In response to the view that grade A's are the equivalent to C's due to the fact that exams were harder twenty or so so years ago, i feel that this is not a valid argument as what more can a student do that achieve the highest grade possible on the exams. One should not be disadvantaged for being born at a time when the education system is changing,

Steve, London,

This is ridiculous.

As an A-level student myself, I know first-hand of how difficult the majority of academic (aka, non media studies/psychology/etc) A-levels are.

I would greatly love to see a number of the systems critics sit a selection of a-level exams so that they can see themselves how 'easy' they are, I believe that they'd be quite surprised at the difficulty.

Alex, Leicester,

When I sat my French A level in 1976, the marks for the dictation were calculated by taking (from a total possible of 20/20) 2 marks off for each mistake made. 3 mistakes meant that 6 marks were subtracted from 20, giving the student 14/20 (ie 70% - in those days an 'A' grade). The following year, just 1 mark per mistake was subtracted from 20...meaning that people who had failed on the previous year's marking system were passing with good grades under the following year's system.

This is just one small example of how marking was changed in just one paper of one A level but I shudder to think about the incremental effect across the board of such changes over the last 30 years...

David Bruno, Brussels,

To all the student's that claimed they worked hard this year, just consider next year's students who will get better results on average than you did. You haven't worked hard enough at all if there's so much room for improvement.

John, London,

To judge by the English of some of these letters, there should not have been too many A grades in that subject.

bwhitjo, Hurstpierpoint,

I agree with James from Solihull who believes that As are the new Cs. He still knows how to use an apostrophe better than Josh Blackburn who claims to have gained 100% in 11 exams. Presumably English wasn't one of them, or maybe they have got easier.

Bigdoggy, Prudhoe, England

Robert Coe's research is particularly interesting in that it shows that a C grade achieved almost twenty years ago would now be marked as an A. The attitude of many students now is that "I deserved an A because I worked really hard". It therefore seems that A levels are now more of a measure of effort than actual ability. A lot of my friends worked "really hard" (in 1989)and only got C s and D s. Three A s were very rare then, but we were no less intelligent or industrious. Why else are Universities asking for higher grades as part of a conditional offer than they were twenty (or even ten) years ago? Just look at the entry requirements for Medicine. It used to be a standard BBB offer, now it is usually AAB with a minimum A in Chemistry. (I speak from personal experience having applied to do Medicine in 1989). If I were an A level student now I would be extremely angry that so many of my less able contempories were also being given the top grade.

James, Solihull,

This summer I acheived AAA at A-level (Maths, Physics, Business), 2 A's at AS-level (Further Maths, ICT) and a Merit in AEA Maths.

I thought I would be ecstatic with these grades, however the only one I care for is the extension award. The reason being that so many people achieve A's they have become of much less value. Particularly irritating knowing that I got 100% in 11 exams, averaged 95% in each qualification, an achievement which is not congratulated anywhere to the extent in which it should be, by an 'A' grade of which 44% of Maths students get, for example!

I feel as though it's almost that the government are saying "ok, things are wrong here, we'll bring in an A* from next year and write off the last few years of some extremely hard working students who they didnt award a qualification which says much for their acheivement". In my view this is very wrong, and I feel as though exam boards should atleast award additional certificates to those achieving >90% as consolation.

Josh Blackburn, Brighton, East-Sussex

A levels are primarily used to determine which university a student will go to, at present they no longer perform that function. One way to differentiate between students in any subject would be after the grade add an R(Resits) and the number taken for that subject so someone with the grade A R0 would not have needed to resit any modules. This system would more than likely differentiate enough between all the students with A grades.

Stephen, St. Ives, England

At the age of 16, I asked all my teachers and support staff surrounding me which subjects would favour me most when applying to university later. After two years of blood, sweat and tears I achieve three A's to find out that it's nowhere near enough to get to the kind of university I'd like to go to and everyone's telling me the A Levels I've done aren't enough. Cheers Labour, Mr Blair gets in on "education, education, education," and gives me the greatest kick in the teeth he could do in that department

Joe Cater, Coalville, England

It is obviously true that , brain transplants being presently impossible, and brain donors never likely to be available, the average IQ's of 18 year olds is the same as they always were. I took "S" level physics in 1967 and still have a book of old exam papers somewhere. I agree with Jamie from Birmingham; It would be interesting to determine if any of the current candidates who received A's in Physics could answer any of the questions from the examination papers of those at "S" level from the '60's..

