Measuring Educational Success
Sociology: AQA GCSE, topic 3.3.1
Measuring Educational Success
Educational achievement is how a pupil is doing with regards to academic attainment. This is measured in several ways.
National curriculum
- The national curriculum was introduced by the Education Reform Act 1988.
- Its aim was to ensure the same content and standards in education across the nation.
SATs
- (Standard Assessment Tests).
- SATs are tests taken initially by 7-year-old pupils at the end of Key Stage 1 in reading, writing and Maths.
- Then these tests are taken again by the 11-year-old pupils in English and Maths.
SATs cont.
- The results obtained at the end of Key Stage 2 are compiled to make the primary school league tables.
- League tables are a measure of performance of pupils based on their exam results.
GCSEs
- (General Certificate of Secondary Education.)
- GCSEs were introduced in 1988.
- GCSE exams are taken by 16-year-old pupils at the end of Key Stage 4.
GCSEs cont.
- The pupils are awarded a grade for each subject.
- Until 2017 the grades were A*-G but since then it has changed to a numerical ranking and it is now 9-1.
- GCSEs are public examinations. This means that they are set by a central examining body.
Measuring Educational Success
Educational achievement is how a pupil is doing with regards to academic attainment. This is measured in several ways.
EBacc
- (English Baccalaureate).
- EBacc is a performance measure which is awarded when pupils secure at least a grade C in five core subjects:
- English.
- Maths.
- Sciences.
- Languages.
- History or geography.
Progress 8
- Progress 8 was introduced in 2016.
- This is a performance measure for secondary schools where they try to gauge the progress of pupils from the end of primary school until the end of secondary.
GCSEs / A levels
- (Advanced Level).
- A Level exams are taken by 16- to 19-year-old pupils.
- Initially, pupils had to study 4 subjects at AS level and 3 subjects at A level.
- This has changed to a two-year linear course.
A level reforms
- The latest reform was in 2015 when the A levels were divided in AS and A level.
- Pupils will either sit the AS exam or if they decide to do the whole A level course they can sit the AS exams at the end of the first year but that won’t count towards their overall grade.
- The results are put into league tables and are a measure of performance.
Test yourself on Measuring Educational Success
In which year was the national curriculum introduced?
When were GCSEs introduced?
In which year was Progress 8 introduced?