GCSE grades hit record high

A record number of pupils have been awarded top A and A* GCSE grades.

Nearly one in five entries were awarded the highest grades, a result which will add fuel to the debate over the standards set by the exams.

Critics say students have scored high grades by abandoning harder subjects such as modern languages and sciences. Others believe schools "teach to the test", improving results at the expense of a more rounded education.

Figures from exam boards showed that 19.5 per cent of papers achieved the top two levels - up 0.4 per cent from last year- as 600,000 students across England, Wales and Northern Ireland received their marks on Thursday.

Boys continued to catch up with the girls, with the gap between the sexes narrowing by 0.2 per cent at A and A and by 0.6 per cent at A-C.

Pass rates have shown near continuous improvement since the exams, taken by 15 and 16-year-olds, replaced O-levels 20 years ago.

This year there was a tiny fall in the overall pass rate, with papers awarded at least a G grade falling 0.1 per cent to 98.0 per cent.

But the percentage of papers achieving a "good pass" of at least a C grade, rose to 63.3 per cent from 62.4 per cent last year.

There were further large falls in entries for French and German after modern languages fell out of the compulsory GCSE syllabus in 2004.

The Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) has called for "an education system which encourages real learning and acquiring skills."

ATL General Secretary Mary Bousted said: "Our current curriculum turns many pupils into cynical test-takers rather than the ever-curious learners we need."

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