Gareth John, Ossining, NY, 10562 US.

Picking up my A level results yesterday I noticed an interesting difference between those in Year 13 (A level) and those in Year 12 (AS level). The difference being that on the whole AS grades where significantly lower than those grades achieved by people taking A levels. Statistically the year currently taking their AS levels scored better at GCSE and is general considered by the staff as being more talented.

Thinking back to last year, there seemed to be a large number of people scoring U's in allot of subjects at AS level. Is it not possibly that AS level weed out the weaker candidates and it is students AS grades we should be looking at? This and the ability to retake all the modules at least once would certainly allow 25% of students to gain at least one A grade. It would be interesting to know the number of students who scored A grades without retakes and at AS level.

James Cornish, Gloucester, Gloucestershire

I've just got my A level results myself (I was delighted to get streight A's!) and for me it seems that one rather big reason for the continued improvement in exam results is almost completely overlooked. Every year it is at the exam boards disgression on how many people are to achieve the top grade as the boundaries change year on year depending on a paticular paper. It is therefore there decision to continue to allow more people to achieve the top grade, and if A levels are to have any hope of continuing in their current format the percentage of people passing needs to be officialy limited.

Exam boards get their revenue for the number of schools choosing to sit their exam, so in the current climate it is in their interest to improve results as schools have an over reliance on league tables to focus on. Untill this practise is really looked at then the hard work and effort of people that sit the exams will be continued to be undermined by a naive public.

L Thompson, Lincoln, UK,

Those who argue that a higher proportion of As is a good thing, miss the main point of A-level exams - the measurement of relative performance.

If I had just taken my A levels and received straight As, I would be very disappointed to hear that more of my contemporaries than ever had received A grades... My relative achievement, which is all I would care about when it comes to University application, would be devalued. Getting a place at a top University would now be more of a lottery than it would have been, with a sensible grading system in place.

But then again, perhaps the government does not believe in a true meritocracy, so this may well suit their ends...

David, London, UK

I think congratulations is in order to both pupils who have obviously studied hard, and teachers, who's methods seem to be improving. I believe that pupils who have achieved excellent grades shouldn't be put down to exams being too easy - it's about hard work and dedication. It is becoming made more aware how important a good education is, and maybe now this message is getting across

Rachel, Cardiff, Wales, UK

It's only a matter of time when British people become the super-intelligent race of people. Everyone will achieve grade A, no bell curve, and the rest of the world astounded as to how British people can defy biology and evolve so quickly as a people.

hazh, Oxford,

Use of the term 'dumbing down' misses the point. There are no absolute exam standards, otherwise the same subject couldn't be studied at GCSE, A level, degree level etc. What has to be decided is what a particular grade means in the context of the group to which it applies. We could end up with 100% of students getting an A grade and that would be fine as long as future disctinction wasn't dependent upon this (a bit like the pass/fail of the driving test). The problem is that 'A ' level grades are used by universities and employers to distinguish between students and because of this those who suffer most are the students themselves (because they end up being judged on other - often more arbitrary - criteria). The government should bite this bullet and reset the grading structure so that the share between the five grades more accurately reflects the use to which they are put. This would have no detrimental effect other than the short term removal of the ego boost provided currently.

Clive, Chichester, UK

Agreed SG, A-Levels are a challenge. I got my A/S results today, 3 B's (Psychology, History, Politics) and a C in English Lit (which may rise to an A or a B as I dont know if my A grade coursework has been counted). I'm very proud of them and I worked extremely hard.

If you actually ask A level students whether they think the exams are easy not many of them say they are.

The majority of people criticising the exams for being to easy probably havent seen an A-Level paper in their life. Why is it that students doing well is seen as a bad thing? But I guess some people just like a good moan.

Then again I could be wrong, I mean 19th century political history, thats a really easy subject isnt it?

Alan, London,

Until everyone in the land has been effectively taught the three "R"s the debate about A level standards can wait.

Ignoring innumeracy and illiteracy is what the Government wants.

RICHARD BOYCE, HAYWARDS HEATH, Sussex

Well the evidence is there. It's very unlikely that the population as a whole is becoming more intelligent with every passing year so, to me, the only explanation can be that it's getting easier to achieve higher marks in A-Levels.This doesn't mean the work is any easier, just the system.

