POOR VOCATIONAL A-LEVEL RESULTS RAISE SERIOUS QUESTIONS

14.11.03

Cllr Ross Laird, Leader of the Opposition and Lib Dem Education Spokesperson, is calling for urgent action following analysis of this year's A Level results in Haringey.

The Borough's A Level results highlight two areas in particular as needing special attention - vocational qualifications and Information Technology results. Cllr Laird raised these points at the Education Scrutiny Committee meeting on Thursday 13th November.

"I am concerned that not enough emphasis is being given to vocational A Levels in Haringey," says Cllr Laird. "Only 40% of our students gained an A-C grade in Business Studies and Economics - this compare badly with a national average of 69%."

"Even more worrying is the incredibly low pass rate of around 15% for Information Technology and Computing A Levels. All these courses provide students with vital skills that can be utilised in their future careers. But we must give these areas our immediate attention to ensure that these opportunities are fully realised in the future."

Notes:

Haringey A Level results (2003) at A-C grades:

Business Studies and Economics - 40% (national average 69%)
Computing - 16% (national average 53%)
Information Technology - 15% (national average 57%)

Comments?

If you have any comments on this story, please let me know in the space below, or you can email me at lynne@lynnefeatherstone.org