The proportion of students achieving the top grades at A-level has fallen to its lowest level for more than a decade, this year's results show.Girls narrowly reclaimed the lead from boys, with 25.5% achieving A* and A grades compared with 25.4% of boys.
The figures, released by the Joint Council for Qualifications, also show that - for the first time - the number of girls taking sciences has overtaken boys at 50.3% compared with 49.6%. There has been a big push to increase the take-up of sciences among girls.Six weeks after the last A-level exams were taken, more than 300,000 18-year-olds are ending the anxious wait for their A-level results on Thursday morning.
It is expected to be very busy again this year with a record 638,000 18-year-olds having already applied in the UK. Ucas anticipates 70,000 students will get a place through clearing this year.. "Of course, the minds of thousands of young people getting their results will soon turn to the next chapter in their lives, whether that's a place at one of our world-class universities, earning on an apprenticeship or entering the world of work," he said.A-level results:"I didn't go to uni and I love what I do"marks for each grade boundary for all subjects of the two major exam boards, Pearson/Edexcel and OCR, were leaked online.
Smart phon Zombies!
The institution of education is quickly becoming a joke. Traditional teaching and subjects are arguably less relevant in todays digital, connected world and the fall in grades partly reflects this. The number of ‘top’ grades really doesn’t mean much anymore....
How about y'all stop making the exams harder every year?
This thread: young people giving well thought out, reasonable arguments with decent spelling and grammar VS. Old farts spewing reactionary bile that's difficult to understand due to the equally awful spelling and grammar.
Does this not prove the courses are too difficult? As well as the state of a level students mental health.
another bunch of UNIS coming into the workforce making stupid uneducated decisions that affect everyone else's life
Shut up boomer we’re big smart
“Darn kids and their social networkings, I’ll just take to Twitter and rant about how it was backkkkk in my dayyyyyyyyy”
Wow, it’s almost like making exams harder doesn’t make kids work harder, but just makes those who can’t afford time or resources suffer. Wild.
theyre hard ok?
Its not because of smartphones, that's such a overused excuse. The education system don't prepare us properly to do the exams the way they want us to do it. I took a N5 Biology exam and the questions were way too advanced for the level and I ended up failing.
QuotedReplies
That's because the education system is ridiculous. Teaching the same thing to everyone in such a structured, uniform way isn't going to help anyone. I got so confused at school because everything is over complicated. Fix it.
Well yeah because you keep making exams harder.
Last year we were moaning it keeps rising
maybe it’s because the pressure put on students is so intense that my entire group of friends had major psychological break downs due to the stress of a levels and the out come of results day
too stressful pals, maybe you should look into it a bit instead of LEAPING to conclusions...
Poor preparation = poor performance.
It could be due to a reduction in the manipulation of results. In which case, the lower results means greater fairness. It might not be a sign of failure...
Maybe stop making them ridiculously difficult and ridiculously stressful and we might pass?
Someone needs to compare the background and lifestyle of those who achieved A* - B with those who struggled to make the grade to see if that's a factor. Because all students would've been taught the same syllabus.
The comments here are ridiculous. If they got more As then the same people bitching below would have said it’s too easy
waste of time they go uni 50 grand in debt 4 wasted years just go straight to mcDonalds save time my son went got trade now he is loaded owns house outright nice car family loads of holidays and he is 38 these or should i say most will be serving us in restraunts
Results probably dipped because they can't spell their names correctly, it's sad they can't even get 55% for an A pass what's a B pass?
'IT'S THE SMARTPHONES! IT'S SOCIAL MEDIA! THEY SPEND TOO MUCH TIME ON IT!' You say... whilst typing this comment on your smartphones, on a social media site.
Judgemental bunch aren't you...
I actually got 8 A’s in Olevels 4 A’s in Alevels and I didn’t have a phone but I still won’t blame phone and social media. People are just ignorant.
Well maybe a small idea, stop making them harder and harder each year and stop changing the exams, during my high school we got news that we are tbe first year go 'try' these new exams, alot failed and they reverted to different one the next year. I studied in Wales.
to the boomers in the replies:
The point here is that A grade at A Level should be exceptional ? You want the brightest and best to have A grades so they can become the world's best scientists, doctors, humanitarians etc. 'A' should reflect outstanding excellence.
Why is it only females in this image?
Here’s why; year after year, grades are becoming less and less important as new generations move in to a completely different and more diverse economy. It’s becoming easier to make money without a formal education, but remember, education isn’t intelligence.
When they were doing well, “exams are too bloody easy these days”, when results have dropped “ the snowflakes are not working hard enough”. The other usual hits, “ universities are all left wing these days”, “they are making it easier for immigrants, i bet”. Congrats kids!
Because more and more people are noticing it doesn’t matter what grades you get. Find what you’re good at and you will do fine. I didn’t even try in my tests, didn’t even get above a D and I’m doing fine.
Good! There are much better ways of becoming successful
whoa
This is despite the stupidly low grade bands in maths and the gradual continuous easing of exams? 😏
jodiepetite This is what you lot say every year.
Because they keep moving grade boundaries and mucking about with how many papers you sit and the marks you need to obtain. They can’t leave any type of exam alone let alone just A-level. There’s never any consistency and that’s no help to students🤦♀️🙄
Pity they don't teach common sense
Boomers
Maybe if you looked at the rise in mental health issues in teenagers instead of just saying they weren’t working hard enough
32,000 teachers leaving the profession last year, recruitment crisis, constant change of exam content and assessment. More degree content included in A level subjects than ever before, immense pressure for results on staff and students apparent. Education run for profit etc....
Most are too busy demonstrating, protesting and being offended to have any time to study or concentrate on their education.