Ed, Liverpool,

When I was sitting my A-Levels in 1993 my teachers, by way of preparation, would set us previous exam papers.

The older the exam paper the fewer questions we could attempt, until we got back to 1974 where we could only tackle part questions.

Is the explanation for year on year improvement down to better teaching methods and brighter pupils or simply that the watering down of the curriculum has continued and current A-level students would struggle with the paper I sat.

Jamie, Birmingham, West Mids, UK

The exams may be easier to pass, and maybe easier to get As in, but this just means that a larger number of As are needed. The French Baccalaureat only gives one grade, really, per person. it is not a less worthy system though. A student with 600 UCAS points (as I found I had this morning) has still achieved a high standard and will be able to get the 2 Bs or whatever that the supposed elite from the 1970s scored. The Benchmark is increasing due to easier exams, perhaps, but teenagers are, if anything, more intelligent than they used to be.

Rohan Kandasamy, Bideford, Devon

As a student who took A levels last year I heavily resent the implication that exams are getting easier.

I studied long and hard for the results that I got, so for reactionary wallies who have never even read the exam papers to baselessly undermine my efforts and my achievements leaves me utterly livid.

I defy most of them to sit the exams I sat and achieve a solid grade without putting in the two years of hard work that I was forced to.

Charles Thomson, Essex,

It will not be surprising if the younger generation have become smarter in studying and answering exam questions, what with all the exam aids and all sorts of other help available for today's children. But are they more matured, more suited for life, more responsible people? Well, the news headlines about their attitudes do not suggest so. What with binging, reckless driving, etc etc.
The exam board is mistaken to allow so many people to get As, and already there are rumours of universities seeking Baccalaureate qualifications for future admissions. This only adds cost and anxiety to future students, in an already stressful time for them. The exam board simply needs to raise the exam standard higher, or as the statisticians put it, raise the point for getting A, or dividing A into two levels line in some countries, ie A1 and A2. In this way, universities can differentiate students. No point taking an exam and getting an A if 25% of students also got As!!!

Andrew Sees, London, UK

Students cannot win !! If the results are good then, the exams have been 'dumbed down'. If the results are poor, then the students are not good enough. Is it not possible that the students are getting better at learning ????

Tony, Wetherby,

I took A levels at a grammar school that selected the top 10% of children in the area as judged by the 11 plus and the recommendation of the primary school head teachers. We were lucky enough to be taught by a teaching staff that was 75% plus graduates of Oxford and Cambridge Universities. We had to put in at least 2 to 3 hours of homework every night.

We were tested at the end of every term, in every subject, in 5 days of solid exams and given public ranks in our class and year in every subject. The School was ranked Top 10 in the country among State schools.

OUR PERCENTAGE OF A GRADES AT A LEVEL WAS LESS THAN AN AVERAGE SCHOOL TODAY.

The idea that an average teacher today can take an average student and get better results than a school 25 years ago that selected the best teachers and the most intelligent pupils is laughable. The qualification has been made easier.

No disrespect to today's students - you can only sit the exam that is put in front of you. Well done

Richard Turner, London,

I agree that critics undermine the hard work of students that achieve A grades at A-level. Instead of reviewing A-level standards it should be recognised that our society is putting increased pressure on students to perform, and as a result young people are more driven to achieve their potential than they have been in the past. It should be taken into account that the increased accessibilty and expansion of the internet aids many students in their studies. Also, the fact that teachers can allow their students access to past papers has led to increased improvement in results.

I can see that universities need to be able to distinguish between excellent students and good students, however I do not believe the hard efforts of people who have achieved A grades should be undermined.

Kayleigh Lambert, Eastbourne, England

Well there is no point in saying that exams are getting easier each year. It's true that maybe 5 years ago tests were harder and even stressing for our organism. It's all relatively to make certain statements, I agree at the point that universities have hard decision to make. Which one tho choose?
But isn't that what government, countries are looking for? Smart kids, who shall be our future.
Maybe some changes need to be done, but please don't exaggerate in a way that tests are too easy. It's all about pupils who have been given freedom, and this is what makes better results.

