WIRRAL GRAMMAR SCHOOL for BOYS
Examination Changes and implications by year group (2014/2015)
A Parents’ Guide
My son is now
in Year…
Seven
Eight
SUMMARY OF THE MAIN CHANGES IN EACH KEY STAGE
Key Stage 3
Key Stage 4 (GCSEs)
Key stage 3 is two years long
(Years 7 and 8). Boys will choose
their GCSE courses in March of
Year 8 (2016). Progress in Years
7 and 8 will be assessed using
National Curriculum Levels.
Key Stage 3 is two years long
(Years 7 and 8) and boys will be
choosing their GCSE options
during this school year in March
2015. Boys’ progress will
continue to be assessed using
National Curriculum Levels
during Year 8.
Key Stage 4 will be 3 years long (Years 9, 10 and 11). Year
9 will be the ‘GCSE Foundation Year’. All GCSEs will be
assessed using the new Grades 9 to 1 where a Grade 9 is
the highest and a Grade 1 is the lowest. All exams will be
linear which means that all of the exams will be at the
end of Year 11. From Year 9, we will be monitoring
progress using the new GCSE grades 9 to 1. A Grade 4 will
be the same as an old GCSE Grade C.
By the end of Year 9 we will expect all boys to achieving
at Grade 4 and above and most boys should be achieving
at grades 5 and above. GCSE grades will be important for
Universities and many will be making course offers based
on the GCSE performance.
Key Stage 4 will be 3 years long (Years 9, 10 and 11). Year
9 will be the ‘GCSE Foundation Year’. All GCSEs will be
assessed using the new Grades 9 to 1 where a Grade 9 is
the highest and a Grade 1 is the lowest. All exams will be
linear which means that all of the exams will be at the
end of Year 11. From Year 9, we will be monitoring
progress using the new GCSE grades 9 to 1. A Grade 4 will
be the same as an old GCSE Grade C.
By the end of Year 9 we will expect all boys to achieving
at Grade 4 and above and most boys should be achieving
at grades 5 and above. GCSE grades will be important for
Universities and many will be making course offers based
on the GCSE performance.
Sixth Form (A Levels)
A Levels will be two year linear courses. This
means that there will be no external exams
until students are at the very end of Year 13.
The grades will go from A* to E. Because there
are no AS exams anymore, Universities will
take into account GCSE grades when offering
places.
Progress will be monitored using the A* to E
grades and all students will be taking Mock
exams in both Year 12 and Year 13. Year 12
Mock results will be used in University
applications.
A Levels will be two year linear courses. This
means that there will be no external exams
until students are at the very end of Year 13.
The grades will go from A* to E. Because there
are no AS exams anymore Universities will
take into account GCSE grades.
Progress will be monitored using the A* to E
grades and all students will be taking Mock
exams in both Year 12 and Year 13. Year 12
Mock results will be used in University
applications.
Nine
Ten
Key Stage 3 is three years long
and boys are now in the final
year and will be choosing their
GCSE options during March of
this school year. Boys’ progress
will continue to be assessed
using National Curriculum
Levels. Boys will be starting
GCSE course content in some
subjects, especially the core
ones (Maths, English and
Science)
Key Stage 4 will be two years long (Years 10 and 11).
GCSEs will be a mixture of old and new ones. The new
GCSEs will be for Maths, English Language and English
Literature and these will graded using the new grades
from 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest). The new Grade 4 will be
equivalent to the old Grade C. All other subjects will be
grades using the existing grades from A* to G.
Progress will be monitored using the corresponding GCSE
grades (9 to 1 or A* to G), depending on the subject.
Not applicable
Key Stage 4 is two years long. All GCSEs are graded using
the existing grades A*(highest) to G (lowest). All GCSEs
are now linear which means that all exams are at the end
of Year 11. In English, History, Geography exams, up to
10% of marks are allocated for spelling, punctuation and
grammar.
GCSE grades will be important for Universities as many
will be making course offers based on the GCSE
performance. The message here therefore is get the top
grades!
As there will be no AS exams in the Sixth Form,
universities will be taking GCSE results into account when
making offers. The message here therefore is get the top
grades!
A Levels will be two year linear courses. This
means that there will be no external exams
until students are at the very end of Year 13.
The grades will go from A* to E. Because there
are no AS exams anymore Universities will
take into account past GCSE grades when
making offers.
Progress will be monitored using the A* to E
grades and all students will be taking Mock
exams in both Year 12 and Year 13. Year 12
Mock results will be used in University
applications.
A Levels will be two year linear courses. This
means that there will be no external exams
until students are at the very end of Year 13.
The grades will go from A* to E. Because there
are no AS exams anymore Universities will
take into account past GCSE grades when
making offers.
Progress will be monitored using the A* to E
grades and all students will be taking Mock
exams in both Year 12 and Year 13. Year 12
Mock results will be used in University
applications.
Eleven
Not applicable
Key Stage 4 is two years long. All GCSEs are graded using
the existing grades A*(highest) to G (lowest). All GCSEs
are now linear which means that all exams are at the end
of Year 11. In English, History, Geography exams, up to
10% of marks are allocated for spelling, punctuation and
grammar.
As AS exams in the Sixth Form are being phased out,
universities will be taking GCSE results into account when
making offers. The message here therefore is get the top
grades!
A levels will be a mixture of the current type
with AS exams at the end of Year 12 and the
new type which have no AS exams. The new
type are two-year linear courses with all of the
exams at the end of Year 13. The new two
year linear A Level courses will be in the
following subjects: Art, Business, Computing,
Economics, English Literature, English
Language, History, Biology, Chemistry, Physics,
Psychology.
Because AS exams are being phased out,
Universities will be placing more emphasis on
past GCSE performance.
Progress will be monitored using the A* to E
grades and all students will be taking Mock
exams in both Year 12 and Year 13. Year 12
Mock results will be used in University
applications.