Despite being part of the optional tertiary Further Education (FE) process in the United Kingdom, the majority of students study for the qualification at a Sixth Form College, which is an integrated part of a Secondary Education institution. This is normally done as a direct continuation of the secondary education process and hence most students study for the qualification from age 16 to 18.
A large number also study A-Levels at a dedicated Further Education College (occasionally referred to as a tertiary college), which tend to offer a wider array of vocational courses. The qualification is the most common method used by British Universities to determine an applicant's suitability for academic subjects.
A-levels are also taken in some Commonwealth countries and British Overseas Territories, including Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Commonwealth Caribbean, Cyprus, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Singapore,[1] Zimbabwe, Malawi, Gibraltar, Brunei, New Zealand, Malta, Zambia, South Africa and India. Due to respective changes in the systems, these examinations differ both in terms of content and style from the A-levels taken in the United Kingdom. The most extreme case is observed in Hong Kong; the British A-level is accused of grade inflation, and thus over time the HKAL has become more strictly graded compared to its British counterpart, as shown by NARIC research.[2] The British GCE A-levels are taken all around the world, as many international schools choose to use the British system because the examinations are widely recognised. Furthermore, students may choose to sit the papers of British examination bodies at education centres around the world, such as those belonging to the British Council. According to the British Council, A-levels are similar to the American Advanced Placements[3] which are themselves equivalent to the first year of America's four year bachelor degrees.
A-levels were first introduced in 1951,[4] replacing the previous award, the Higher School Certificate (HSC).
In 1997[citation needed], Advanced Supplementary levels (abbreviated as AS-level or A/S-level), worth half of a full A-level, were introduced to encourage students to broaden their knowledge of other areas. These were of the same academic standard of a full A-level (i.e. the topics were studied in the same amount of depth) but covered a narrower range of topics.[5]
The most recent changes to A-levels began in 2000, when the government introduced Curriculum 2000 which split the A-level into two parts, the AS (Advanced Subsidiary) and A2 examinations.[6] The former is generally taken in Year 12 (Year 13 in Northern Ireland) (also known as "lower sixth" in sixth form parlance), and the latter is generally taken in Year 13 (Year 14 in Northern Ireland) ("upper sixth"). Satisfactory achievement in AS and A2 modules results in the award of an A-level qualification. It is possible to sit only AS modules, in which case only an AS-level qualification would be gained; this is given half the number of points of a full A-level on the UCAS tariff points system. Advanced Subsidiary levels, although replacing and sharing the same abbreviation as the previous Advanced Supplementary levels, are not the same. The current AS-levels are still worth half of a full A-level, but, contrary to the old AS-levels, cover the same breadth of the subject but in less depth. The old AS-levels were also not a prerequisite for the corresponding A-level and were examined separately (as the modular system had not been introduced at the time).
While an A-level is a qualification in its own right, A-levels are often the prerequisite for university-level study as well,[7] making them a de facto university entrance examination, though some universities also require applicants to take separate entrance examinations and the International Baccalaureate and European Baccalaureate are also accepted. Universities in the United Kingdom frequently demand that applicants achieve a minimum set of grades in A-level examinations, or the equivalent in other examination systems, before accepting them. While the government has rejected plans to introduce an English Baccalaureate modelled on the International Baccalaureate, it has introduced a Welsh Baccalaureate studies in Wales, based on the French Baccalaureate; but it has yet to be introduced in the rest of the United Kingdom despite favourable comments by the Welsh Assembly to the British Government.
