John Blake

‘If you’ve got English, maths and science that’s fantastic, but does every single plumber, every single car mechanic, every single doctor, solicitor, barrister need to have history, geography or a modern language? I would probably say not.’ These words, from a headteacher in Liverpool, cut to the heart of England’s ongoing battle over education, and lie behind the changes to GCSEs - the first results of which we will see today. Parents and students may be confused by some of the changes, but they should not doubt that they are part of an ongoing project to confront the soft bigotry of low expectations embodied in that headteacher’s quote. The new GCSEs are a vital reform to challenge a failing system.

No one receiving their A-level results this morning can fail to be aware that the first of the coalition government’s more rigorous exams were sat this summer. Whatever their individual results, students – and parents – should be pleased with a new system which is more reliable and a better preparation for university. They should make sure to ignore the scaremongering from those opposed to the whole education reform project of recent years. That’s not to say that students and parents are all delighted with their experience of these reformed qualifications. There have been frequent complaints of insufficient support from exam boards, a lack of sample assessment materials and inconsistencies in the content of questions.