§ Mr. ButlerTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what assessment he has made of the impact of the GCSE system on university courses; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. RumboldThe first awards of GCSE certificates were made in the summer of 1988, and the holders would not expect to enter higher education before autumn 1990. It would be premature to assess any possible effects. The GCE examining boards have taken account, in their continual revision of A-level syllabuses, of changes needed in the light of GCSE. Modifications to A-levels and subsequent higher education courses may be needed, but revolutionary changes are in general neither necessary nor desirable.