Stephen Vasciannie

Some weeks ago, I wrote about the A' level examination, with reference to Alan Bennett's "The History Boys". I regretted not having more space to develop my arguments, but, nonetheless, my column has prompted a fair number of responses.

One response, from Dr. Peter-John Gordon, included an article from the Economist magazine, under the title "Gold Standard Loses its Gleam", while a second, from Ms. Klao Bell had as an attachment a London Times article entitled "State Schools Join Flight from A Levels". Some other responses reiterated these themes.

So, then, what's this about declining A' level standards? Perhaps the strongest criticism of the A' levels today is based on statistical evidence. In 2004, roughly 25 per cent of the students taking the A' levels in Britain received A grades (that is, the highest mark available). This was up from 12 per cent obtaining A grades in 1991, and has consistently risen from at least the 1990s.

Statistics

The statistical evidence is suggestive also for the rest of the class. In Britain last year, 96 per cent of the cohort actually passed their A' level examinations, according to the Times. This requires further explanation, but for the present purposes, let's accept that only 4 per cent of students did not pass at least one of the A' level subjects they took. On one view, these statistics clearly indicate that A' level standards are now watered down almost to the point of being meaningless.

To support this perspective, reference may also be made to complaints made by university officials in Britain. If 25 per cent of the class turns up with A grades, how will admissions officers at universities identify the most deserving students; and if the A' level examinations do not allow you to identify the most academically oriented students, it will be failing in one of its primary objectives.

The suggestion that the examination has become too easy is also based on changes made to the A' levels in recent years. In 2000, the A level system was changed from a "one-shot" examination after two years of study, to one split up over the two-year period (into the AS level and the A2 level). Also, you could take the examination in units, and you could retake specific units an unlimited number of times — until you got an A grade for the unit.

So, yes, I think it is now easier; the old gray mare just ain't what she used to be, many long years ago. What are the implications of this for us in Jamaica? Most of our A' level students now do the Caribbean Advanced Level Proficiency Examinations (CAPE), modelled on the Cambridge A levels.

We need to be watchful

I do not believe that the statistical evidence suggests the CAPE is as diluted as the English A' levels have become, but we need to be watchful; for, like the A' levels, the CAPE is subdivided into units, and students do not have the "burden" of a two-year course of study before demonstrating their knowledge in one examination. Finally, the point of my earlier column was that we should not water down our standards. I stand by that position: the A' levels have been diluted, but we must be sure that students have at least the A' levels or their equivalents before we accept them for university studies.

Otherwise, a university degree will become even less challenging than what the old A' levels used to be. The system, in short, needs to have a gold standard.

Stephen Vasciannie is a professor at the University of the West Indies and a consultant as a Deputy Solicitor General in the Attorney-General's chambers.