Labour’s Welsh First Minister was yesterday challenged to delay the introduction of new Wales-only GCSEs amid concerns about a fall in January 2014 exam results for GCSE English Language.
The Leader of the Opposition, Andrew RT Davies AM, branded the fiasco ‘an injustice’ for thousands of students, recalling the words of the previous Education Minister Leighton Andrews at the time of the 2012 re-grading saga.
Mr Davies accused the First Minister of ignoring educational expertise and failing to trust teachers. The Welsh Government has ignored calls from the WJEC exam board to delay the introduction of new GCSE courses, currently scheduled for September 2014.
Andrew RT Davies said, “Labour is ploughing on with plans for new Wales-only qualifications in the face of opposition from educational experts and organisations playing a critical role in the implementation of the new GCSEs.
“The massive decline in GCSE performance in the January 2014 results raises many concerns about new Wales-only qualifications and whether the Welsh Government needs to separate the roles of regulator and awarding body.
“A child only has one shot at their education and the grades achieved in exams will remain on someone’s CV for life.
“Carwyn Jones’ government is doing learners no favours by pressing ahead with these major and controversial changes to the Welsh education system against the advice of experts.
“Students will soon be preparing for their summer exams against this backdrop of worry and uncertainty and Welsh Ministers must get on top of this problem.”
Angela Burns AM, Shadow Education Minister, said, “It is critical that qualifications are robust and internationally-recognised as high calibre and rushing in new GCSEs without sufficient forethought risks dumbing down our education system.
“The Welsh Government should not be so arrogant as to ignore the advice of educational experts and plough on with such a major departure from previous qualifications.
“It’s disappointing that Labour Ministers have been so reluctant to make information about the GCSE English Language qualification publicly available, which has increased uncertainty further.”