Originally, A-levels only distinguished between a pass and a fail, although fails were divided into two types: one meaning that the student had failed a subject at A-level but passed at the O-level equivalent of that subject, and the other meaning that the student had not passed at either A-level or O-level. In 1953, another grade was introduced: the distinction, for high passes. Due to complaints from universities that the grading system was not specific enough to identify the students they wanted, a grading scale close to the current one was created in 1963, which retained an O-level pass between the grades E and F (Fail).[4] They also introduced norm-referenced grading, which meant that only a certain proportion of candidates will achieve certain grades—10% A, 15% B, 10% C, 15% D, 20% E and a further 20% allowed an O-level pass.[8] In 1984, the Secondary Examinations Council advised that grade boundaries should be based on the partition of the mark scale rather than on proportions of candidates, in a move towards a criterion-referenced system. Examiner judgement was to be the basis for the award of grades B and E, with the remaining grades determined by dividing the mark range between these two points into equal intervals. This system was introduced in 1987 and remained in force until the introduction of the new curriculum in 2000.[8] With the introduction of the new system and the replacement of the O-levels with the GCSE , the O-level pass was dropped, replaced by a grade N, standing for "Near miss", which was a much narrower denotation for candidates who failed to achieve the minimum standard for an A-level pass by only a few marks. The grade F was also replaced by a grade U. With the increase in the modular structure of the A-level examinations, the retention of the grade N was considered unnecessary as there was far more information to indicate how close a candidate was towards achieving a pass based on the modules taken. Therefore, with the introduction of the new revised A-levels in 2001 under Curriculum 2000, the grade N was finally dropped.
In the current system, A-levels are graded from A to E.[9] The raw mark in papers are converted to marks on a Uniform Mark Scale (UMS), so that every A-level subject has a maximum of 600 UMS marks, and every AS-level subject 300. Each grade requires a specific percentage of the UMS points available in both the A- and AS-levels:
Grade PercentageIn the UK, A-level results have risen for twenty-five years in a row, with a 2005 pass rate (A–E) of 96.2%.[10] For the June 2005 series, a total of 783,878 (554,594 male, 229,284 female) candidates received their full A-level results;[11] for the AS-level, it was 1,079,566 (492,248 male, 587,318 female).[12] 22.8% of A-level final results were graded A; 23.8%, B; 23.3%, C; 17.2%, D; 9.1%, E; and 3.8% were not graded (U).[13] The most popular subject, from most A-levels achieved to least, were: English (all combined) (85,858: 11%), General Studies (59,403: 7.6%), Biology (53,968: 6.9%), Mathematics (52,897: 6.7%), Psychology (50,035: 6.4%).[11] Further Mathematics was the subject with most A grades as a percentage, 58%.[14] In general, languages, science and mathematics subjects tended to yield the highest proportion of A grades.[11] Over the last few years, languages and sciences have declined relative to other subjects such as Psychology and Media Studies.[15] Full A-level grades are higher than AS-level grades;[16] for example, 22.8% of A-level grades are graded A compared to 17.9% at AS-level.[17].[12]
Research from Durham University found A-levels were graded "more severely" in mathematics, sciences and modern languages than in humanities (excluding geography) and arts.[18] Researchers called for applicants' results to be "weighed" when being offered places. Dr. Robert Coe, director of the educational evaluation group at Durham's curriculum, management and evaluation centre, said: "It is perfectly clear from our research that two A-levels are not equal, with some more severely graded than others. Dr. Coe and Prof. Peter Tymms's study found that students with a grade B at GCSE in History, Economics, Geography, English and English Literature, Sociology and Business Studies went on to score a grade C on average in those subjects at A-level. Those with a grade A/B at GCSE in Maths, Computing, German, French, Chemistry, Physics and Biology were more likely to score a grade C/D at A-level. Therefore, only the most capable students opt for these so called "hard" subjects, hence, Dr. Coe said students avoid hard subjects at A-level in favour of ones where they had more chance of getting top grades. However, in a response to this, Oxbridge has revised a list of soft subjects which will prevent a candidate who has three A grades in Business Studies, Law, Film Studies beating a candidate who has opted for Mathematics, Further Mathematics, English Literature and a Science subject. In fact Cambridge has regarded English Literature as the hardest A level subject alongside with mathematics and Further mathematics, which only the most willing students take at AS and A2 depending on whether or not they have obtained a grade A/A* at GCSE maths. Finally, Oxbridge has admitted that candidates should chose subjects that they enjoy rather than using subjects as "passes" into their fine institutions.