Mirko, London, UK

I don't think A-levels themselves have become easier. We've come a long way from a situation where most people left school at the age of 14/15/16 and where educational resources were limited, so naturally we're going to have better grades and achievements. Also, once you've practised every question on a paricular topic that has come up in the past twenty years you can pretty much guarantee a good mark in the final exam. However, I think we do need harder A-levels or a tougher grading system so that the examination can perform its sheeps-and-goats function.

I also agree with Charles from London, we can't put too much emphasis on examinations, some imagination and flair is necessary as well. Perhaps A level should become more open ended with more scope for original thought, but this is difficult to achieve at high school level when students are still being introduced to methods of thought.

ALex Li, Glasgow,

Total agreement with Tom, Lancaster. Well done Tom, you've hit the problem, but the govn officials don't want to hear it or ther'd be rioting. If pupils now want to 'better' their chances of getting an 'A', they just have to read past papers, memorise the question-types and answers, as they tend to repeat. This is harder to do in languages but still possible. As for the A* new grades, that's not fair on the rest of us, who just have 'A' grades and not 'A*' at A-level ...!
They should just make sure that the questions at GSCE, A-level etc are always, always different, (actual question and layout), there would then be a more 'uniform' correlation.

Natalie , North London,

Is it really so difficult to accept that teaching standards and student capability have improved in the past years? After recieving my 2 As and a C this morning I felt 2 years of hard work and effort had paid off. Perhaps I live in an area where lower grades are expected but A grades were certainly not overly common at my 6th form. Before altering the system, perhaps some attention should be paid to areas where students perform less well, as highering grade expectations will only put said students at more of a disadvantage.

Angela, Bradford, W.Yorkshire

I think we should know - have the pictures of the people celebrating their results been staged?

Ben Boysen, London,

SG,

When I was at school even the brightest (destined for Oxford and Cambridge) could not get 100% in any A levels we sat, It was just impossible.

If there isn't a problem why do university lecturers constantly complain that their first year is spent teaching remedial work to students who don't learn the basics in school?

You are being taught to pass exams and none of us doubt that you work hard, but you are not being EDUCATED in the way that we were.

Liz, London, UK

A three-letter word, beginning in L and ending in E.

Clue: the answer is not A

Alan Lothian, Pangbourne,

When looking at the reasons why more and more pupils achieve the highest A- level grade, a fact that is often overlooked is that as the exam system gets older, teachers learn exactly what the examiner wants to hear. They then preach this to their students. This can obviously lead to students not really having a great deal of understanding "around the subject." We can hardly blame teachers for this - after all, they are paid to ensure their students do well under examination. Furthermore I see no reason why we would not see a similar effect with any new system of examination. A more flexible style of testing our young adults is needed!

Tom, Lancaster, Lancashire

This news report- or something similar comes around every year. Taking A-levels myself I know it is not an easy thing to do and it feels as though the hard work a lot of students put in is not appreciated by many. I think it's a shame that students work so hard only to have universities and other such establishments make such claims.

Amy, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England

The school which my children attended would only allow those who the teacher thought would pass their A levels to be entered for their exams, so it’s no surprise that there is such a high pass rate. My son wanted to take maths, but was refused unless I paid the exam entrance fee because they thought that he would not pass. This is the reason for high pass rates. It’s all to do with the government’s league table requirements.

Richard, Oxford,

I think we should return to the system of the old ways and use a fixed percentage of all results for the number of grade A's awarded and likewise for all other grades. This would simplify the difficult task for admittance to higher education of differentiating between the top students for each year, whilst maintaining confidence in a system that rewards those who work hard.

Gareth Evans, London, UK

I seem to remember that last year, and adult was on the news having taken the rare step of attempting a single a-level herself (all credit to her), and ending up with a C, which was praised as a high achievement.

How about we give those who have achieved well a little credit for the months they've spent studying for these exams? I seriously doubt that many adults would now be able to match them, even given a year to prepare

Joe Bloggs, York, UK,

Why should people be surprised or displeased?

If methodology of learning is improving and testing criteria are not, why not work on the latter?

As selection from the best of the best may still be required for some purposes, holistic assessment with a disregard for system exploitation seems the way to go.

dr venables preller, Warminster, UK

I thought a recent study concluded that an "A" grade today was equivalent to a "C" grade 20 years ago?

Sceptical, Birmingham,

Just a question. Why is it that we read many successful university applicants need further education to be sure they can write English and do mathematics and other basics etc to their minimum standards. That tells me something: shouldn't others be figuring it out as well?

