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GCSE exams to be replaced by EBacc
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GCSE exams to be replaced by EBacc
Education secretary Michael Gove reveals new system will be a revamped English Baccalaureate qualification starting in 2017
Nicholas Watt, chief political correspondent
The biggest shakeup of the exam system for English secondary schools in a generation was unveiled as ministers said GCSEs would be scrapped in favour of a revamped English Baccalaureate qualification from 2017.
{sidebar id=11 align=right}As education experts raised concerns that less academically gifted pupils could be left behind by the new "EBacc", the education secretary, Michael Gove, confirmed that a sizeable proportion of students would leave school with no qualifications. Students who find the new exams "difficult" will be given a "detailed record of their achievement" by their schools, which will be forwarded to further education colleges where they will be encouraged to sit the exams later, aged 17 or 18.
The confirmation that a large number of students will leave school without a qualification is likely to intensify criticism. The National Union of Teachers said ministers were creating a two-tier system.
Gove and the Liberal Democrat deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, visited an academy in west London to set the seal on the reforms, which will see GCSEs phased out in two stages:
{sidebar id=10 align=right} • From the autumn of 2015, pupils will be taught for the new EBacc in English, maths and science. These will cover seven papers: English language, English literature, maths pure and applied (with an additional maths option), chemistry, physics and biology.
The new exam will be sat for the first time in these subjects in the summer of 2017. There will be no coursework in English and maths as modules are scrapped on the grounds that they encourage what Gove described as "bite-size learning and spoon-feeding". There will be some coursework in science to take account of the importance of laboratory work.
• From 2016, pupils will be taught for the new EBacc in history, geography and languages. Pupils will sit the exams in the summer of 2018. There will be no coursework for history. Field trips will still count in geography and there will be flexibility on oral exams for languages.
Gove told MPs: "Critical to reform is ending an exam system that has narrowed the curriculum, forced idealistic professionals to teach to the test and encouraged heads to offer children the softest possible options. It is time for the race to the bottom to end. It is time to tackle grade inflation and dumbing down. It is time to raise aspirations and restore rigour to our examinations."
Gove will move quickly to embed the reforms to ensure that it would be all but impossible for Labour to reverse the reforms if it wins the May 2015 general elections. As a first step, single subject exam boards will be appointed by the end of next year by Gove, who will have the final say after recommendations from the exams watchdog Ofqual.
Gove said: "Critically we will end the competition between exam boards which has led to a race to the bottom with different boards offering easier courses or assistance to teachers in a corrupt effort to massage up pass rates. We will invite exam boards to offer wholly new qualifications in the core subject areas - English, maths, the sciences, history, geography and languages."
The joint appearance by Gove and Clegg at Burlington Danes Academy was designed to show that the two coalition partners had overcome their differences after a row in June. Clegg accused Gove of planning to throw children on to the "scrapheap" after the Daily Mail reported that the education secretary wanted to replace GCSEs with a two-tier system based on the old O-levels and CSEs.
Clegg insisted the new system would not be two tier and that less-gifted children would not be left behind. "There are many people who think that if you want to make the system more rigorous, you have to leave some behind, but I disagree. I think you can have greater rigour in the exam system, that's a good thing, but also ensure we can cater for all children, the same way the present exam does."
Gove told MPs that there would be an "enhanced" system for pupils who struggle with the new exams. But he confirmed that many would leave school without qualifications. "We expect that everyone who now sits a GCSE should sit this new qualification. But of course there will be some students who will find it difficult to sit these exams, just as there are students who do not sit GCSEs today.
"We will make special, indeed enhanced, provision, for these students with their schools required to produce a detailed record of their achievement in each curriculum area at 16, which will help them make progress subsequently – and we anticipate some will secure EBacc certificates at the age of 17 or 18."
Lord Baker, the former Conservative education secretary, raised concerns. "It's vital that schools and colleges provide education which develops practical skills and personal qualities as well as subject knowledge," he said.
Stephen Twigg, shadow education secretary, said the reforms risked a return to the 1980s. "We need to face the challenges of the 21st century," he said. "We on this side will not support changes that only work for some children."
The reforms will also mark the demise of GCSE league tables. Gove is also consulting on replacing the "floor standard" system, in which schools that fall below a particular level are deemed to have failed. A new system would take account of a wider variety of factors in asses.
