Responding to this morning's exam
results for GCSEs and vocational technical qualifications (VTQs)
in England, Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders'
union NAHT, said:
“We warmly congratulate students as they receive their results
across a wide range of qualifications. Today's results are a
testament to the hard work and dedication of students and the
school and college staff who have supported them.
"Students receiving their results today should feel especially
proud of what they have achieved - they navigated the start of
secondary school during the pandemic, some have been taught in
unfit school buildings, and support from the previous government
left much to be desired."
Resit policy
“The current GCSE maths and English resit policy must be
scrapped. English language entries from 17 to 19-year-olds
increased 30.8% and Mathematics entries increased 23.1% this
year. But only 19.3% of those students achieved a grade 4 and
above in English Language, the figure for maths is 15%.
“Those students who haven't achieved the required grade are
forced into repeated resits which are demotivating and can lead
to disengagement with their learning
“The most important outcome for students is that they have the
necessary numeracy and literacy skills to continue their
education or training and progress towards their chosen career.
“For some young people alternative qualifications in maths and
English would be a more positive and effective way to demonstrate
their achievements and government policy should allow much more
flexibility.”
On regional disparities:
“Although there are some marginal improvements in regional
disparities, the gap between the lowest and the highest
percentage of students achieving 4/C or above has grown from 8.7%
in 2023 to 9.4% in 2024.
“Such inequalities have been exacerbated over the last decade by
funding cuts to schools and community services, the pandemic, and
the cost-of-living crisis.
"Schools do their best to support pupils and close those gaps,
but they cannot do this alone. Unfortunately, the previous
government failed to provide anything like the resources needed
to address these inequalities.
“We welcome the new education secretary's pledge to address
regional disparities. We ask that this approach goes beyond the
school gates, and looks at services like social care and mental
health to enable children everywhere in the country to thrive at
school."
On exam anxiety
“Our members have definitely seen a rise in the requests for
access arrangements, particularly for students to take their
exams away from the main hall in smaller rooms.
“That rise in requests is likely to be a result of a variety of
factors including the impact of the pandemic and increasing
anxiety and mental health issues. Those may be exacerbated by the
number of high stakes final exams students face in their GCSE
subjects. There is also more
awareness amongst students and parents of what is available to
help students cope with exams and get the support that they need.
“It can be challenging for schools to meet that increasing demand
for separate or small room invigilation as it needs additional
staffing and space. Schools and colleges will need more support
to meet their students' needs going forwards."
