having serious memory difficulties, will also suffer from a lack of confidence in their own spellings and not having access to spell checkers (as they can presently have with coursework) as, in the real world, they use.

 

I thought we'd moved away from this unfair system of 'if you don't perform well in an exam on the day' you can write yourself off.

 

This is devastating news for some parents with bright children who suffer from any or all of the above.

 

And NO RESITS will be allowed. So, basically, it will be like the 11+, back to the dark ages, where we write our young people off, including many exceptionally bright children, who just don't perform well on the day.

 

This depends on whether the exam is well written or not. For maths and science we got tables and equations on formula sheets so we didn't have to memorise things that would always be available in a text book we just had to apply the formulae correctly.

[hennypenny]

I don'g quite get it

 

The Baccalaureate in Europe is equivalent to A levels, 2 or 3 I believe, so why does the English Baccalaureate replace GCSEs? Are we already starting off with ours being a lower level than the European one, and won't this cause problems eventually?

 

If they wanted to switch to an exam only qualification, there are already IGCSEs, so why don't they just switch over to those?

[llamatron]

I don'g quite get it

 

The Baccalaureate in Europe is equivalent to A levels, 2 or 3 I believe, so why does the English Baccalaureate replace GCSEs? Are we already starting off with ours being a lower level than the European one, and won't this cause problems eventually?

 

If they wanted to switch to an exam only qualification, there are already IGCSEs, so why don't they just switch over to those?

 

I like that we have iGCSEs because our GCSEs are so rubbish we need a harder version for students that may be living or thinking of working abroad. Whats the idea of that?

[hennypenny]

I like that we have iGCSEs because our GCSEs are so rubbish we need a harder version for students that may be living or thinking of working abroad. Whats the idea of that?

 

I don't know, but they have been very handy to have for home educated children who can't easily get the supervised coursework element of GCSEs done

[Rupert_Baehr]

The law recognises severe dyslexia as a disability.

Under the Disability Discrimination Act (1995 and

2004), you have the right not to be treated less

favourably if you have dyslexia which has a

substantial and long-term adverse effect on your

ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities,

such as weak memory, poor concentration or

problems with co-ordination. Where an employer

is aware of such a condition, they are obliged to

make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to help you

manage your difficulties.

 

That is so. But an employer is not guilty of discrimination if he/she declines to employ somebody to do a particular job if that person is not capable of doing the job.

 

Consider two (very different) employers:

 

The first needs an employee who can communicate clearly both orally and in writing. Should that employer be required to hire somebody who cannot? If the employer declines to hire an individual because that person cannot read and write, cannot speak clearly and uses the words 'err' or 'umm' once in every 3 words when (s)he speaks, is the employer guilty of 'unfair discrimination'?

 

The second operates an airline. A disabled person (who happens to be blind) applies for a job as a pilot. Should the employer be obliged to hire that applicant? - How many people would be prepared to fly in an aircraft piloted by a blind driver?

 

Would those who objected themselves be guilty of discrimination?

 

The law requires that: '...an employer...[is] obliged to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to help you manage your difficulties.'

 

What constitutes a 'reasonable adjustment'? - If you can't do the job, (for whatever reason) how far is the employer expected to go when making those 'reasonable adjustments'? If such 'adjustments' are going to cost the employer money, is the government going to pay?

 

I've encountered post-graduate students who can't spell and can't string 5 words together to make a sentence. They were not dyslexic; they had been educated in a system which placed little emphasis on grammar, syntax and spelling. They couldn't communicate because nobody had persuaded them that they had a need to master simple communication.

 

There are many employers who hold GCSEs (along with 'A'-levels and some degrees) in low esteem because they've encountered potential employees (some of whom are 'graduates') who can't read and write.

 

The system is broken. I don't know whether the new 'Gove Level' [or the Bacca] is the answer, but an answer is needed.

 

I've met more than one or two employers who, when faced with applicants with British 'qualifications' and those with European qualifications, tend automatically to ignore the Brit in favour of the European. British educational qualifications - particularly those obtained before the age of 18 - do not have a good reputation in either the UK or in Europe. If British students are to have a reasonable chance of competing, they need qualifications which are respected.