The number of A-level exams taken by students can vary, though generally not in the state sector in which around 90% of students are educated. A typical route is to study four subjects at AS-level and then drop down to three at A2 level, although some students continue with their fourth subject. Three is usually the minimum number of A-levels required for university entrance, with some universities specifying the need for a fourth AS subject. There is no limit on the number of A-levels one can study (except in Singapore, where students are restricted to 12"academic units" and private candidates are also limited in their number of subjects), some students do obtain five or more A-levels. It is permissible to take A-levels in languages one already speaks fluently, or courses with overlapping content. General Studies and Critical Thinking, which require a grasp of basic political ideas and current affairs in order to write essays rather than specific learning, sometimes augment a student's batch of qualifications. While many universities do not consider an A-level in General Studies to be a stand-alone subject (and thus is not accepted as part of an offer), it may affect the offer which a student receives. For example, a student of Mathematics, Physics and Computing might receive an offer of B-B-C for a Physics degree, whereas one also taking General Studies might receive B-C-C. Unlike A-level General Studies, Critical Thinking, which aims to improve student's analytical skills, has generally received a more positive reception from universities. Often it is given a UCAS tariff score unlike General Studies and some University admissions tutors see it is an advantage when applying for competitive courses.[3][citation needed]
Compared with the curricula of high schools in the United States, the A-level system provides more depth into the subjects being studied[citation needed] and often A-levels can be used as points that count towards their degree. However, the A-level has been criticised for providing less breadth since many A-level students do not generally study more than 3 subjects in their final year.[19] A major part of this criticism is that, while a 3 or 4 subject curriculum can be balanced across the spectrum (e.g., students may choose one science subject, a language subject, and a "creative" subject like Music), in many cases students choose three closely-linked subjects, for instance, Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry or Sociology, Psychology and Politics. This is in part due to university entrance requirements, which, for degree programs such as medicine, may require three related A-level subjects. Thus, while the purpose of Curriculum 2000 was to encourage students to undertake contrasting subjects, to broaden their 'skill-base', there is a tendency to pursue similar disciplines. However, others disagree, arguing that the additional AS-level(s) studied would already have provided more breadth compared with the old system. The A-levels' breadth also pale in comparison to the International Baccalaureate, which examines in six subjects, or the European Baccalaureate, which examines in at least 10 subjects.
Following the introduction of Curriculum 2000 in September 2000 (with the first AS-level examinations held in Summer 2001 and A2 examinations the following year), an A-level now consists of six modules studied over two years. Normally, three modules are assessed at the end of the first year, and make up a stand-alone qualification called the "AS-level" (or Advanced Subsidiary level, not to be confused with an older AS-level, the Advanced Supplementary level). Another three modules are assessed at the end of the second year, which make up the "A2". A2 modules do not form a qualification in their own right; the satisfactory completion of the AS and A2 modules in the same subject is required to constitute a complete A-level. Modules are assessed by exam papers marked by national organisations and internally-assessed coursework.
The introduction of the new GCE Applied A-level suite, taken from the old VCE A-levels, generally have a more vocational twist to them. For example, the new GCE A-level in Applied Business combines the traditional theory based subject 'Business Studies' (which can be studied as an A-level itself) and adds a more practical and hands-on approach to it. In this case, for the mandatory modules in the AS year, the candidate is expected to create a simulated Marketing Proposal (module 1) and Recruitment and motivational package (module 2) as opposed to just studying the processes. This essentially asks the candidate to show a more thorough insight by actually applying the theory. Given that many universities have shown a dislike to vocational subjects as opposed to the traditional ones, their reaction to the new applied suite remains to be seen. However, considering the subject is now much broader and more 'student-friendly' it is hoped that universities will see that this subject is no less than the traditional Business Studies given that the traditional aspect of the subject is not fully lost. The new GCE Applied A-levels are available in: Art and Design; ICT; Business and Science.