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Changes to A levels

Apparently A levels are destined to become harder, and a new A* grade will be introduced from 2010. Also, IB will be given more emphasis.

linky

What do you all reckon? Will whatever grades we achieve become less highly regarded if a new A* grade is introduced? Is this fair on the kids who are going to take these tougher A levels, considering we're having it 'easy'?

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Reply 1

kellywood_5

I think the A* grade is a really good idea because at the moment, a student who gets the lowest possible mark for an A and a student who gets full marks are viewed as exactly the same, which can't be right, but it will make As less impressive, as it has at GCSE. As for whether harder exams would be fair on new students, you could also argue that the introduction of the A* is unfair on old students who would have got them. And as for the IB, I personally wouldn't have liked to study it, but it's good that students are being given the choice.

Reply 2

Anonymous1783

Dont top unis look at your marks anyway so if you were a high A you get appreciated, so to speak thats what i heard. I think its a bad idea really it would just make an A equivalent to what a B is now. Students also dont need the extra stress, give us a break man.

Reply 3

smirf83

I just wonder what the point of an A* grade is, why can't they just look at the UMS marks?? :confused:

Reply 4

calcium878

Make it so only the top x% get A's, the next y% get B's etc...
Grade deflation :smile:

Reply 5

kellywood_5

Anonymous1783

Dont top unis look at your marks anyway so if you were a high A you get appreciated, so to speak thats what i heard.

Only Cambridge ask for UMS marks at the moment.

Reply 6

sim90

Its to make the geeks go mad.

Reply 7

leenick

kellywood_5

you could also argue that the introduction of the A* is unfair on old students who would have got them.

Thats what has really ticked me off. Rewarding those in the top x% is fair enough, but its how employers see my current A grades which annoy me. Give it 15 years or so and my 15 yr old A doesn't look the same as someones 1yr old A* whose just came out of secondary education - despite my near or better UMS.

The exam boards should at the very least offer a system where you can have your current UMSs recertified under the new boundaries.

Reply 8

kellywood_5

leenick

The problem is that reviews like this happen so often now that it would be too much hassle to do what you've suggested. For example, all those who got very high As in their GCSEs before the A* was introduced would have to have theirs recertified as well.

Reply 9

Nyghtshade

I suppose it will kind of separate the good from the very best, since not all universities ask for UMS.

Courses under the new system would be start in 2008 with the first of the new A*s being awarded in 2010.

Heh... looks like I'm going to be one of the first batch of people. -shot'd- Dammit.

Reply 10

lil one

We were talking about this at school before, and my teacher said that on your CV and stuff you would probably write your grades and then say (before the A* was introduced or before the new 2010 grade system or whatever) its quite annoying though.

Reply 11

Sephiroth

Anonymous1783

Perhaps getting an A under the new system will be just as hard as it is now and not the same as a current B, which doesn't devalue the grade. A* would have tougher questions that wouldn't be found on current exam papers giving people the opportunity to get a higher qualification.

Of course it's still unfair on those students who currently have the potential to do a tougher exam and get a higher grade than an A. I think making AEAs more widely known and available would have been a better solution. Then unis could make offers including those.

Any employer should know if your A was before or after 2010 anyway so don't worry too much.

Reply 12

AisAis

And as for the IB, I personally wouldn't have liked to study it, but it's good that students are being given the choice.

I think the main problem with the IB (other than the fact I can't say it) is the language. You can't wait until year seven to start languages if you want people to do an IB; that's something that needs to be straightened out if it's going to be carried out. Actually I think a whole review of the way languages are taught it called for.

I'll be the last year to be doing the 'old' type. I was rather glad to be honest because it means it will be easiest for my year group to get a top grade :tongue:

However, I'm not sure how much I beleive they're going to be harder. The year that will be the first to do them is also the year that is the first to do the new science GCSE - and we all know how pants that is. Why on Earth would they be making the GCSE simpler and the A level harder for these kids?

Another thing that worries me is that when I'm in sixth form our teachers will be teaching the people doing the new stuff too (in the year below), and they'll probably be focusing on them because it's the way of the futre. :frown:

Reply 13

-G-a-v-

An A* won't solve the problem permanently. A few years down the line and the media will be having a field day with 'too many getting the new A* grade' all over the headlines every August, much like it is with A grades now. What are they going to do then? An A 'double star'?

Reply 14

calcium878

A**!
What next...
News report for 2056: Girl gets 17 A******s!

Reply 15

AisAis

/\

Actually I've read something somewhere about introducing A*, A** and A*** grades; I'm not joking.

Reply 16

FoeGeddaBowDeet

Just drop the A Level. Flogging a dead horse comes to mind.

IB IB IB.

Speaking of a level crapness...I was at a business studies conference today(yeah i know) and the grade for an E is 33% and the grade for an A is 66%. What? That's ridiculously easy, which, since it's already an easy A level, devalues it even more.

Reply 17

Purple

They should change the grade boundaries, simple.

Reply 18

-G-a-v-

AisAis

/\

Actually I've read something somewhere about introducing A*, A** and A*** grades; I'm not joking.

Actually, now you mention it, I think I read about there being something like that, but I think it was A, A+ and A++ but it's the same idea ...

Either way, it's stupid.

Reply 19

kellywood_5

Yeah, I read something about that as well. I strongly disagree that making everyone do IB is the answer though. I think it's definitely a good thing that the government are extending it and offering funding to encourage more state schools to offer it, but I think people should have the choice between A-levels and IB. The IB is much more suited to the education system in other countries which is much broader and less in depth. Ours is more specialised and I don't see the point in making a maths/science whiz suffer through English, a foreign language, a humanity etc in IB and come out with a poor overall mark when they could have excelled at A-level in maths, further maths, physics and chemistry. Similarly, I would have hated having do maths and a science and I know it would have made my overall mark drop, which I don't think is fair because I'm currently doing languages at uni, so why should poor marks in maths and science hold me back? Introduce the IB and watch the numbers participating in further education plummet.