GCSE ENGLISH & MATHS RESITS MAY BE SCRAPPED – Education Secretary: Four in five white working-class children failing English & Maths
The Government is considering scrapping compulsory English and maths resits at GCSE level. Pupils who fail these subjects at GCSE, aged 16, are made to resit them if they stay on for sixth form, since most jobs require passes in the two subjects.
But the pass rate for GCSEs in English and maths fell to its lowest level in a decade on Thursday, driven by a surge in the number of children forced to retake them after failing last year.
Bridget Phillipson, the Education Secretary, warned earlier this week that four in five white working-class children were failing to get the English language and mathematics skills required to succeed in life. She refused to rule out ditching compulsory resits earlier this month, instead saying that an independent review of the curriculum ordered by Labour would look at “how best we can support 16- to 19-year-olds who don’t achieve the right level in maths and English”.
Options to replace resits could include testing pupils in stages or issuing driving licence-style certificates proving basic ability.
