The case for reform of secondary school exams gained further momentum today with the revelation that the number of schools using Cambridge IGCSEs has increased by 300 per cent since 2010. Michael Gove allowed state schools to enter pupils for these ‘tougher’ tests two years ago, and the state sector now accounts for almost half of IGCSE entries:
But not everyone is enamoured with Gove’s plan to return to more exams and less coursework. Yesterday, former education advisor to the Blair government Sir Michael Barber warned that the Education Secretary should be focusing forwards (£), not backwards when reforming our examination system:
‘The gold standard is not what happened in the 1950s in England, it is what is already happening in Singapore and Hong Kong and Ontario and Alberta,’ he said. ‘The gold standard is being set by the best education systems ready for the 21st century.’
Either way, the problem with our secondary education system is that it is not bringing out the best in pupils.
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