Source: The Guardian UK
No commentsAll African Countries Should Adopt Free Compulsory Education From Kindergarten To SHS - Nana Addo
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15 September 2012
All African Countries Should Adopt Free Compulsory Education From Kindergarten To SHS - Nana Addo
The Presidential Candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said he and the NPP are going into the December elections with a radical agenda to redefine education.
{sidebar id=11 align=right}Addressing the opening session of the Democratic Union of Africa (DUA) Party Leaders meeting in Accra, he said “we are redefining basic education, which is the education that the state is obliged to give every child, to start from kindergarten and end at Senior High School. If you listen to some of the discussions in the country, you will hear that our opponents are claiming that we cannot do it, they call it a mission impossible, they say it is too expensive and Ghana cannot afford it.”
According to Nana Akufo-Addo, in this 21st century, it is unacceptable for Ghanaian children to be left with junior high school level education and expect them to be able to compete successfully in the global economy.
“The next NPP government will do what is right by the youth of Ghana. I hesitate to prescribe policy initiatives for other countries, but, on the matter of education, I have no hesitation whatsoever in recommending that all African countries adopt the policy of free compulsory education from kindergarten to senior high school. This is one of the most important things we have to do if we are to make the transformation from our current state to prosperity.”
{sidebar id=10 align=right}He added that, “It is a deliberate decision we have made and we have looked carefully at the figures and we know it can be done. We need to have an educated and trained workforce to be able to run the modern economy that Ghana will soon become. If God willing, we win the elections, we shall implement this policy rapidly.”
Nana Akufo-Addo also spoke of the NPP’s philosophy, which is the centre right philosophy.
According to him, “it has always been the champion of democracy. It has been the philosophy of freedom. It has been the philosophy of the free market. It has been the philosophy of creating opportunities for people.”
Though much of Africa has embraced democracy as the model that promotes opportunity, freedom and growth, Nana Akufo-Addo however said, “Sustaining democracy cannot be done with just the vigilance of avowed democrats like us.”
“We cannot help democratic sustenance by just being a union of opposition parties and shouting ourselves hoarse about how our countries are being run by half hearted democrats. To sustain democracy, we must get into power and help in the economic transformation of our countries.
Now, there is no longer an argument about whether or not there is a relationship between democracy and economic development. So to deliver prosperity to our people, as Dr. Danquah and our forebears envisaged, we must win the hearts and minds of our people. We must convince our people that centre-right policies are the best that can create the societies of opportunities that we ought to create in Africa in order to raise rapidly the living standards of our people.”
Mrs. Philippa Broom, who is the International Secretary of the Conservative Party (UK), applauded the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for its commitment to democratic principles and the well-being of Ghanaians.
She reiterated Nana Akufo-Addo’s commitment to enhance Ghana’s democracy, rule of law and accountability, adding that, Nana Addo’s life and work reflect on the democracy that has made Ghana a shining star on the continent.
It is my wish, Mrs. Broom said, that Ghana will see a Centre-Right party back in power to enhance economic transformation.
Mr. Eirik Moen, Secretary General of International Democratic Union, (IDU) congratulated the NPP for winning the 2000 and 2004 elections, and also praised the party for fully cooperating in the 2008 transition, though the party lost by a slim margin.
He urged other developing countries to emulate Ghana’s democratic achievements.
Mr. Moen was optimistic that Ghana will once again go through the December 7th Polls as a peaceful and united country.
Source: Pecefmonline.com
79 students drag Methodist Univ, Ministry to court
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79 students drag Methodist Univ, Ministry to court
{sidebar id=11 align=right}Seventy nine students withdrawn by the Methodist University have taken a class action in court against the National Accreditation Board, the Ministry of Education and the University.
They are asking the Human Rights Court to declare their withdrawal as illegal and a violation on their rights to education.
The students were withdrawn because of deficiency in grades but they claim the action by the National Accreditation Board which was enforced by the university is wrong.
{sidebar id=10 align=right}The students claim they satisfied all admission requirements before gaining admission into the university.
In a writ, a copy of which was intercepted by Joy News, the petitioners presented exhibits including adverts inviting applications into the institution all to back their claim that they satisfied all requirements before being admitted into the university.
