GCSEs

Mr. Willetts
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of pupils in England gained five A*-C grades at GCSE, excluding equivalents and Applied GCSE Double Awards, in each of the last five years.

Jim Knight
The following table shows the percentage of 15-year-old pupils who achieved five A*-C grades at GCSE only, excluding equivalents1 and Applied GCSE Double Awards.

1 These other qualifications are not the same as GCSEs. Not all approved qualifications are exactly the same, but they can be measured and accredited on a common scale, which gives point scores according to their different challenges and different breadth. The value of a qualification will depend entirely on the young person’s needs and aspirations and the context for their learning.

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|    |5+ A*-C at GCSE only|
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|2002|50.1                |
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|2003|49.9                |
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|2004|50.2                |
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|2005|51.2                |
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|2006|51.7                |
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Mr. Gibb
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many and what proportion of hours per week of the timetable schools are recommended to allocate to the new GCSE science and GCSE additional science in (a) Year 10 and (b) Year 11.

Jim Knight
There is no statutory number or proportion of hours per week of the timetable that schools should dedicate to teaching GCSEs. At Key Stage 4, school timetables are determined by the individual school’s curriculum and qualifications offer and the requirements of the examining bodies’ specifications. Guidance from examining bodies suggests that around 10 per cent. of the timetable should be spent on studies leading to each of the new science GCSE and the additional science GCSE in both Years 10 and 11.