Ask any teacher with their head screwed on, they will tell you the exams ARE harder, it’s not smartphones or social media 🙄
Tell me about it
I got good results but over the years every teacher I have ever talked to has said tests are becoming a lot harder just saying.
Huge shock. Thick youngsters getting thicker.
'If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life thinking that it is stupid'
That's because they are too busy trying to be famous youtubers or instgram models.
Perhaps it is because they write in the manner they talk? Every other word is 'like'. No one can understand what they are saying as they never get to the point when everything is a simile.
michaelgove legacy , that and PeriodPoverty . BalanceBritain will ban disgraced individuals such has he from all public offices . We have much better qualified people in this country that don’t need reminding that WE employ them. Going live 1/9/19
Why are all you unwoke adults replying, did you take your a levels this year? No. Its because exams are getting ridiculously and unncessarily harder & the syllabus is getting far to vast to remember, that there isnt enough time left in class to go over stuff before exams
Surely all teenagers think that life is all about becoming an influencer, a youtuber or a gamer with a career high of appearing of Love Island. No A levels needed if you live in Essex and want to be a Kardashian.
I blame edexcel maths 😤
I'll say it louder for the people in the back. Insufficient mental health services!!!!
Good
The ignorance in the replies 😂🤢🤮
With Tory cuts and austerity, what do you expect ?
Gabby_sharpe_ congrats
Exams must be getting harder
A- levels finish, now GCSE to worry about
I applaud any of the young people who took this years A levels. I only did mine in 2006/2007 so not that long ago, did Ok. Tried a test paper online for a giggle for a subject I did then and failed outright on this years one! It was really difficult 😖
I agree it's not smart phones. We had smart phones in 2010 and had a high proportion getting top grades. Maybe it's just work ethic.
Four pictures in the article, three of girls or women, one of boys and the article voices concerns about female students ... given that boys tend to underperform throughout education what sort of message does this send to society about whether boys matter?
and the Brussels Broadcasting Corporation will still say its down to brexit!
This smells more of 'balancing the books' to me for so many years the results have been ramped up and people have been questioning them
With needing only 50% to pass an exam for an A, means parents are raising more stupid children than ever before.
Don't boys take exams these days? How damaging it is not to be represented by the media? We keep hearing that people need to see people like them to be able to have goals. Few whites and no males in this picture. Very worrying for our younger males and whites.
Hang on that's truly bad if you take into account yesterdays revelation that you only need 50% to obtain an A grade!!!!!
Can't win really, if everyone gets good results you get people who've never seen a GCSE or A level saying 'exams are too easy these days', if results aren't so good the same poeple say 'They don't work hard enough these days' 🤷♂️🤦♂️
Not in Wales they didn’t quite the opposite ✅ Best ever performance at A* & A ✅ Best A*-C performance in a decade ✅ More students than ever studying & achieving A*-Cs in science subjects
i put in extra hours at college, did extra work. i was getting As & Bs all year for a subject i was planning on studying at uni just to find out i got a straight U? please explain to me how social media is to blame, does it just discredit all the time & hard work i put into it?
10DowningStreet BorisJohnson the impact of austerity enforced by the Tories continues to impact future generTions and the success of Britain as a result.
Comments thread cancer as always. They get lots of A’s they’re too easy, they don’t get lots of A’s they’re not trying hard enough 🙄😴
People complaining when results were too high! Now complaining they are too low!🥴The reason why results are at their lowest is because the exams have been made HARDER than before to bring down the grades... because they were too high. Can’t make this up🤣! alevelresults2019
No surprise as transition to single year examinations but students this year unfairly impacted by Gove`s past education dogma!
Brexit
BBCPolitics Good stop nanny state.
Good news at last
Everyone in the comments saying smartphones are to blame probabky haven't sat an exam in about 8 years and have NO idea what they're talking about
😭😭😭😭😭
Is this because they’ve taken Fridays off to demonstrate against climate change?
That’s because of the ridiculously high chemistry grade boundaries and psychology examiners with daddy issues
Plenty of idiotic comments as usual from old has beens and never were’s. To the youngsters who worked their arses off all Spring and did well ... well done !!!!
BBCPolitics is this due to a fall in iq ?
BBCPolitics Is this due to cheating 'educationalists' being found out? Reputation enhancement through whatever means available used to be 'all the rage' at one time.
I love how throughout school your teachers are like “yeah we got the book in our exam” “my a level was entirely coursework” “I needed 50% to get an A” and then every other adult who isn’t a teacher is like “it didn’t get harder you’re just addicted to your phones”
Terrible confused article. Results in the 3 countries aren't directly comparable any more, but the media are desperate to try to compare anyway. Also misleading to quote Education and Schools ministers who only have responsibility for England, without making this clear
A-Levels for years have been dumbed down from what they once were to improve results. Now they've become harder, but not as hard as they once were, studants are complaining. Lol
Have just read that you only need 55% to qualify for an A in maths. 😱😱
Reformed a-levels are a joke! If anyone is to blame, its Gove the weasel 😒
all the old white people in this thread smh
“Oh yeah it’s the smart phones, that’s why everyone’s failing” well you lot try sitting nine a level papers and we’ll see how you do 👍🏻
I understand that 50% of correct answers in maths gets an A. Ridicules out in the work places if you only got 50% right you wouldn't get employed.
teachersfault
Smartphones are the blame
I got 3 Us today 😂😂😂
Any specific reason behind this ? Mistake of teachers or Students or parents ? GEMReport educommission UKEducationDept HerculesEdUK
Ludicrous situation where nearly a quarter of students are given A grades: makes A level process unfit for any purpose. Sad to see universities handing out first class degrees just to boost their incomes.
After a decade of Tory cuts is anyone surprised?
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