Re: School Grades/Levels in the UK


"The Magic Engineer" <pem79@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:tZSdncEz3sircJjeRVn-pQ@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>
> "John Fisher" <john@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:de346p$skp$1$8302bc10@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> "The Magic Engineer" <pem79@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
>> news:abidnThb75bClpjeRVn-1Q@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>>I was browsing through my pile of Pratchett books and decided
>>> to jump online to see what else was out there. I discovered
>>> Paul Kidby's website, the artist who has brought the Discworld
>>> series to life. On his website, it says in his bio page:
>>>
>>> 'Paul left school with two O-levels - art and technical drawing'
>>>
>>> As an uninformed Yank who wants to learn as much as he can
>>> before kicking off, can someone explain this statement to
>>> me and how it connects in with Harry Potter's O.W.L.'s and
>>> N.E.W.T.S, please?
>>
>> Traditionally, what was called the General Certificate of Education
>> was taken at two levels: 'O', or Ordinary level, at about 15/16, and
>> 'A', or Advanced level, at 17/18. Mostly, only those who were going
>> to go to University took 'A' levels - generally in two, three or four
>> subjects, their main specialities. The others took 'O' levels, and
>> then left school. The note about Paul Kidby implies that he, um,
>> did not show much academic distinction at school, apart from the
>> things you'd expect a graphic artist to be good at.
>>
>> When JKR wrote Harry Potter, she clearly had this sort of set up in
>> mind, with the OWLS corresponding to 'O' levels and NEWTS
>> corresponding to 'A' levels.
>>
>> Of course, since then the whole system has been changed several times
>> and is now much more complicated. But you didn't ask about that :-)
>>
>> Notice that 'O' and 'A' levels were all that there were. There is
>> nothing corresponding to a single high-school diploma, showing that
>> you have 'finished' or 'graduated from' high school. No matter how
>> often one says this, writers of HP fanfics simply cannot believe that
>> it's true.
>
> Now that's interesting. How long ago had the change been made
> from the 'O' and 'A' coursework to the current system? I guess
> it's similar to our AP (Advanced Placement) classes, but
> those still lead to a graduation/diploma as opposed to, if I
> understand this correctly, just receiving a certification in certain
> subject areas once you reach a certain age?
>
> Actually it sounds very similar to what we have here with the
> AP courses. Typically students 17/18 can take AP classes
> with the intent of going onto a university to make themselves
> look a little better when it comes time for acceptance.
>
> Thank you all for clearing this up for me! I appreciate it.
>
> TME
>
Actually, AP level courses are meant to be substitutes for university level
classes that most colleges and universities, in the U.S., require their
students to take. The classes are meant to be taught like a college class,
lots of lecture, papers, and relatively few tests. They culminate in a
standardized examination in that subject. If the student passes that exam,
they will receive university level credit and be exempt from taking that
class when they go to college. When I was in high school, they only offered
us AP level classes in English Literature and I think a couple of science
classes (Physics or Biology). Today, they offer them in almost every
subject you could think of, from various foreign languages, U.S. History,
and various mathematics courses.

I think a closer comparison would be to various exit examinations that many
states require their students to pass before they are allowed to graduate
from high school. The SAT and ACT tests would also be a better comparison,
because colleges and universities use these exams to help them determine
which students to accept as incoming Freshmen.
--
Kilroy was here.
"Jumping out of a perfectly good aircraft is not a natural act." - Clint
Eastwood


.

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