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Press Release

Voice statement on GCSE results

August 27 2009

Commenting on today's results, Philip Parkin, General Secretary of Voice: the union for education professionals, said: "I would like to congratulate students and teaching staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland on the results, which reflect both high standards of teaching and the willingness of young people to commit to their education. They should be proud of their achievements.

"It should be remembered that GCSEs are taken not only by 16 year olds, but also by many adults who are looking to improve their qualifications. This is especially important given the current economic downturn and so special congratulations are due to the many mature students who have juggled studying with other aspects of their hectic lives in order to achieve success and give themselves a more competitive edge in the current economic climate.

"Whatever the results – whether up or down – it seems there will always be those who will delight in the annual ritual of undermining the achievements of our young people by saying that standards have fallen. However, pupils can only achieve such high standards by dedication and applying what they have learned in a sustained and focused way.

"There will inevitably be fluctuations from year to year because different pupils are taking the exams each year.

"To take the system forward, we need to move the focus away from debating statistics to examining key issues such as the number, frequency and range of exams, the decline in the numbers taking some subjects and differences between boys’ and girls’ results."



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Voice: the union for education professionals

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