ATL comment on A-level results

Jill Stokoe, education policy adviser at the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), said: “Congratulations to the many pupils who, despite having dealt with the stress and pressure of rushed-in exam reforms, have done so well in their A-levels. It is good to hear that so many pupils will have the chance to go to university or onto an apprenticeship, if this is what they want to do.

“It is good to see that more pupils are studying maths, English, chemistry and biology at A-level, and that more are doing further maths AS-level, which are all important subjects to gain access to university or work. But it a shame that there has been a dip in pupils studying languages such as French and German, as well as in history.

“Rushing in exam reforms has meant that schools have had little time to prepare, and this year teachers and pupils have struggled to get to grips with the changes to A-levels, with no practice exam papers, fewer available text books and no mark-schemes.”