Improvements in results for English, mathematics and science at GCSE

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1 News release Strict embargo: hours Thursday 23 August 2007 Improvements in results for English, mathematics and science at GCSE The GCSE results for 2007 show continuing improvement in English, mathematics and sciences, with more students sitting all three separate sciences. According to data published today (Thursday 23 August 2007) by the umbrella group for the UK awarding bodies, the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), the overall results show a 0.4 percentage point increase at grades A*-A (from 19.1 per cent in 2006 to 19.5 per cent in 2007) and a 0.9 per cent increase in A*-C (from 62.4 per cent in 2006 to 63.3 per cent in 2007). Overall the cumulative percentage of candidates attaining GCSE grades A*-G decreased by 0.1 percentage point (from 98.1 per cent in 2006 to 98.0 per cent in 2007). The number of entries for GCSE in the core subjects is largely governed by the statutory requirements of the National curricula in England, Northern Ireland and Wales. In three of the core subjects - English, mathematics and science (and Welsh in Wales), the great majority of students will take a GCSE examination. The number of entries is up this year by 75,167 (from 5,752,152 in 2006 to 5,827,319) or 1.3 per cent. Entries for English are up 10,531 or 1.5 per cent (from 721,762 in 2006 to 732,293 in 2007), and mathematics, up 9,729 or 1.3 per cent (from 750,570 in 2006 to 760,299 in 2007). Mathematics, English and science account for 46.4 per cent of all GCSE full course entries. Performance in both English and mathematics in 2007 has improved at grades A*-C, with English up 0.6 per cent (61.6 per cent in 2006 to 62.2 per cent in 2007) and mathematics 0.9 per cent (54.3 per cent in 2006 to 55.2 per cent in 2007), evidence of improvement in numeracy and literacy skills in 16 year-olds. In science, entries in biology are up 3,126 or 5.2 per cent (from 60,082 in 2006 to 63,208 in 2007), chemistry is up 2,455 or 4.3 per cent (from 56,764 in 2006 to 59,219 in 2007) and physics is up 2,356 or 4.2 per cent (from 56,035 in 2006 to 58,391 in 2007). There are further increases in science single award, up by 2111 or 2.2 per cent (from 96,374 in 2006 to 98,485 in 2007).

2 These upward trends more than account for the slight decrease in entries for science double award, down 3,522 or 0.4 per cent (from 959,578 in 2006 to 956,056 in 2007). In addition, there were 57,316 entries for the new GCSE science examination. Performance in all sciences has shown improvement in Science Double Award is up 0.3 per cent at A*-C (58.3 per cent in 2006 to 58.6 per cent in 2007). Science Single Award is up 1.1 per cent at A*-C (24.7 per cent in 2006 to 25.8 per cent in 2007). Biology is up 0.5 per cent at A*-C (88.4 per cent in 2006 to 88.9 per cent in 2007). Chemistry is up 0.7 per cent at A*-C (90.2 per cent in 2006 to 90.9 per cent in 2007). Although at A*-C physics is unchanged, at A*-A it is up 1.4 per cent (46.8 per cent in 2006 to 47.4 per cent in 2007). This year, boys continue to catch up across the grades. The gap between boys and girls narrowed by 0.2 per cent at A*-A, 0.6 per cent at A*-C and 0.1 per cent at A*-G. In subjects with more than 100,000 entries, religious studies is up by 11,442 entries or 7.2 per cent (from 159,681 in 2006 to 171,123 in 2007) and physical education is up by 2,799 or 1.8 per cent (from 152,826 in 2006 to 155,625 in 2007). In subjects with fewer than 100,000 entries, the largest increases in entries for 2007 are additional mathematics, up by 6,511 or 198 per cent (from 3,282 to 9,793); statistics, up by 14,351 or 21.0 per cent (from 68,331 to 82,682); media/film/tv studies, up by 8,904, or 15.5 per cent (from 57,521 to 66,425); business and communication systems, up by 2,380 or 5.7 per cent (from 41,640 to 44,020). The largest falls in entries in 2007 are in modern foreign languages with German down by 9,250 or 10.2 per cent (from 90,311 in 2006 to 81,061 in 2007) and French down by 19,471 or 8.2 per cent (from 236,189 in 2006 to 216,718). There is, however, a marked improvement in performance amongst the more selective group of candidates taking German and French. The pass rate in German is up 2.1 per cent at A*-C and French is up 1.8 per cent at A*-C. This year entries in Spanish rose by 1,835 or 3.0 per cent (from 62,143 in 2006 to 63,978 in 2007). Other modern foreign languages are up by 1,606 or 5.5 per cent (from 29,188 in 2006 to 30,794 in 2007). Information and communication technology is also down by 9,945 or 9.1 per cent (from 109,601 in 2006 to 99,656 in 2007). Design and Technology, with a fall of 16,713 or 4.5 per cent (371,672 in 2006 to 354,959 in 2007) and history, down by 3,803 or 1.6 per cent (231,657 in 2006 to 227,854 in 2007) are the remaining two largest falls in major entry subjects. Commenting on the 2007 GCSE results, Dr Jim Sinclair, Director of the Joint Council for Qualifications, said: The improvement in the GCSE results this year is testament both to effective teaching and the dedication and hard work of students. There are positive signs overall, with increased entries in mathematics and science, and the performance in all subject areas improving. The recent change to GCSE Science specifications by awarding bodies has also encouraged more young people to take science examinations.

