Breadcrumbs
GCSE Results Confirm Girls Still Ahead of Boys
September 2010
Girls have yet again seen a sharp increase in A* or A graded exam results, widening the gap between girls and boys by six percentage points. Girls achieved 25.5 % of A* or A exam grades versus boys with just 19.5% which is a four-fold increase since the introduction of GCSEs 22 years ago.
But it’s not all bad news for boys, as they marginally outperformed girls in Maths for the second year running, with 58.6% boys gaining at least a C result versus 58.3% of girls.
Leading teachers suggest the gap is due to girls benefitting from regular assessment and coursework, whereas boys tend to excel in more controlled assessment settings. The Government’s decision to scrap coursework in replacement for controlled assessments will see the gap narrow over coming years. The first GCSE exams to be impacted by these changes will take place in 2011.
The Student Support Centre’s ‘simply’ maths, English and reading home tuition programmes could also help overall. The programmes comprise of books and DVDs, which students work through at their own pace in the comfort and privacy of their own home, whilst supporting and consolidating what they have learnt at school. The ‘simply’ programmes are directly based on the requirements of the National Curriculum, with each topic being broken down into short lessons, which allows students to rewind and review the material as many times as necessary.
Published on 24th August 2010 by Telegraph reporter - Graeme Paton, Education Editor
Click here to read the full story on Telegraph.co.uk
