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Art history A-level saved at last minute

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Art history students with books

Campaigners for art history A-level say they are “absolutely thrilled” by a late decision to save the subject, which was set to be discontinued.

Exam board Pearson has confirmed plans to develop a new history of art A-level for teaching from next September.

October’s decision by the AQA board to drop the subject provoked an outcry from experts who argued “society had never required its insights more”.

“It’s amazing – just about in the nick of time,” said teacher Sarah Phillips.

Ms Phillips, from state sixth form Godalming College, developed the new syllabus with AQA and added: “Now we need to get the message out to Year 11 students as soon as possible.”

‘Global specification’

Subject to approval by Ofqual, Ms Phillips says she expects Pearson to build on her work which has been made available to the Department for Education by AQA.

“It is a global specification. Students won’t just study the work of dead white men,” she said. “They will have the opportunity to study Islamic architecture and work by men and women of all colours and creeds. The support has been overwhelming,” she added.

In October, top experts signed an open letter to AQA condemning the decision not to offer the A-level to new students after this year.

AQA was the last board to offer the subject and the decision represented “a vital loss for students”, they argued.

At the time AQA said the change “was not about money or whether history of art deserves a place in the curriculum”, but said that it feared the new qualification was so wide-ranging that accurate marking would be impossible.

Pearson, which also announced plans to take on AS and A-levels in statistics, also dropped by AQA, said awarding organisations, government and schools should work together in the interests of students to secure the future of important qualifications.

“The response from the public, from teachers and from young people shows many people have a real passion for these subjects. We’re happy to help make sure they remain available,” said the company’s president, Rod Bristow.

The move was welcomed by leading academics and museum directors as well as by Turner Prize winners Anish Kapoor, Cornelia Parker and Jeremy Deller.

Mr Kapoor said it was “a huge relief” while Mr Deller called it “a good day for art and culture” and added: “Art history is the study of power, politics, identity and humanity, it makes perfect sense to keep the exam.”

Ms Parker said she had studied art history “as a working-class girl, receiving free school dinners… It has hugely enriched my life”.

The Association of Art Historians hopes the battle to save the A-level will boost the subject’s popularity, particularly in the state sector.

“The threat to the A-level has galvanised support for art history, which will, I hope, provide a platform for a concerted effort to ensure that more people get the opportunity to study a subject that will enrich their lives,” said Dr Ben Burbridge of Sussex University who was central to the campaign to save the A-level.

[Source:- BBC]

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Education

Highest-achieving A-level students are least likely to apply to teach

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

a level stars reject teaching

Profession is losing out on the ‘best brains’ to take education forward, expert warns

The country’s highest-achieving A-level students are the least likely to apply to teach, the latest official figures show.

Pupils who achieved an A-level point score of 18 – equivalent to three A* grades – have the lowest rate of applications to initial teacher-training courses, the figures reveal. And that rate has dropped by more than a quarter in the last year.

By contrast, those students who scored seven A-level points – equivalent to a C and two D grades – were the most likely to try for a career in teaching, with an application rate that was five times higher than the top achievers’.

John Howson, a teacher recruitment expert and visiting professor at Oxford Brookes University, said that attracting those with the highest grades does matter.

‘Moving education forward’

“We need some of them, because those are the people who will have the best brains for development work, for research, to take education forward,” he said.

 “These people have got a wide range of choices. Attracting them is a difficult problem to solve, but what we shouldn’t do is make it more difficult – when you impose a pay freeze, reduce salary increases – that is making the problem worse,” he said.

The government has been trying to raise the bar for graduates entering teaching, by withdrawing funding for those who do not have a 2:2 degree or above, in most subjects, and expanding Teach First, which requires recruits to have a 2:1 or first-class degree.

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “We want to work with unions and the sector to raise the status of the profession so it takes its rightful place alongside other learned professions like medicine and law.

