A-levels and GCSEs are to be toughened up with fewer but harder exams and a crackdown on poor grammar and spelling under sweeping reforms being unveiled next week。
In a five-year blueprint for schooling, Education Secretary Michael Gove will signal a return to traditional A-levels and GCSEs, taken at the end of courses. Candidates for all written GCSEs will be marked down for poor grammar, spelling and punctuation, while universities will be given a bigger role in setting questions at A-level and GCSE to protect exams from political meddling. 、
Critics claim the trend towards ‘modular’ examining has led to grade inflation and left pupils ill-equipped for university study. In further measures, Mr Gove plans to overhaul the exam league tables system amid evidence that schools are attempting to boost rankings by entering pupils for non-academic courses such as ‘personal effectiveness’。