Reply to: oh dear: Teachers say no-one should 'fail'

[wendigo100]

U was "try again next year". Is it still the same these days?

ISTR that U stood for Unclassified, the equivalent to not turning up, or doing so badly you might as well not have.

In which case, rather than "try again next year", it was more like "try going to school first".

[hattra]

IIRC "A" levels grades A - E were a pass, F was a marginal fail, so you could do an early resit (I seem to remember that they were done during the Summer holidays), O was an "O" level pass, and U was "try again next year". Is it still the same these days?

It looks as if the "O" level grades may have started to change from numeric in the early 70's (at least for some exam boards) - I didn't think that happened until just before the GCSEs were brought in - you live and learn, eh!

[wendigo100]

A levels were graded A to F, O, and U.

What was O?

I seem to recall you could fail an A level, but just do well enough to get an O level. Is that what it was?

[wendigo100]

I didn't do very well in my O-level mocks, which shocked me a bit, and it was the fear of failure in the real exams that got me in off the streets at night and brought to an end my budding career as a yob.

I wouldn't have had the same fear of deferred success.

[wendigo100]

Ten O levels here and every single one of them graded with a letter.

Mine were done in 1971/1972 - all GCE's and numeric grades.

My GCEs were done in the seventies, most were letters but some were numeric, due to different examining boards. I did one CSE in woodwork, and that was numeric too.

Lettered GCEs were passes from A to E, F was a failure and U was Unclassified.

Numeric GCEs were passes from 1 to 6 (I think). I don't know how they classified failures.

[hattra]

Mine were done in 1971/1972 - all GCE's and numeric grades - Oxford and Cambridge board (now part of OCR, I think), apart from Physics, which was Nuffield. CSE's were numeric, and "A" levels were alphabetic. Could be dependant on the exam board, but everybody I've ever spoken to from that period had numeric grades. Mind you, I can't even remember what most of my grades were, as they didn't print them on the certificate - we got separate notification, which I lost years ago. I remember got grade 1 in Physics and Grade 6 in Latin, but the rst is a bit of a blur.

[wibs]

Lonio,

If you got graded A-F, etc, then you did GCSEs, not GCE "O" levels

Ten O levels here and every single one of them graded with a letter. Mine are definitely not GCSEs. CSEs gave numeric grades, but not GCEs, unless they changed the grades in the latter years of the GCE.

A-C were passes, anything after that just told you how badly you failed.

[hattra]

Who do they think they are kidding?

I seem to remember my O levels where no one could fail.
Grade were A,B,C,D,E,F and U (unclassified).
I got 10 O levels. I only ever mention the ones grade C and above as everyone (including me) sees the rest as failures.

All they will succeed in doing is to force employers and Unis to ask different question, no longer how many GCSEs, but How many GCSE A*s did you get.

Lonio,

If you got graded A-F, etc, then you did GCSEs, not GCE "O" levels - they were graded 1-6 (pass), 7 (marginal fail - eligible for a resit in the Summer hols), 8 & 9 (bog off and don't waste my time) - pass mark was 40% for a grade 6. Apparently a Grade 6 "O" level is equivalent to a low-end Grade "C" at GCSE, and the lower GCSE grades are equivalent to the old CSE grades 1 to 6.

[xoggoth]

Maybe it ain't so important really. It fits in with the society they will live in. Since we have abandoned the natural law, viz failure=starvation, and ultimately doomed the human race in so doing, we might just as well massage the egos of the worthless. Next to filling their faces, it is pretty cheap.

[wendigo100]

Without someone else failing, your success means nothing.

[OwlHoot]

In a decent education system no one should fail

In a decent education system with sufficiently frequent use of the cane no one should fail!

OwlHoot in "knowledge that is not willingly sought must needs with the rod be taught!" mode

[OwlHoot]

[b]Liz Beattie, a retired teacher, will call on the association's annual gathering in Buxton, Derbyshire, to "delete the word 'fail' from the educational vocabulary to be replaced with the concept of 'deferred success'"

I wonder when she retired - at 65 as a silver-haired old school marm with 40 years experience or a year or two after giving front line teaching a go, failing, and then retreating back into the ivory tower of "education studies". My money's on the second.


OwlHoot in "education theorists - I've tulip 'em" mode

[WageSlave]

Bagpuss, we will end up like Alabama.

[Bagpuss]

In my day...is too good for em... socialist scum... if I had my way... back on the first boat...better in my day... once great nation....whats the world comming to...worked hard for what I have....never had it so easy...they don't bloody care...falling stardards..where will it all end

[WageSlave]

Please accept my sincere apologies WS I now feel totally inadequate and a complete failure for not noticing - tieing the knot in the noose now

John, you're forgiven