“There are record levels of trainees now holding a first-class degree and almost three-quarters of trainees hold a 2:1 or above – demonstrating that teaching quality is the highest it has been in a generation.”

[Source:- tes]

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Education

Fall in private school A-level entries receiving top grades

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

good A level results from private schools

Independent schools record a dip in the proportion of entries receiving top A* and A grades, as BTEC entries rise

Almost half of all independent school A-level entries received either an A* or an A in 2016, new figures from the Independent Schools Council (ISC) reveal.

A total of  48.7 per cent of exam entries from schools surveyed by the organisation were awarded the top two grades, which is nearly double the national average figure of 25.8 per cent.

However, the figures were down on last year, when 49.4 per cent of private school entries were awarded the top two grades.

The percentage of students achieving at least ABB – the combination of results used to define “high performers” by top UK universities – was 55.5 per cent.

The ISC, which collected data from 495 independent schools, also revealed that one in 15 students gained three A* grades, the equivalent of around one student per sixth-form class.

The figures also reveal a significant increase in the number of students opting for BTEC vocational qualifications, which rose 14 per cent on last year to 792.

There was also a 19 per cent increase in pupils taking the Pre-U exam, an A-level equivalent designed to prepare pupils for university education. In total 1,801 took the Pre-U at ISC schools surveyed in 2016, compared with 1,516 in 2015.

‘Embracing vocational qualifications’

The increasing popularity of BTEC qualifications comes after Magnus Bashaarat, head of Milton Abbey School in Dorset, said in February that independent schools should “embrace” vocational qualifications despite them having become become “victims of intellectual and class snobbery”.

Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the ISC, said: “A concerted effort to halt grade inflation in recent years has seen the top grades both nationally and in independent schools level off and fall slightly, so it is encouraging to see the headline A* and A figure remain solid.

“Of particular note is the increase in students achieving ABB grades, which will see many of them moving on to the university of his or her choice, a high number to the top institutions.

“Importantly, the actual grades achieved remain impressively high. ISC schools focus strongly on the’facilitating’ subjects which are much prized by top universities. In 2015 our schools had record levels of entry to Russell Group universities and we expect this trend to continue.”

Julie Robinson, ISC’s general secretary, said: “The annual exam results each August remind us all that the academic side of school life is a top priority and that the grades achieved help pave a foundation for much that is to come for many young people.

“On top of all other aspects of independent school life, visible recently with the sporting successes of our alumni in the Olympics, these results show there is great strength and continued value in independent education.”

A-level grades in schools belonging to the Independent Schools Council:

Cumulative entry % by grade 2016
A*ABCDE
ISC17.9%48.7%75.2%89.9%96.6%99.1%
National8.1%25.8%52.9%77.6%92.2%98.1%

[Source:- tes]

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Education

Private schools A-level dip reflects national trends

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Brighton College A-level students

Private schools saw a dip in top A-level results this year, largely reflecting national trends, figures released by the sector suggest.

The proportion of private school A-level entries gaining grade A or better was 48.7%, down from 49.3% last year, says the Independent Schools Council.

This is still almost twice the national average of 25.8%, itself down slightly from 25.9% in 2015, says the ISC.

Council chairman Barnaby Lenon called the figures encouraging.

Overall, the 2016 A-level grades, published earlier this month, showed a marginal fall in top grades for the fifth successive year – but the Joint Council for qualifications described outcomes as relatively unchanged.

The ISC figures, for 495 UK independent schools offering A-levels, reflect the results of 36,992 candidates and suggest:

  • 17.9% of pupils achieved at least one A*, down 0.6 percentage points, but more than double the national average of 8.1% (itself down 0.1% on 2015)
  • 6.8% got at least three A* grades, down from 7% in 2015
  • 55.5% got ABB – unchanged on 2015

Overall the pass rate for private school A-level students was 99.1% – one percentage point better than the national average, says the ISC.

