Rise in top grades boosts GCSE record

Pupils have achieved another GCSE record, with almost seven out of 10 entries (69.1%) being awarded a C grade or above.

Results published on Thursday show 22.6% of exams sat in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were awarded an A* or an A, up from 21.6% last year.

More pupils took single sciences, but some languages continued to decline.

There has also been a big rise in the number of pupils sitting English and maths GCSEs a year early.

More than one in 10 pupils sits maths at age 15 or younger - up 37% on last year - and just under a tenth sit English early, up by 50% on 2009.

It comes after the previous Labour government scrapped national tests at age 14 or Key Stage 3.

This has allowed to some schools and pupils to move on to GCSEs in these subjects a year early, with many going on to sit AS levels (the first part of A-levels) a year early too.

But the new trend will fuel the argument over whether GCSEs are getting easier.

And it may be reflected in the fact that overall, the proportion of entries getting A*-C grades is up again, by two percentage points on last year from 67.1% to 69.1% - the highest ever.

The pass rate rose for the 23rd year in a row, this year to 98.7% of entries.

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Article extracted from BBC News