High Stakes Testing...

I attended "Results Day" at Fairfield High School today.

Results Day is the day that students in Wales and England receive the results of their GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) national exams taken at the end of Year 11. Some students do take one or two at the end of Year 10, but the majority of pupils take between 5 and 14 exams at the end of Year 11. Year 11 is the equivalent of Grade 10 in the United States. Most year 11 students are 16. Age 16 is the end of compulsory education in the United Kingdom. All students take at least five exams in science, math, (maths, as they say here), English composition, English literature and a humanities area (history). They then can take multiple exams in specialized areas of interest such as drama, sport, technology, animal care, and other vocational areas of interest.

These exams are scored from grades of A* (which is the highest to a G)...although G is still considered passing, the goal is to get a C, since these are the scores that calculate into the overall success of the school and the student. The exams are taken nationally anytime between June and July and the results are released all at the same time in August.

Performance on the GCSE in each of the subjects areas determines the path the pupil may take in the fall following Year 11. Most students hope to go on to "Sixth Form"college, where they will further their studies in a particular field of interest and prepare to take their GCE A-Levels, which are General Certificate of Education exams taken at age 18. Performance on these exams will determine if a student can go on to University. Performance on the GCSE at age 16 determines if one will attend a traditional Sixth form college or go to a vocational school to prepare for a job. Some students will not further their education at all and will enter the workforce or go on the dole.

These GCSE results are a BIG deal in in the UK. Students and parents eagerly anticipate receiving their scores, especially if the student has a competitive Sixth Form college they plan to attend in the next few weeks. Information about these exams has saturated the media the past few days. Results are sent directly to the student's school and they must go to their school to pick them up. Reports are generated for the teacher's to see the student's individual results, as well as the overall percentage of "passing" scores. The goal of each school is to have a 65% passing rate, grades C-A* According to the news media reports, the national average passing rate this year was 62% of students scoring a C or better on any number of GCSE's taken... a figure totalling over 5.46 million exams taken. According to the national media, 750,000 teens took these exams this year. Generally, schools strive for a 65% passing rate, and if there are exams that score fairly close to a C, the school can appeal and try to get that exam rescored to a C, thereby increasing the overall passing percentage in the subject and credited to the school.

Not unlike the release of the MCAS exams at home, teachers eagerly await these results as well, as the results ultimately determine the success of the school, here they also determine whether certain programs can continue to be offered, and in some cases, whether schools can continue to operate. Like the MCAS scores, which allow teachers to asses what and how they teach a certain subject, the GCSE's do the same here. Like the MCAS, the stakes are high, as these tests determine the future of a student; for the U.S. student a high school diploma hangs in the balance, and for a UK student the choice of college and university hangs in the balance. Like the U.S., student motivation is the immeasurable, often uncontrollable factor in the results; we all have the student who we know should do exceptionally well, but just does not want to and are determined not to succeed. Thankfully, that is the exception, rather than the rule.

What is noticeable, is the seriousness which the students take these exams and how they receive their envelopes. Watching as an observer, it was interesting to note many students arriving at the school with their parents and how anxious they are when the envelope is handed to them. Some students eagerly tore open their envelopes to find out their many scores and others were apprehensive about opening them at all. Still others, a group of girls obviously all close friends, had pledged to open their envelopes simultaneously together. Others took their envelopes and immediately departed the campus to open their envelopes in private. There were squeals of joy, frowns of disappointment on some faces and still others were pleased that they had done their very best, worked very hard and had gotten the very best score they could.

While some students will go on to sixth form college without receiving acceptable scores in certain subjects, they will be allowed to "re-sit" those exams on which they need improvement. Like the MCAS, which can be taken multiple times until a passing score is received, prior to graduation.

Fairfield is generally successful, and is consistently a school with some of the highest performing students, usually achieving the 65% passing rate in each major subject area.

I guess it should not be a surprise that the future of young people rest on their success of performing on a "test", whether one or 14, that is what education has become, across the globe. High Stakes testing ...here to stay...no matter where you live.