And three-quarters (75.2%) of grades were B or higher, it adds, compared with 52.9% nationally

According to the ISC, more private schools are choosing to offer the International Baccalaureate, with the number rising by 5% on last year.

The ISC says the figures show academic success is still a “top priority” at independent schools, with a strong focus on good grades in the subjects preferred by the most selective universities.

“A concerted effort to halt grade inflation in recent years has seen the top grades both nationally and in independent schools level off and fall slightly, so it is encouraging to see the headline A* and A figure remain solid,” said Mr Lenon.

“Of particular note is the number of students achieving ABB grades, which will see many of them moving on to the university of his or her choice, a high number to the top institutions.”

[Source:- BBC]

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Education

Teenagers ‘need better advice for A-level choices’

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Over half of this year’s university applicants picked their sixth form subjects without considering their future prospects, suggests a poll.

And almost one in five of over 1,000 UK 18- and 19-year-olds polled for Which? said different subjects might have been better for their chosen degree course.

The consumer group says teenagers need better guidance on subject choice.

“It is a complex and difficult decision for young people,” said head teachers’ leader Malcolm Trobe.

The poll of 1,020 teenagers who applied to university this year also revealed that:

  • 30% felt adequately informed about how their subject options would affect their university and degree choices
  • and 29% would have appreciated more advice on which subjects to take.

“Make sure you do your homework and choose wisely,” Alex Neill of Which? University advised students.

“If you’ve just received your GCSE results, and are now choosing your A-level subjects, it’s important to know your options and get some advice.”

Which? advises:

  • Check the exam entry requirements for university subjects.
  • Some universities have lists of preferred and less-preferred subjects
  • Some will consider a student no matter what subjects they might be doing
  • Don’t forget vocational qualifications can also lead to university.

Researching options

Mr Trobe, interim general secretary of the Association of School and College leaders, said young people needed the chance to research and filter information on subject choices and university course requirements.

But he warned that young people often changed their minds between the ages of 16 and 18 – and sometimes could be caught out by the greater demands of A-levels, despite having performed well at GCSE.

He said schools needed to help with students’ subject choices, particularly when the decline in the use of AS levels means less chance to try a subject and drop it after one year.

“The most important thing is not to wipe out options by an unwise choice,” said Mr Trobe.

Wiring a circuit board

“It is really important that young people, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, have clear information about how the subjects they study in sixth form or college can affect their options at university,” said a spokesman for the Russell Group of leading universities.

“Our universities are constantly trying to spread the word that with the right grades in the right subjects a place at a Russell Group university is well within reach. But students need good advice and information from a range of key sources.”

[Source:- BBC]

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Education

Newry school students disqualified from A-level exam

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

A number of pupils at a County Down school have had their grades cancelled after being disqualified from an A-level exam.

Some 15 students at Our Lady’s Grammar School, in Newry, are affected, the BBC understands.

It is understood the pupils sat an A-level Sociology exam.

It is believed that exam questions, set by the AQA board, were shared on social media by a student who sat the exam earlier due to a timetable clash.

It is unclear how the alleged malpractice came to light.

However, the BBC understands that the AQA subsequently investigated the allegations, and informed the pupils of the outcome of the investigation.

It is also understood that the school and the pupils were informed of the sanctions last week.

Exams

The AQA said it could not discuss cases of alleged malpractice.

But an AQA spokesperson said: “No-one taking our exams should have an unfair advantage, so we thoroughly investigate accusations of cheating and take action when there’s clear evidence against specific individuals.

“Our advice to any student who receives supposedly leaked details about an exam is to report it to a teacher straight away.”

The school said that it regretted the incident.

“We regret to say that there was an incident involving some of our students in relation to one of this year’s A2 examinations,” it told the BBC.

“The matter was dealt with by the school and the examination board in line with JCQ (Joint Council for Qualifications) guidelines and the students involved have been sanctioned.

