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'Marking on the curve; is it the solution to A-levels?' blog discussion

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This is the discussion to link on the back of Martin's blog. Please read the blog first, as this discussion follows it.
Read Martin's 'Marking on the curve; is it the solution to A-levels?' Blog.
Click reply to discuss below.
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Edit:
Here are the stats for last year:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/education/07/exam_results/a_level/html/mathematics_further.stm
I can see your point. Your system shows a student's ability to learn, rather than what they know. Depends on who is looking at the results and why as to which information they would prefer. Maybe students should get both grades??
This isn't an issue with the current system. That's what moderation is for. There is no strict trule that says, for example, you need to get 70% for an A.
Now there's an idea...
Im not sure why this makes a difference?
Under the 'curve', most of those people would get an A in maths, but then in further maths the grade they got would show how well they did compared to their 'super good' maths peers?
Please note, answers don't constitute financial advice, it is based on generalised journalistic research. Always ensure any decision is made with regards to your own individual circumstance.
For example, what if over the next few years more and more A-level maths students decided to take further maths as well. Lets assume currently that only the top 10% of maths students take further maths and that in 5 years time the top 20% of maths students take further maths.
The student who was on the 16th percentile this year would get a B. The equivalent student in 5 years time would be on the 16th percentile of the top half of the students, making them on the 8th percentile overall, getting an A.
On the other side of the coin, what if over time more youngsters went for vocational courses rather than academic ones. We could assume that the ones who would do this would be more likely to come from the lower end of the academic spectrum meaning that it would get harder for those left to get the good grades.
For this reason alone it would be unfeasable for any course that didn't have a near universal take-up.
i think they could add something to A level results which shows your raw marks rather than just a grade. that way you can see those you scraped an A versus those who got 100%. not sure that would fix it entirely though.
there are also people complaining about the same problem with degree results and too many students being given a 2:1..... no easy solution there either.
That just wouldn't work. University offers are generally not subject specific so it would just put people off choosing subjects like further maths. Or you could get your friends to sit it too and ask them to write nothing to increase your grade:rotfl:
The 'curve' sytem only works when a very large number of people are taking a virtually compulsary exam e.g. SATS or GCSE maths, english and science.
University entry exams are the way forward.
Retired August 2016
Paid off French mortgage September 2018
New kitchen fully installed June 2019
Not counting this! 2020
Garden fencing completed, woohoo 2021..........
October 2021: aiming for £5,000 new money for premium bonds or a car.
the A-Levels in my opinion are the hardest exams ever, because the questions are worded very ambiguously, the answer they want is hardly ever what you've been taught (ie. access to the higher marks is some random thing you've never been taught) and they fluff the marks/grades to suit whatever they want.
Whilst my Uni exams were much tougher in terms of content, the questions/marking etc. were much more straightforward, less of a guessing game as to what the examiner wanted, and based on pure knowledge.
I pity A-level students, and hearing that "they're getting easier every year" only demoralises them
I like the "curve" idea
:ABeing Thrifty Gifty again this year:A