Counsel for the petitioners, Gary Nimako Marfo told Joy News he resorted to the court because the university as well as the National Accreditation Board (NAB) were intransigent in their bid to dismiss the students from the university.
He also made reference to exhibits of the NAB, certifying the adverts which were published in the newspapers.
He argued having certified those adverts as requirements based on which the students were admitted; NAB cannot turn around and unjustly withdraw the students.
He is praying the court to allow the students to return to school and a perpetual injunction placed on the powers of the NAB and Education Ministry as well as the Attorney General to withdraw the students.
Nimako Marfo will not accept the explanation that NAB had revised its admission policy which makes it impossible for students with deficient grades to enter into the university.
He said any such revision must not take retrospective effect.
But the Education Ministry has expressed surprise about the students’ action.
According to the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry, Paul Krampah, the sector Minister had amicably resolved the issue after setting a committee to look into the withdrawal.
He said the students were asked to re-sit the papers they failed at the WASSCE level at no cost to them as part of solution to the problem.
He was therefore shocked that the students have now dragged the Ministry as well as NAB and the university to court.
From: Nathan Gadugah/Myjoyonline.com
UNBELIEVABLE!!! Hard Road To School...Pupils Scale Walls, Squeeze Through Wire Fence
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- Created on Friday, 14 September 2012 00:00
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UNBELIEVABLE!!! Hard Road To School...Pupils Scale Walls, Squeeze Through Wire Fence
Twelve-year-old Lucky Sappah of the Weija Presby Junior High School perilously working his way over the metal fence of the Weija Dam at 6.17 a.m. Wednesday. One thousand and two hundred pupils who live at Ayigbe Town, SCC, Old Barrier, Bortianor and Broadcasting, all communities on one side of the Weija Dam, near Accra, put their lives in danger by scaling the walls of the dam daily to get to school.
Others who cannot climb the walls of the dam go through the wire fence gate to cross over the bridge to their respective schools.
Meanwhile, 275 from the Weija Cluster of Schools have dropped out as a result of the absence of a footbridge over the Weija Lake to enable them cross over to school.
The only existing footbridge which passes through the Weija Water Treatment Plant is not accessible to the schoolchildren as a result of a directive from the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing to close the gate leading to the dam.
Since the directive was issued last year, the Weija Methodist Basic School has recorded the highest dropout with a total number of 120 pupils. The rest are Weija Presbyterian Primary and Junior High School, 90 pupils; Weija Municipal Assembly JHS, 35; the St Joseph the Worker Primary, 15, with St Jude recording 15.
In addition, the schools are affected by persistent absenteeism and truancy because the pupils cannot afford the transportation fare to and from school.
This information was disclosed to graphic.com.gh by the various heads of the schools.
They are, therefore, calling on the government to build two bridges across the Densu outlet to help alleviate the plight of the children.
They also pleaded that as a short-term measure, the gate of the Weija Dam should be opened for only the schoolchildren guarded by security personnel to ensure their safety during school hours.
The Headmistress of Weija Methodist Basic School, Madam Faustina Forson, said since the closure of the Weija bridge, activities of the school had greatly been affected, with the major challenge being the rising rate of dropouts.
‘’The only source of passage for the schoolchildren was the Weija bridge but the Deputy Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Ms Hanna Bissiw, gave instruction for its closure. Since then the children had resorted to using various means to come to school because their parents cannot afford three transportation fares,” she said.
The Headmaster of Weija Presby JHS, Mr Bob Djah, said the students had adopted various ways to cross the lake to go to and from school at their peril.
He said while many of them prefered to dangerously climb the walls of the Weija Dam, others paid GH¢1.00 to board a canoe to ferry them across the lake, another dangerous move.
The Headmaster of Weija Municipal Assembly JHS, Mr Shraw Takyi Kodam, recalled that after the Weija dam footbridge was closed by the authorities, the assembly member for Weija came with a proposed sketch footbridge but its construction had not started.
He said although the municipal assembly did promise to get a bus to convey the pupils to school daily, the promise was yet to fulfilled.
Mr Kodam said over 80 percent of school pupils from the Weija cluster of schools lived at Ayigbe Town, SCC, Old Barrier, Bortianor and the Broadcasting areas.
Reacting to the situation, the Managing Director of GWCL, Mr Kweku Botwe, said the closure of the Weija bridge was to protect the dam.