“There has been no suggestion of any breach of examination or invigilation protocol by the school.

“We in Our Lady’s prize our deserved reputation for integrity.

“We also know the importance of care and compassion in times of difficulty and will offer support as needed to the young women involved, all of whose school careers up to this point were without blemish.”

[Source:- BBC]

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Education

Foreign languages A-level slump blamed on cuts

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

French

A sharp decline in entries to modern foreign language A-levels has been blamed by head teachers on severe funding pressures.

Entries to A-levels in French have dropped by 6.4% from last year, in German by 4.2% and in Spanish by 2.7%.

Malcolm Trobe of the ASCL heads’ union said schools and colleges were finding it hard to run courses with small pupil numbers, due to funding shortages.

The government replied that it had been encouraging pupils to take languages.

This is mainly through the English Baccalaureate – the wrap-around qualification which requires pupils to sit a range of certain GCSES including a language.

‘Narrowed choices’

The claimed effect of funding shortages comes as pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are receiving their A-level results.

But Mr Trobe, interim general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said he was worried about the “continuing decline” in the number of A-level entrants in modern foreign languages, and other “minority” subjects such as music, and design and technology.

“These statistics reflect the fact that sixth forms and colleges are finding it increasingly difficult to run courses where there are relatively small numbers of students because of severe funding pressures,” he said.

“The level of post-16 funding is woeful and urgently needs to be addressed.

“We are in danger of becoming trapped in a vicious circle where entries to these very important subjects continues to decline and there are consequently fewer people to teach them in the future, exacerbating an ongoing recruitment crisis,” he added.

Mr Trobe also said changes to the AS-level – which do not now count towards the final A-level grade – had also effectively narrowed pupils’ choices.

In the past, pupils had generally been allowed to take four subjects and then drop one at the end of the first year, he said.

Now, he argued, “we are just reducing curriculum choice, full stop.”

‘Worry’

National Association of Head Teachers general secretary, Russell Hobby, said that while it was “good to see an increase in the top grades awarded in modern foreign language”, a national strategy needed to be implemented to address the drop in entries.

He said: “Yet again we see a decrease in the number of students taking these subjects.”

“We need to ensure that there are enough trained teachers to offer a breadth of languages, and for schools to be supported to ensure primary pupils are also exposed to the challenges of learning a language,” he added.

Schools minister Nick Gibb acknowledged that the drop-off in foreign languages was a “worry”.

“There has been a slight decline in modern foreign languages but the introduction of the EBacc has arrested the historic fall of foreign languages at GCSE and we expect this will grow the pool of young people who are equipped to go on to study languages at A level.”

The Department for Education said it was protecting funding for 16- to 19-year-olds and ended the unfair difference between post-16 schools and colleges.

[Source:- BBC]

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Education

Record university offers as top A-level grades slip

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Record numbers of UK university places have been offered – as A-level results show a marginal fall in top grades for the fifth successive year.

The proportion of A* and A grades was 25.8%, down by 0.1% on last year. The pass rate of 98.1% remained the same.

The Ucas admissions services says 424,000 places have been offered, up by 3% on results day last year.

There are predictions of many places still being available through clearing, including in leading universities.

Universities say this year could be a “buyer’s market” for applications with universities competing to attract students.

As well as the removal of the cap on university places in England, there is a decline in the number of 18 year olds.

Clearing

There are more university places on offer through clearing this year.

This is the process which matches students with available places, after results have been published.

By this afternoon there had been more than 200,000 course searches on the Ucas website, with economics, law, psychology, business and nursing among the most popular courses.

There also places available at some leading Russell Group universities, including Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield and Warwick.

Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial UCL and LSE continue not to take part.

Sheffield University says its clearing service took 1,800 calls in the first two hours, leading to 360 offers.

“There’s never been a better year to be applying to university in terms of your chances of getting a place, said Sheffield’s head of admissions Lynsey Hopkins.

