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If pupils pass the 11-plus exam, they go to grammar school, where they have an academic education. They will first study for their O-levels ('O'=Ordinary) - exams in eight or nine different subjects. Then they are likely to enter the sixth form to study for A-levels ('A'=Advanced): exams on two to four subjects that are studied intensely for two years. If pupils do well, a university education - with fees paid and a maintenance allowance given - is available.
For pupils not selected for grammar school, the good technical colleges and secondary modern schools offer plenty of opportunities, but the higher flights of academe are not expected. However, many of these schools are less than satisfactory.
Radical selection at this early age produces serious casualties. Many late developers who fail the 11-plus and subsequently seek an academic future find they have a mountain to climb.
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The comprehensive system initially produced a two-exam system at the age of 16+: O-levels and CSEs (Certificates of Secondary Education). These were, for good practical reasons, merged into GCSEs (General Certificates of Secondary Education) in 1988. Pupils often take up to 10 of these exams in different subjects.
To devise an exam that is accessible to most students and still has academic rigour is no easy matter, and there have been inevitable losses. However, the gains in increasing educational opportunities for huge numbers of pupils have been substantial. O-levels may have been more academic, but did little to engage and develop creativity. This is where today's 16-year-olds are showing their potential in exciting ways.
In recent years, A-levels have been partly replaced by AS-levels. Some of these can be studied for only one year, thus making it possible for more subjects to be taken.
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