Exam boards make last minute changes to Geography GCSE syllabuses

Exam boards have been accused of making major last-minute changes to geography GCSE syllabuses
which could jeopardize pupils' learning. This comes after some schools complained of only receiving
the new course details last Wednesday, just a few days before the end of the school year.

Exam boards have been required to tighten up geography GCSE by September because of concerns
about standards, sparking complains of an unrealistic time frame.

A spokesman for the exams watchdog Ofqual admitted timing was tight.

The move to toughen up exams came after an investigation by the Daily Telegraph uncovered
evidence of exam boards giving secret advice to teachers on how to achieve better grades for their
pupils.

An undercover reporter filmed a senior Edexcel examiner claiming the company's GCSE geography
tests were not as difficult as those from other exam boards

In a statement Ofqual said: "Exam boards have been developing new versions of the qualifications
and submitting them to us for accreditation.

"Those that meet our requirements are available to teachers, but we will not accredit any
qualifications that do not meet the standards we require. We know that time is now tight for first
teaching in September, but we could not allow the previous versions to continue and the new
versions must pass muster."

Ofqual said more geography GCSE syllabuses from other exam boards are yet to be accredited.

Professor David Lambert of the Geographical Association said that imposing the changes in a rush
had generated "rising levels of concern in the teaching profession”.

Brian Lightman, of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: "Giving teachers the details
of exam changes on what is, for most, the last week of term would be laughable if it wasn't so
serious."

A spokeswoman for Edexcel said: "We recognize the challenges that late access to specifications
pose for teachers, and we have made changes as quickly as we could without compromising the
quality of the specification.

The OCR and AQA exam boards, which still await accreditation for some of their new courses, said
they would keep teachers fully updated on the progress of the changes.

New courses for maths GCSE are due by November and for history and English literature by
September 2013.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-18927792