B J Deller, Marbella, Spain

I have to say that SG from Harrow may be fibbing when he said that he's 'seen' papers from 20 years ago and that they were a 'joke'. I also received four As, only a few years ago, and I happened to stumble across papers form the 70s and 80s... the questions for ordinary pure mathematics were much harder than the so-called further mathematics I was taking at the time. I find it strange how many people are in denial about this.

In any case, who cares? We don't really need to compare the abilities of candidates 20 years ago with those of now. So why are we using a system that doesn't differentiate current candidates' abiliies as much as possible? It's unlikely the 25% who received an A are all equal in their ability. If we used a percentile system as they do in the US, then the problem would disappear.

Paul, Southampton,

so, SG, with your 99 and 100 %. you're clearly very bright. 4 A's in traditionally hard subjects, 6 hours extra work a week etc. you deserve those grades, yet you argue against grade inflation? well now instead of your results making you something special you're now just a 1 in 10.

the devaluation of A-levels isn't about them being easier, its about the very bright (like you seem to be) being indistinguishable from the very well trained. it devalues YOUR results by not separating you out from the rest.

from my a level experience (3 years ago) my practise papers (taken from past exams) were in fact harder than my actual exam. we were thoroughly coached on how to answer specific questions that the teachers new were going to come up.

nik, leicester,

And yet actual proficiency in reading, writing and arithmetic continue to fall. Year on year the standard of students entering and leaving university, and starting work gets worse.

We are all seeing it in the private sector - why can't the education system see this?

MGB, Carmarthen, Wales

One in four A-levels may very well be an A-grade, but that doesn't mean that one in four students have straight As, does it?

Matt, Guildford,

I have just received the A-Levels results and believe me, it was not easy for me to get As in French, Politics and History. Even my Politics and History teacher said exams were not easy and that proper revision is the key to succeeding at A-Levels. I suggest the ones saying A-Levels have become "too easy" do the exams themselves. Try and do a History coursework on Ireland or do a source-based paper on Chartism.

Daniel Fernandes, Kettering/Lisbon, UK/Portugal

I'm sure If you asked all the people i saw leaving my school this morning with D's, E's and U's if A levels were easy, they'd tell you otherwise. 25% may be A's - but this is mainly because some students get 4 A's and then 3 others don't get any. A levels are hard, just ask the students.

James Pomeroy, Abingdon,

Nice when all your hard work is ignored because it's all too easy. I never bothered celebrating my GCSE results because everyone told me I got those results because the exams were easy (although my dad who is an engineer couldn't answer some of my physics or maths questions). I didn't do A Levels because I didn't want to go through all that hard work to come out the other side being told they were easy - I did a diploma. My brother did his AS levels this year, what's the odds on him feeling good about his exams?

Steph, London,

"Universities have complained that so many teenagers score A’s that they cannot rely on A-levels to identify the truly outstanding candidates from the merely very good."

Damnation! Now they might actually have to place some importance on whether the prospective students are interesting people with good ideas.

Charles , London,

I think that the people who criticise the A Levels should actually do them. It is about testing yourself as much as anyhting. I didn't just accept 4 A's, I got 100% in 2 (physics and chemistry) of them and 99% in the other two (maths and further maths). You can do AEA's, I got 2 disinctions. In fact having looked at the papers from 20 years ago, they are an absolute joke compared to some further maths and physics module. The critics should put their money where their mouths are and we will see how they perfore. Hundreds of thoudsands of pupis work hard every year, I worked for 6 hours a day everyday after school since January, and the last thing we want to hear is that the papers are too easy. Show some respect for the achievement of pupils.

SG, Harrow,

On this basis, youngsters will leave school confident in the knowledge that they will never find themselves in financial difficulties because they know all about compound interest
( and can apply it to their financial affairs ) will be able to travel to continental Europe not expecting the French or Germans to speak English and will be able to explain to us all why a ship made of steel floats and doesn't sink.

I am not too confident!

Kindest regards

Brian ANDREWS, Hamburg, Germany

We do not rate any of the "A" level results post 1995 as having any credance in our computer software company as we are constantly having to retrain and retrain again substandard aplicants for our posts.
Deeply depressing that most of our staff are now foreigners. We need a revamp of our entire educational board back to the standards we had over 30 years ago.

Alex Lee, carshalton, UK/ surrey