Industry News
Exams pilot fails
Posted on 9th May 2008
New exams for primary and secondary school pupils are to be changed after unexpectedly low results in a pilot test, the Times Educational Supplement has discovered.
Only one in ten pupils passed one of the new exams, leading the government to alter the test. The Making Good Progress project is set to replace Sats exams by 2010.
The new exams were designed to be taken when teachers decided children "were ready". Now more time will be allowed to complete the higher-level sections.
A higher-level reading exam proved most troubling for pupils. The maths and writing exams only achieved slightly higher results.
A Department for Children, Schools and Families spokesperson said: "We have every interest in finding out what works and helps us achieve our aim; more pupils, making faster progress," the Guardian reported.
In related news, the Guardian reported in April that the head of an exam board had criticised a government scheme to replace A-levels with more practical based diplomas.