3 Notes to editors 1. Results detailed tabulations of the GCSE Full Course, GCSE Short Course, Applied GCSE Double Award, Applied GCSE Single Award, GNVQ Intermediate, GNVQ Foundation and Entry Level Certificate examinations are published separately, also with the STRICT EMBARGO: hours Thursday 23 August These are the results for the above qualifications taken by students across the UK but predominantly in England, Northern Ireland and Wales. 3. In the Home National Curricula for England, Northern Ireland and Wales at Key Stage 4 students must study six subjects and most will take examinations in at least five of these. In three of the Core subjects - English, mathematics and science (and Welsh in Wales), the great majority of students will take a GCSE examination. Outside the Core subjects examinations may lead to GCSE Full Course, GCSE Short Course, GCSE Applied or a range of other qualifications such as GNVQs or Entry Level Certificates. Details of the National Curriculum in England can be obtained from National Curriculum online Although not part of the National Curriculum, Religious Studies is a statutory requirement of the Education Act, The JCQ consists of AQA, CCEA, City & Guilds, Edexcel, OCR, SQA and WJEC, the seven largest providers of qualifications in the UK, offering GCSE, GCE, GNVQ, AEA, Entry Level, Vocational and vocationally-related qualifications. 5. The JCQ was established in January 2004 and supersedes the Joint Council for General Qualifications (JCGQ, ). The JCQ has been formed to enable member awarding bodies to act together in: providing, wherever possible, common administrative arrangements for the schools and colleges and other providers which offer their qualifications; dealing with the Regulatory Authorities; in responding to proposals and initiatives on assessment and the curriculum; dealing with the media on issues affecting all member Bodies. The JCQ can be contacted at: Veritas House 125 Finsbury Pavement London, EC2A 1NQ Tel: pressoffice@jcq.org.uk

4 Appendix GCSE Short Course The Short Course entries increased by 31,919 or 6.5 per cent (492,508 in 2006 to 524,427 in 2007). Four subjects religious studies (55.8 per cent of total entries), information and communication technology (18.3 per cent), citizenship studies (13.9 per cent) and physical education (5.6 per cent) together comprise 93.6 per cent of all entries for the GCSE Short Course. The Short Course results show an improvement of 0.6 per cent decrease at grades A*-C (from 51.5 per cent in 2006 to 52.1 per cent in 2007), no change overall at grades A*-G (95.5 per cent) and a slight drop of 0.1 per cent at grades A*-A (from 14.7 per cent to 14.6 per cent). Applied GCSE Double Award Entries for the Applied GCSE Double Award decreased by 12,759 entries or 7.7 per cent (166,080 in 2006 to 153,321 in 2007). This is almost entirely due to a significant drop in entry for ICT, down 16,898 or 37.9 per cent (from 44,554 to 27,656). There was a continued growth in applied science entries of 4,346 or 15.8 per cent (from 27,471 in 2006 to 31,817 in 2007), with a significant improvement in achievement at grades A*-C of 4.1 per cent (increasing from 33.9 per cent to 38.0 per cent). Overall, the achievement in these double award qualifications shows a 0.5 per cent improvement at grade A*A*-AA (from 5.5 per cent in 2006 to 6.0 per cent in 2007); a more significant increase of 3.0 per cent at grade A*A*-CC (from 41.3 per cent in 2006 to 44.3 per cent in 2007) and an improvement of 0.8 per cent at grade A*A*-GG (from 94.6 in 2006 to 95.4 in 2007). Applied GCSE Single Award The number of entries rose by 6,012 or 73.6 per cent but remain very small in comparison to other qualifications (8,170 in 2006 to 14,182 in 2007). Entry Level Certificate The number of entries fell by 4,552 or 3.8 per cent (121,068 in 2006 to 125,620 in 2007). GNVQ Intermediate In its final year, the GNVQ Intermediate qualification saw a decrease of 33.7 per cent in entries (from 111,803 in 2006 to 83,623 in 2007). However, although suffering a decrease in entry of 28.4 per cent, information and communications technology remained buoyant with 53,690 entries, down from 68,917 in 2006.

5 Achievements at Distinction increased by 0.7 per cent (up from 4.5 per cent in 2006 to 5.2 per cent in 2007) and at Merit by 2.0 per cent (up from 25.7 per cent in 2006 to 27.7 per cent in 2007). The overall pass rate increased 5.0 per cent (up from 81.2 per cent in 2006 to 86.2 per cent in 2007). GNVQ Foundation The GNVQ Foundation in its final year, fell by 5,468 entries or per cent (down from 9,448 in 2006 to 3,980 in 2007). The JCQ can be contacted at: Veritas House 125 Finsbury Pavement London, EC2A 1NQ Tel: