What a shame your editorial`s "five ideas" for any government wishing "to make Britain a more equitable place" (Britain can be great again. Here`s how...,30.12.18) did not include the "eminently solvable" problem relating to the ways private schools "game" the examination system to give their pupils "a huge additional advantage" (Exam reforms boost private pupils in race for universities, 30.12.18). Not only are schools in the independent sector able to avoid 30 hours of GCSE examinations, which clearly impact on pupils` "mental health and wellbeing", by choosing Cambridge Assessment`s IGCSE exams "which include coursework", they are also able to inflate their results with "less demanding exams".
This is only half the story as similar tactics are being adopted in the examinations leading to university entrance. Ofqual describes the newly-reformed and more rigorous A-levels as "national qualifications based on content set by the government", yet the private sector is increasingly avoiding them, preferring to opt for Pre-U examinations, also run by Cambridge Assessment. These examinations have higher percentages of A*/A grades, are more lightly regulated, with Cambridge Assessment, unlike other awarding bodies, not even required to compare similar qualifications when setting a grade level to ensure a measure of consistency. Pre-U examination papers are mostly all set and marked by teachers employed in private schools; late in 2017 the head of Eton admitted to the Commons select committee on education that at least seven of his staff were involved in the setting of exams taken by their pupils.
How can Britain ever be a "more equitable" place if the hugely advantaged pupils in private schools are allowed to take a different route to our state-funded universities from pupils in our underfunded state schools?
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