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All eyes are on Tomlinson

With the dust now settled over this year's GCSE exam results, attention has returned to the delivery of the final report from the Working Group on 14-19 Reform, due late September.

Led by Mike Tomlinson, the report will signal in the largest overhaul of this phase in education. It will replace the GCSE system with a new diploma-based one designed to be flexible to the needs of both individual learners and industry.

Lib Dem Shadow Education Secretary Phil Willis MP said the country needs an examination system that is fit for purpose in the 21st Century. 'The current system is doing absolutely nothing for 50 per cent of our young people who do not achieve five A-Cs and who need a radically different curriculum,' he added.

'At the other end of the spectrum, the current system is holding back highly talented young people who should be working at levels much higher than A* GCSE.'
This year's GCSE results showed the biggest increase in the A* to C grades in the last five years (from 58.1 per cent in 2003 to 59.2 per cent in 2004) for all entries in England, Wales and Ireland.

But the 1.1 per cent change probably also gives us 1.1 per cent of the picture. It is still too early to be sure how many pupils achieved, for example, five or more passes at grade C or above, or if there has been any change at all in the rates for different ethnic groups. We must wait until later in the year, or early next year, to find out.

One area of focus will be on African Caribbean boys, who are half as likely to leave school with five A-C GCSEs as their counterparts. The Government began collecting data on the achievement and exclusion of black boys in 2003 in its pledge to tackle this trend.

The GCSE results also reveal the continuation of a large gap in attainment between males and females. Overall females out-perform males by 5.3 per cent at grade A* - A, 8.4 per cent at A* - C grade and 0.8 per cent at A* - G grade.

Concerned, Dr Ellie Johnson Searle, Director of the Joint Council for Qualifications, said there is no evidence either this year or over the past seven years that the gap is narrowing.

'The radical reform of the 14-19 curriculum and qualifications being developed by Mike Tomlinson urgently needs to address the issue of raising the educational aspirations and motivation of all boys from 14 onwards,' she said.

From a parent's perspective, the new National Qualifications Framework means young people will study in a way that more readily reflects their ability and readiness to take on bigger challenges. The diplomas will be structured at entry, foundation, intermediate and advanced levels. Also, rather than being linked to specific age ranges, the new system will enable young people to progress as far and as fast as they are able.

It will include opportunity to undertake an in depth extended project in a subject that interests and motivates them. The diplomas are designed to give young people the research, planning, analytical, critical and presentations skills required in higher education and employment. Team working, self-management, self-awareness, and international awareness also form part of the structure.