A levels are easy.

je ne sais quoi

I personally won't condemn that A Levels are easy unless I get all high As, but Howard is right. Present day A Levels are definitely easier than before and more people do go into uni, as there are more places and that people achieve higher grades with resits and etc.

Well, I'm not going to condemn them either since I've never done an A level personally.

Reply 22

Ellie4

They probably are easier these days, but we've got a lot more pressure on us than previous generations.

Reply 23

Ellie4

They probably are easier these days, but we've got a lot more pressure on us than previous generations.

How so?

Reply 24

Ellie4

Howard

How so?

In that the competition for uni places was much lower, and it was an achievement to be doing A levels, never mind having to get As and Bs in order for them to have been worth while.

Reply 25

Ramsy

Ellie4

In that the competition for uni places was much lower, and it was an achievement to be doing A levels, never mind having to get As and Bs in order for them to have been worth while.

Agree

Reply 26

Ellie4

In that the competition for uni places was much lower, and it was an achievement to be doing A levels, never mind having to get As and Bs in order for them to have been worth while.

Well, what's the ratio for university places/applicant these days? What was it 30 years ago? There were obviously far fewer applicants 30 years ago but there were far fewer places as well.

Reply 27

sophieD

they're not easier, thats a load of ***** - Because we have to do AS exams and A2s, we have to work harder from day one in sixth form. We're just better learners and more focused. Plus with the added pressures of knowing more and more people are going to university with increased competition for places gives us more incentive to work harder. we have more aspirations nowadays. I think its disgusting the press and government ministers are condemning us even before we've had a chance to get our results. They could have waited till we'd actually received them and then they could have had their 15 minutes saying how easy the A levels are. They've shown a complete disrespect for those of us who are hardworking. Would they prefer it if everyone was failing and we went back to those days when only the elite went to university? Instead of saying education is being dumbed down, why can't they just admit young people are improving all the time?

Reply 28

JohnStuartMill

8

sophieD

We're just better learners and more focused.

Isn't that a rather arrogant thing to say? They aren't getting easier, we are just better than the older people. :rolleyes:

Reply 29

sophieD

JohnStuartMill

Isn't that a rather arrogant thing to say? They aren't getting easier, we are just better than the older people. :rolleyes:

no, its not arrogant. :rolleyes:

Its a valid point - its a well known fact that before AS levels people dossed for a year. With the unit system today, we are learning in a focused and determined way, throughout the entire 2 years. no wonder kids today are achieving greater things

Reply 30

sophieD

no, its not arrogant. :rolleyes:

Its a valid point - its a well known fact that before AS levels people dossed for a year. With the unit system today, we are learning in a focused and determined way, throughout the entire 2 years. no wonder kids today are achieving greater things

Well, they're achieving greater A level results. Whether that's the same as achieving in-depth understanding is another thing.

Reply 31

Mata

16

My mum told me that her year 12 year was "pub year". *sigh*

Personally, I haven't put any blood, sweat and tears into AS level and I don't intend to give any of my bodily fluids to A level. I don't know if the exams are easier, but I do know that if you have intelligent, motivated teachers who give you the sheets that the *examiners mark from*, indicative content and a tome of essay advice, you've got to put a lot of effort into failing. Teachers are canny, they want us to get good results, and the exam boards give them all the material that they need to train us into good little exam-passing monkeys.

Not that I'm complaining.

Reply 32

H&E

3

A-levels are getting easier. There's simply no question of it. Results have improved 23 years in a row. There's just no way kids and teachers have improved that many years in succession, or that drastically.

It's bloody obvious at my school. Even though it's getting bigger, and therefore (you'd've thought) less selective, they have record GCSE results year after year.
It's even clearer at my school. 20 years go lots of people got C's. These days it's practically unheard of. Personally, I was crap at Physics, and 20 years ago I'd've either had to work 20 times harder, or I'd've been lucky to get a B. I took A-levels last year. I got a 564/600 UMS.

Reply 33

sophieD

i don't see the point in being so cynical. so what if they're 'easier' (please define), i don't care as long as they get me where i want. i just feel sorry for the poor sods who are going to have to do the baccalaureat.

Reply 34

amie

14

I think its quite obvious that its now easier to get an A grade at A-Level.

However, I do think its incredibly insensitive of the media to publish stories telling us how easy they are just days before we get our results. It really all comes down to journalists needing a scandal, and A-Level results stats can provide that.

The best thing to do is just ignore the bitter old desperate-for-bad-news cynics, let them get on with it and focus on ourselves and our own results. In a few weeks, we probably won't give a crap anyway!

Reply 35

sophieD

i don't see the point in being so cynical. so what if they're 'easier' (please define), i don't care as long as they get me where i want. i just feel sorry for the poor sods who are going to have to do the baccalaureat.

Erm..."easier"....could that possible mean less brain power/effort required to get the same/better grades?

Reply 36

amie

I think its quite obvious that its now easier to get an A grade at A-Level.

However, I do think its incredibly insensitive of the media to publish stories telling us how easy they are just days before we get our results. It really all comes down to journalists needing a scandal, and A-Level results stats can provide that.

So news should be withheld in the interests of not upsetting A level students? Ahhh....bubba...booo.... :rolleyes:

Reply 37

amie

14

Howard

So news should be withheld in the interests of not upsetting A level students? Ahhh....bubba...booo.... :rolleyes:

Not at all. But the fact is, this is not news. The papers recycle the same articles year on year, it never changes. If there was some kind of actual development regarding A-Levels, like if they'd been scrapped or if there was some huge marking scandal, then fair enough. The annual stories of easy A-Levels are needless, though, and simply fill up some space on a slow news day.

Since there is no good reason to publish such belittling articles at this stressful time of year, why do it?

Reply 38