‘Unchanged’

Hundreds of thousands of teenagers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have found out their A-level and AS results on Thursday. Students in Scotland havealready received their exam results.

The A-level results show a stable pattern compared with last year.

Michael Turner, director general of the Joint Council for Qualifications, said: “Overall, outcomes are relatively unchanged.”

Girls continue to get better results than boys, with 79.7% of girls getting grades A* to C, compared with 75% for boys.

results dayImage copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image captionPupils have been arriving at schools and colleges to get their results

But the gap between top-performing girls and boys at A-level has narrowed.

And there has been a further decline in entries to modern languages, with the numbers taking French falling below 10,000 for the first time.

Malcolm Trobe, leader of the ASCL head teachers’ union, warned that this could reflect funding pressures and that schools could not afford subjects with small numbers of pupils.

AS levels are being “decoupled” from being part of A-levels – and this year’s figures show a 13.7% drop in entries.

Teachers and head teachers’ leaders have warned that, below the surface of this stability, individual schools and pupils face more unpredictable outcomes.

“Students and their teachers are bracing themselves for greater volatility in this year’s results,” said Ms Keates, leader of the NASUWT teachers’ union.

She said that schools had to contend with new content in AS and A-levels.

Head teachers’ leader Russell Hobby forecast “significant variation” and unexpected results, behind the picture given by the national statistics.

“For individual students, teachers and schools this is a real concern,” said Mr Hobby.

For those students who miss out on required grades for university, there are expected to be more opportunities available through the clearing system.

This will include leading universities within the Russell Group, which have signalled that they expect to have places on offer.

Apprenticeships

There is a demographic dip in the number of school leavers and the removal of any limit on student numbers in England means that universities could be competing to attract students to fill places.Media captionVice-Chancellor says raising teaching standards ‘entirely appropriate’

Middlesex University said this year would be a “buyer’s market”.

London South Bank University is running a 36-hours non-stop clearing service, remaining open all night for inquiries from students.

But students starting at England’s universities in the autumn could face higher fees than the previous cap of £9,000 before they finish.

Exeter University has announced that it is going to increase fees to £9,250 for current students and those beginning this year, as well as those starting in 2017.

There will also be opportunities for those not going to university, with financial services firm PwC announcing that it has had a 20% increase in two years in recruiting directly from those leaving school with A-levels.

A report from Barclays and the Centre for Economics and Business Researchhas argued that those entering apprenticeships after school could have much higher lifetime earnings than those going into graduate careers.

And a study from the Social Market Foundation, also released on results day, shows that vocational qualifications are an increasingly common route into university, often in combination with A-levels.

School standards minister Nick Gibb said: “We want to make our country a place where there is no limit on anyone’s ambition or what they can achieve.

“It is hugely encouraging that this year sees a record 424,000 applicants already securing a place at one of our world-class universities, with increasing numbers from disadvantaged backgrounds gaining a place as well. “

[Source:- BBC]

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Education

Teachers urged to submit GCSE and A-level questions

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Exam candidates

Teachers are to be asked to submit challenging GCSE and A-level exam questions by a key exam board, the Times Educational Supplement reports.

Cambridge Assessment, which owns OCR, hopes for “millions of questions”, with the best appearing on exam papers in England within the next five years.

OCR would check all questions to see they are of the right standard.

But there are concerns these “crowdsourced” exam questions could give some pupils an unfair advantage.

Cambridge Assessment research director Tim Oates told the TES: “Really interesting questions which – put to children – encourage them to think hard, to integrate things, to understand things and challenge their ideas a bit, are really important.

“We don’t think we should necessarily just commission those through asking a limited number of people.

“We want to know what questions teachers ask in the classroom and whether they were good for unlocking that bit of thinking or revealed that misconception.”

Currently, exam papers are drawn up by exam committees made up of teachers with detailed knowledge of each subject.

Plans are at an early stage of development and would need to be approved by the exams regulator Ofqual in order to go ahead.

