THE scrapping of GCSEs in favour of a more rigorous examination has not been well received by headteachers in Malvern.

In a shake-up unveiled by Education Secretary Michael Gove and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, the new, tough O-level style system would see the end of modular and rolling assessment and place greater emphasis on a more traditional exam at the end of a two-year course.

However, its introduction has been delayed until September 2015, meaning students would first sit the exams in 2017 and the plans could even be scrapped by Labour if they won the next general election, due to be held in May 2015.

Kevin Peck, headteacher at The Chase , feels it would be a backward step. “If the democratically elected government wishes to change the examination system and make it harder then so be it, so long as the students, staff and parents are given plenty of notice, which was not the case with the English GCSEs last summer,” he said.

“Reverting to a final, threehour exam as the only measure of ability and effort, however, would in my view be a retrograde step.

“A good memory and the ability to marshal your thoughts under pressure of time in an examination are important skills but so are persistence, organisation and the ability to analyse and synthesise over an extended period, which are better tested by longer assignments.”

Hanley Castle High School headteacher Lindsey Cooke said: “I am horrified they are going to abolish an exam which has been tried and tested over decades for something which is experimental and potentially dangerous for young people.

“GCSEs are not perfect but I would have thought the Government should be spending time and energy ironing out the imperfections rather than opting for something that was abolished in the 70s and 80s that led to most children being labelled as failures.

“To tell our students that their qualifications are not good enough is playing games with their lives.”