Tinkering with the exam system misses the mark and does nothing to help the underbelly of underachievers that is our national scandal, says Geoff Barton

There. Another exam season is behind us. Now we can prepare for the next one. Such, it seems, is the new rhythm of the school year, the educational conveyor belt of exams, inspections and performance tables.

But what, I wonder, must it feel like to be a child at the centre of our current model of schooling? What, in particular, does it feel like if you were a year 11 student who gained a grade 3 in the new GCSEs?

It’s worth thinking about this student and reflecting on how it must feel after 11 years of compulsory education to get a grade which isn’t deemed a pass.

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