AS-levels facing axe in exams shake-up

AS-LEVELS sat by students half-way through their sixth-form could be scrapped under major reforms which could see re-sits and modules being axed.
By The Newsroom
Published 20th Jun 2012, 07:00 BST

The proposals published by Ofqual yesterday would mean a return to a traditional two-year A-levels with exams at the end of the course.

The exam regulator said that the proposal, one of three suggestions for the future of AS-levels, has been put forward amid concerns from some quarters that the qualification has resulted in students focusing on exams at the expense of other interests like sport and drama.

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Under the current system, students sit AS-levels, which are qualifications in their own right, after one year of study, and can then decide whether to go on and study the second year to gain a full A-level.

Chief regulator Glenys Stacey insisted that Ofqual is “neutral” on the future of AS-levels. The three proposals include scrapping AS-levels and returning to a two-year A-level system with exams at the end; making the AS-level a standalone one-year qualification with results that do not contribute to the A-level or to keep the current system.

However even if the current system is retained Ofqual wants to limit re-sits so that a student can only re-take a paper once. The current modular system, in which AS and A-levels are split into two modules each, is also set to be axed and the exams regulator is proposing that the January exam session should be scrapped, so sixth form students can only take papers in the summer.

The consultation document says that some stakeholders from higher education and teaching support the AS qualification while others feel it has a negative impact on teaching time and prevents students pursuing wider interests.