Last updated: 07 Mar 2008

Improving 14-19 education

Recent work on the secondary curriculum review in England, parallel curriculum developments in Wales and Northern Ireland, and the development of new qualifications, including Diplomas, have provided an opportunity to revise GCSE qualifications significantly.

The regulators want to:

• update the content of the GCSEs
• encourage innovative teaching, learning and assessment
• incorporate key elements of 14–19 curriculum developments
• ensure that the revised GCSEs complement the new Diplomas
• revise the assessment arrangements to provide stretch and challenge for all learners and make assessment less formulaic and predictable
• ensure that standards are maintained.

A factsheet on the changes to GCSEs is available to download from this page.

If you have any queries about the review of GCSEs, please email GCSE@qca.org.uk

Qualification and subject criteria

Qualification and subject criteria are designed to guarantee quality and consistency across awarding bodies and different subjects. For GCSE qualifications:

• the regulators produce GCSE qualification criteria and GCSE subject criteria for most subjects

• awarding bodies create specifications (syllabuses) to meet the qualification and subject criteria and submit them for accreditation to the regulators

• the regulators accredit specifications if they meet the qualification and subject criteria for use in schools and colleges.

The GCSE qualification criteria give broad rules on the structure of GCSEs and their assessment and grading. For subjects offered by more than one awarding body, specific subject criteria are developed to ensure that there is comparability between specifications. The subject criteria explain the general aims of studying the subject at GCSE, outline the core material (knowledge, understanding and skills) that should be present in all specifications irrespective of the awarding body, and indicate the assessment objectives and the scheme of assessment.

The GCSE qualification criteria, GCSE subject criteria and controlled assessment regulations for specifications for first teaching from 2009 are available from the links on the left-hand side of this page.

Disability Discrimination Act

Under the Disability Discrimination Act regulators have a duty to review and evaluate requirements contained within the qualification and subject criteria. These requirements are what students must demonstrate, including knowledge, understanding and skills.

As part of the review we have:

• identified the specific purpose of each requirement, and examined the manner in which each requirement achieves its purpose

• considered the impact that each requirement may have on people with disabilities and, if a requirement may have an adverse impact, asked whether the application of the requirement is absolutely necessary

• reviewed the purpose and effect of each requirement in the light of changing circumstances - such as developments in technology

• examined whether the purpose for which any requirement is applied could be achieved in a way that does not have an adverse impact on disabled people

• documented the way these issues have been addressed, the conclusions arrived at, and the reasons for those conclusions.

If you have any queries about the changes to GCSE please email GCSE@qca.org.uk.