He explained that the bridge was constructed for the workers of the Weija Treatment Plant to use during the spillage and other activities of the company.
‘’The bridge was not meant for the schoolchildren or residents living on the other side of the dam,’’ he stressed.
Mr Botwe noted that one major problem GWCL faced was that most of the residents who used the bridge dumped waste substances into the dam, which made it difficult for the dam to follow its natural course.
Others, he said, used the bridge to construct pipes to discharge their sewage into the dam.
The Ga South Municipal Director of Education, Mrs Florence Addo, said her outfit had not received any petition from the various heads of Weija cluster of schools concerning the dropout rate that has arisen because of the closure of the bridge.
An earlier report was carried on June 21, 2012, about how 400 pupils crossed the Weija Dam in canoes or change vehicles three times before getting to school.
Source: Dominic Moses Awiah/Daily Graphic
Free SHS Achievable - Former Vice-Chancellor UG
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Free SHS Achievable - Former Vice-Chancellor UG
A former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Professor Emeritus George Benneh, has stated that a free senior high school (SHS) education could be implemented in the country, provided it is backed by the needed commitment by leadership.
{sidebar id=11 align=right}According to him, the most important resource for a nation's economic development is human capital, adding, "I think that is what a free SHS policy seeks to achieve."
He was of the belief that such a policy was going to plough back into the economy an empowered human resource base.
Presidential candidates of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the Convention People's Party (CPP) and the Progressive People's Party (PPP), have all promised to make SHS education free, if elected into office in the December elections.
The flag bearer of the lead opposition, the NPP, Nana Akufo-Addo, told a gathering at the Institute of Economic Affairs recently that his administration planned to spend GH¢78 million on the first year of the implementation of the policy.
The figure, according to Nana Addo, is expected to increase to GH¢774 million within four years of implementation.
The PPP has also proposed a free compulsory and continuous education to SHS level, which would cost the country GH¢4,747,812,158 in the first year of implementation, increasing to GH¢8,888,511,990 over four years.
The CPP, though believes SHS must be free, would set up District Opportunity Industrialisation Centres to cater for the portion of high school graduates who do not qualify for SHS, according to its flag bearer, Dr Abu Sakara Foster.
The subject has generated huge controversy on the workability of such a proposal.
But the one-time Finance and Economic Planning Minister says other countries which were less economically endowed than Ghana had shown the way that education could be provided to boost national development.
Prof. Benneh was speaking with the Daily Graphic at his residence in Accra.
“It is just an issue of commitment and the outlining of procedures to ensure that it works. Putting such a percentage of our country's Gross Domestic Product into education, I think, is a worthy investment and if the government would consider it would work," he said.
He said the countries that had overtaken Ghana in terms of economic development had succeeded due to an enhanced human resource which was empowered through education.
“Education, education, education",that was how the former British Prime, Minister, Tony Blair, set out his priorities for office when he was asked his three top priorities during the Labour campaign to put classrooms at the top of the political agenda, he said.
"In our country, there is a lot of human capital wastage. A lot of people are denied the opportunity to develop their capacity and contribute to national productivity because they are not empowered," he added.
According to him, whiles pursuing a free SHS policy was appropriate, there was a deliberate need for efforts to boost teacher motivation to ensure that they are able to put in their best especially in hard-to-reach communities.
The former President of the Association of African Universities also called for quality infrastructural base to be put in place to ensure that the pressure that such a policy might trigger was adequately contained.
"Above all, it is important for us to invest hugely into science and technology education. This would produce innovative students who would create employment and not wait for the government to employ them. This is how the Malaysians and Singaporeans have gone past us in terms of development," he said.
He, however, stated that the debate as to the policy's workability or not must be devoid of sensational party sentiments to ensure that the most constructive of suggestions were taken on board for implementation.
"Thankfully, we have a working democracy that allows for dissent and so all of us, irrespective of our political differences, would have an opportunity to criticise and query any input so we can have the best of it for ourselves. Once we all agree that it is the positive way to go at this point in our national development, let's put our differences aside and see that it works no matte!' who is in power," he said.
He said past educational policies had failed to yield the expected outcomes because their implementers did not back their efforts with strong commitment.
"I think that we've made a lot of gains as a country and we need to solidify our achievements to ensure that our people benefit directly," he added.
Source: Daily Graphic/Ghana