The increasing problem of multiple entry

I do wonder whether the media in any other country are as obsessed with students’ school examination results as they are in Britain.

Plenty of other things actually do occur in August: this year, horrendous internal strife in Egypt and Syria, significant issues about national security, the publication of restricted information, and citizens revolting against fracking.

However, the discussion of A level and GCSE results and whether standards were rising or falling and whether results were fair held sway for a considerable period.

As I write, we know that the percentages of candidates receiving the highest grades at both A level and GCSE are down – we know that some examinations had deliberately been made more rigorous and challenging, but as yet there is no story similar to last year’s when so many students received unexpected D grades in English and mathematics because the grade boundaries had been changed mid-year.