However, Mr Oates said: “I can see within three to five years’ time we might be able to start doing some work [with crowdsourced questions] in formal examinations.”

‘Familiar’

OCR said questions would have to go through technical and tough quality assurance processes before being used in a real exam.

The questions submitted by teachers would also be made available to other teachers online through a question bank, so that they could be used in the classroom.

School leaders and assessment experts have welcomed the idea of an online question bank for teachers.

Malcolm Trobe, interim general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “The only potential weakness I can see in the system is, if I’m sending in questions and using the same questions in preparation for the examination, if they then turn up on the exam paper it advantages those youngsters because they’re seeing a question they’re familiar with.

“You’re going to have to find a way of overcoming that.”

‘Approval needed’

But Mr Oates said schools already guessed exam questions and prepared pupils for likely questions using past papers.

He said the “crowdsourcing” approach would not create unfairness because there would be so many questions in the pool that teachers would have little incentive to drill pupils for any particular question.

OCR and Cambridge Assessment are already working on a project to crowdsource questions from computing teachers, which will be available to other teachers to use in classroom-based assessments.

[Source:- BBC]

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Education

Fair advice call for A-level results

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

exam hall

A social mobility charity is sending volunteers to help provide advice to state school pupils receiving their A-level results this week.

The charity, MyBigCareer, wants state pupils to have fair access to personal advice about their options for university places or apprenticeships.

Founder Deborah Streatfield says she wants all pupils to have the type of support available in private schools.

“They have worked hard and need a fair chance,” said Mrs Streatfield.

The charity has trained volunteer advisers to help in 10 schools, mostly in east London, providing individual support for pupils trying to make decisions after discovering their results.

Mrs Streatfield wants a level playing field when pupils get their results, particularly for those who have missed out on grades and are trying to decide their next step.

There will also be advice to boost the aspirations of those who have done better than expected.

She says independent schools often have well-resourced operations on results day to help pupils maximise their opportunities.

But she is concerned that some state school pupils are not getting the same support.

“It can make a huge difference,” says Mrs Streatfield.

Pupils who have not got their expected grades can be “too distraught” to make phone calls and need help with making decisions, she says.

Apart from weighing up offers from other universities, she says young people can face daunting questions about accommodation and their finances.

Figures published this month showed that the gap in university entry rates between private and state schools has grown wider.

By the age of 19, 85% of pupils who attended private school will have gone into higher education, compared with 62% at state schools.

Universities including King’s College London, City, Anglia Ruskin, London School of Economics, University of East London, Queen Mary and Imperial have helped to provide volunteers.

These will be at schools from 07:00 BST on Thursday, ready for pupils arriving to find out their results.

“Students can afford to be a lot more aspirational in getting places at more prestigious universities. Yet in disadvantaged areas such as Hackney they don’t tend to have the support that gives them the information and the personal confidence to get into such universities,” said volunteer Joanna Hemingway.

Hundreds of thousands of teenagers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will be getting their A-level results this week.

The limits on university places have been removed and there have been suggestions that universities will be competing to attract students.

“Many universities will still have places available on Thursday. It’s a buyers’ market out there,” said Lucy Everest of Middlesex University.

The Russell Group of leading universities says that some of its members are expecting to have places available through clearing, the system which matches applicants with vacant places after the exam results are published.

The Department for Education is funding a free exam results helpline – 0808 100 8000 – which students will be able to ring to get advice.

It will be available from 08:00 to 20:00 BST on Thursday when results are published and will remain open for the next two weeks.

Helpline adviser Nick Hynes says: “Every year, there are students who don’t get the grades they need for university, there are those who achieve better grades than expected and those whose career plans have changed since they made their original university choices.

“At such a critical and life-changing time, it’s imperative that these students are clear what all of their options are, enabling them to make fully informed decisions about their futures.”

[Source:- BBC]

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