MP Delighted with GCSE Results of First Cohort of Pupils Educated Under Labour

MP Delighted with GCSE Results of First Cohort of Pupils Educated Under Labour

Great Yarmouth’s local Labour MP Tony Wright has congratulated young people on their hard work and achievements, as the recently published 2008 GCSE results show the overall A*-C pass rate has jumped 2.4% to 65.7%.

The results come from the first cohort to be educated exclusively under Labour. This means they are the first GCSE students to have benefited fully from Labour’s extra investment in schools, increased numbers of teachers and teaching assistants and reforms such as the Literacy and Numeracy Hours.

The pass rate for English has risen 0.7 percentage points and maths 1.1 percentage points. The results also show encouraging trends emerging in science, where entries in Biology increased by 35.3 per cent (22,313), Chemistry 29.4 per cent (17,437), Physics 29.1 per cent (16,992). In addition to the increase in entries, Chemistry recorded 94.0% A*-C grades, closely followed by Physics with 93.5% and Biology at 91.1%.

Tony said: “Young students today are to be congratulated on their excellent exam results which are the direct result of their hard work and the massive investments Labour have made in education.

These results show the benefits of sustained extra investment in teachers and resources in the education system and our radical reforms over the last 11 years.

It is elitist nonsense to suggest that because results are improving exams are getting easier or grades are being inflated. Ofsted has reported a rise in the quality of teaching, and there are now 40,000 more teachers working in our schools along with more than 100,000 more full time teaching assistants or equivalents. So lets be proud of these results as I am sure the students and their teachers are”.

While welcoming the improvements in exam results, Labour have committed themselves to further raising standards.

A new secondary curriculum will give all children, regardless of their abilities or interests, a more stimulating and exciting curriculum, while bolstering the 3Rs.

And young people will be given an alternate and worthwhile new route combining theoretical and applied learning with the new Diplomas from next year. The Diplomas will sit alongside, and may incorporate, GCSEs.

Labour’s achievements - 1997 vs 2008

	1997	2008	Change
GCSE pass rate at A*-C grades	45.1%	65.7%	Up 20.6 percentage points
GCSE pass rate at A* or A grade	14%	20.7%	Up 6.7 percentage points
No. of schools with more than 70% of pupils getting five or more GCSEs at A*-C grade	83	891*	Increased eleven-fold in ten years
No. of schools with less than 30% of pupils getting five or more GCSES at A*-C grade, including English & Maths	1610	638*	More than halved – with target to reduce to zero by 2011 through National Challenge
Investment per pupil	£ 2,910	£5,430	Up £2,520 in real terms
Number of teachers	400,300	441,200	Up 40,900
Number of teaching assistants	60,600	176,900	Up 116,300
Total investment in education	£29bn	£64bn	Up £35bn or 68% in real terms. This is set to rise to £75bn in 2010-11.

* refers to 2007 as relevant 2008 statistics have not yet been published