GCSE results highlight twin crisis in education - Laws

“It is a shocking indictment of the Government that around half of all pupils cannot get five good GCSEs including English and maths after over a decade of formal education," said the Liberal Democrat Shadow Schools Secretary. Commenting on today’s GCSE results, David Laws said:

“Today’s results reflect a huge amount of work by many pupils and schools, and I would like to congratulate everyone who has worked hard and achieved good grades.

“However, today’s statistics also highlight the twin crisis in education - too many pupils failing to get good results and a lack of confidence in standards.

“It is a shocking indictment of the Government that around half of all pupils cannot get five good GCSEs including English and maths after over a decade of formal education. In the poorest areas, up to 70% of children fail to achieve this standard. These children are the ones who will now struggle to find jobs, and risk ending up as long term unemployed.

“We need to cut class sizes in primary schools and introduce a Pupil Premium to target resources more effectively at those children who are falling behind.

“The second big problem in education is the lack of public confidence in exam standards and qualifications. As a consequence, some schools are considering shunning GCSEs, and the Government’s complex Diploma looks like an expensive flop.

“The Government needs to introduce a truly independent Educational Standards Authority to act as a credible standards watchdog, and its first duty should be to review the change in exam results since GCSEs were introduced. Meanwhile, the Government should introduce a new General Diploma, allowing children to mix both academic and vocational qualifications.”

Three million students leave school without five good GCSEs under Labour says David Laws

The number of 16-year-olds who have left compulsory education without five good GCSEs (A*-C) since Labour came to power is expected to reach 3m, research by the Liberal Democrats has found. Since 1997, more than 2.8m 16-year-olds have finished school without five decent qualifications - the Government’s key benchmark. The trend is set to continue when the 2009 results are published tomorrow [Thursday 27 August], pushing the total to more than 3m.

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Shadow Schools Secretary, David Laws said:

“These shocking figures reveal the true extent of Labour’s failure in education.

“After over 10 years in power, it is deeply concerning that around one third of pupils are leaving education without even achieving the basic standard of five good GCSEs.

“It is these young people, let down by Labour, who are now likely to be bearing the brunt of the recession.

“Ministers need to start getting the basics right early on, so no child falls behind. We need to target additional funding at the children who are struggling, and cut class sizes so every young child gets the attention they need.”

Gove announces plans for online library of past exam papers

Michael Gove has announced that a Conservative Government will establish an online library of past exam papers so parents and the public can track changes in standards over time.

The new website is part of a plan to restore public confidence in the exam system, which has become increasingly devalued over the past few years.

The site will be accessible to members of the public free of charge, and anyone will be allowed to upload an old exam paper, script or examiners’ report to it.

Michael, the Shadow Children’s Secretary, said, “The Government treats exam papers like state secrets and refuses to publish them. This is wrong and a Conservative Government will create a free online library of all exam papers and scripts so there is full transparency and academic scrutiny of our exam system.”

He added, “It is vital that we restore public confidence in our exam system. Universities, businesses and academics say the system has been devalued and private schools are opting out of GCSEs for international exams.”