UK public like some aspects of new exam system but are opposed to other key measures, according to our poll.
A plurality (39%) of UK adults support scrapping GCSEs in favour of the new English Baccalaureate qualification, but a majority were opposed to several key measures involved in the change.
- 39% of the public support the change, while 32% are opposed, and 29% say they don’t know
Support for the new exam system is highest amongst Conservative Party supporters, with 65% in favour and only 11% opposed. Just 18% of Labour supporters are in favour of the news system, while 54% oppose the change. A majority (57%) of Liberal Democrats support the new exam system, and 22% are opposed.
Prefer bits of old system
With the current GCSE system students’ marks are based on a final exam, and part of the marks are based on controlled assessment (coursework done during the year under exam conditions), but under the English Baccalaureate marks will be based only on final exams. A majority of the public (64%) were found to be in favour of the old system of dividing marks between coursework and final exams, while only 28% were in favour of the new changes in which marks will be based solely on final exams.
A majority of the public (52%) also preferred the old system of having modular exams that allowed students to resit sections of the GCSE if they did poorly in a given module, while 38% were in favour of the new EBacc system, where if pupils do badly they will have to resit the whole exam.
And bits of new system
There was broad support (82%) for the Government’s plans to abolish the practice of allowing schools to choose from multiple exam boards, in favour of a single exam board under the new system.
There was also wide support (59%) for having a single tier exam under the new EBacc system, while 31% of the public prefer the two-tier system under GCSEs where students of different academic abilities sat for different exams.
See the full results here
