At last, common sense prevails. (My annual educational rant.)

August is the month of GSCE and A Level results in the UK.  This year, for the first time since GSCEs were introduced in 1988, there has been a fall in the amount of A*- C grades awarded. It is only an overall decline of 0.4%, however, in English the corresponding pass marks have dropped from 78.4% to 76.3%.

As a consequence, there has been an outcry from many teachers, parents and governors. Some parents have been incensed that their children's papers might have been marked too harshly. Presumably, some have been appalled that their children might even have been deducted points for bad spelling and punctuation. This almost seems fair as we've all been subliminally indoctrinated that grammar is no longer important and what really matters is the effort, the thought behind the writing. You see, it's now all about the content. Yes, on occasions it might be easier to read kid's school work in Braille but what does it matter! So long as everyone hugs, kisses and celebrates the achievement of having written something without dying on the school premises and accidentally instigating an OFSTED inspection we can all be happy. Hurrah! 

Anyway, in response to all the outrage and gasps of horror, AQA, a leading exam board,  has made the following statement:

 "This summer, all the exam boards raised their grade boundaries for GCSE English in order to maintain standards. In AQA's case, this was by between 0 and 3 marks."

So that's 2 marks then? 

Yeah, yeah okay don't be pedantic - it could be 1 mark. (I'm guessing the 0 mark wouldn't have made a lot of difference and to lower a result by 3 marks would be just far too revolutionary....)

According to Brian Lightman, secretary to the Association of School and College Leaders, the boundaries for the C/D pass mark were particularly affected and children who were told they would get C grades were more likely to get D grades. In this article at the BBC he goes on to say;

"It is morally wrong to manipulate exam grades in this way - you are playing with young people's futures."

Yes indeed it is morally wrong, Mr Lightman, to "manipulate" grades. But...

 (Waves red flag, raises megaphone to mouth, screams in high pitched agony like a wolf listening to Barry Manilow in concert)

Is that not what the exam bodies have been doing for the last twenty four years? 

Yep, I know I have visited this subject before (so yes you can all moan, groan and make general tut-tutting noises) but it is one, which as a parent, writer and (non-practising) adult literary teacher, concerns me greatly. I cannot let it rest. I'm just not good at keeping my mouth shut. (Just be grateful I'm not going on about politics. Or sex.)

So, I have had three children in state education continuously for the last fifteen years and during that time I have witnessed a shocking and outrageous decline in educational standards. I have been dismayed at the attitude of schools and a number of teachers in their compliance in perpetuating this scandal which so deeply affects the literacy of our children. ( I love all these gimmicks by the way but don't let them distract you from the content.) I have ranted, raved and yes when my patience has finally snapped I have even been thoroughly unpleasant to some teachers. On one occasion, after a telephone conversation with a teacher, I was so angry I threw the phone across the room and dented the wall. (Fortunately, it missed my statue of Mrs Thatcher.) At times, I have not been proud of my behaviour or my words as I'm generally a good natured, sweet, fluffy, bunny-rabbit type of person and acting against my normal nature has made me very unhappy with myself. 

However, at last, with these new directives I feel vindicated that the authorities have finally seen the truth. Somewhere, in the long, dusty corridors of power, overcrowded with administrative zealots, a little light bulb has finally switched on. 

Of course, I am truly sorry that some children might miss out on their place at sixth form or college this year. However, if they have to resit their GSCEs or perhaps work for a year whilst doing a resit to obtain a better standard of English then so be it. If they have patience, in the long run what they will learn will serve them well and they may come to understand that what has happened to them is part of a much bigger picture.

I have absolutely no doubt my own children have been severely affected by the lowering of standards in our schools. I have looked at their books and it is not difficult to work out what has been going wrong. I also know the harsher marking system will now work against Jacob, who has just started his GSCE courses, as I doubt whether his English teacher can repair the damage that has been done in the last nine years in time for his national exams.

I have spent a lot of time, money and personal effort supplementing the state curriculum in an attempt to keep Jacob and Ben on track with their literacy. Yet I know I have not done well enough. Simply, I ran out of energy to fight and always, always, always, I was met with apathy and excuses at school. With the exception of this last year, when Benedict's school have tried to repair the damage they did the previous year when he fell two grades, I can put my hand on my heart and say that despite all the cooing, all the political correct mumbo jumbo nobody has given a shit whether Sam, Jacob or Ben have achieved their true potential.  For Jacob, his future exam results will now probably come down to how dedicated his English teacher is and whether she supports the current changes or is yet another teacher that has been sucked into the softly softly approach. I will do my best to help but the truth is I am worn out with the fight. 

But whatever the outcome for Jacob in two years time, I strongly support the current changes. I sincerely hope that these changes remain and indeed increase in vigour over the coming years.

It is time to redress the balance and give our children the education they deserve.