Georgia Greer, ISE’s Head of Insights, delves into GSCS result headlines to consider what they mean for those working in early careers.
With GCSE results out, there are a wealth of news headlines about regional inequalities and falling grades.
We will need to wait for the dust to settle to really understand what this year’s results mean for those working in early careers, but here are the key points you should be aware of.
1. Pass rate across England, Wales and NI drop for third consecutive year
This year’s GCSE students had the beginning of their secondary school education impacted by Covid lockdowns (during their years 7-8) and this is perhaps evident in their results, as we saw a slight drop in the grades awarded compared to last year – 67.6% of all grades were at 4 (or C) and above, compared with 68.2% in 2023.
Pass rates in Northern Ireland showed the steepest drop, falling from 86.6% to 82%, albeit still above the overall pass rate mentioned above of 67.6%.
Perhaps we will see a rebound in results in the coming 2-3 years as students start to ‘outrun’ that pandemic secondary education legacy – this is one to watch.
2. Regional and socio-economic divides worsen
Similar to last week’s A-level results, London students on average outperformed regional students, with all regions reporting a fall in students achieving grade 4 and above.
- That’s not to say that all London or regional students followed these trends, with initial results by school type indicating that the socio-economic divide also continues to grow and impact student outcomes:
- 60% of grammar school students achieved grade 7 or above, while for secondary modern students only 12.6% achieved grade 7 or above
48% of private school students achieved grade 7 or above, compared to 21% of Academy and 19% of comprehensive students
3. English and maths
English and maths are mandatory GCSE subjects and for any apprenticeship, students need to pass both or have to undertake further study while on their apprenticeship to demonstrate capability in both subjects.
This is a pain point for many employers and apprentices as it involved extra time and sometimes money to meet these criteria, so it’s useful to understand the general status of these subjects’ results.
- English: 71.2% of students achieved the pass mark (grade 4 or above) this year – a slight drop (0.6% down) on last year
- Maths: 72.3% passed this year – another slight drop (0.3% down) on last year
For those who didn’t pass Maths and/or English (approx 100,000 students), they will need to resit next year. This year’s resit results are mixed compared to last year, but overall down on pre-pandemic outcomes:
- English: 20.9% of students resitting passed this year – down from 25.9% last year and 30.3% in 2019/pre-pandemic
- Maths: 17.4% this year passed their resits – up from 16.4% last year but still behind pre-pandemic levels of resit passes in Maths (21.2% in 2019)
To balance the mood, there are lots of great stories about adults returning to education having initially left school with no GCSEs (or equivalent). The story that most caught my eye is about a great grandad passing his English GCSE. His message to everyone – “Have a go”.
You may also be interested in…
ISE’s guide to this year’s A-level results
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