Students taking GCSEs now are luckier than I was when I took them last year

As one of the last students to take the old-format GCSEs last year in Maths and English, I often hear how I am “lucky” as I managed to sit my Year 11 exams before their difficulty increased. But I think the opposite is the case. In the long run, the new system will better prepare students for life.

Admittedly, the use of numbers in the grading system is rather peculiar and will only serve to cause confusion for parents and employers alike. But I think the direction in which the Government are taking students is right. In the old system, too many students were getting the top grades and that makes it difficult to distinguish between those who are able and those who are not.

Many people in my school year were getting A and A* grades in their GCSEs. Then in their A-levels this year, for the exact same subjects, some got two or even three grades below that. The GCSE system was not preparing students for A-level life.

If we give schools time to adapt to the new system, then hopefully the transition from GCSEs to A-levels will be smoother, standards will rise and employers will find it easier to distinguish between the “excellent” and the “average”, creating a more prosperous and skilled economy where workers are in jobs suitable for them.

Lewis Chinchen
Sheffield

I’m sure I am not the only person appalled at the message proposing women-only carriages sends. The implication would be women in any other carriage are fair game, asking for it, flaunting themselves, etc.

P J Manasseh
London SW7

I refer to Lydia Smith’s article about piglets saved from a barn fire and then served as sausages to the firefighters who rescued them.

Firefighters respond bravely to rescue lives. Killing the creatures they saved is a sad act which belittles the dangerous work firefighters do.

Eve Parnell
Dublin

Whilst I agree that the facts on climate change, shape of the earth, etc, are undeniable the problem with “no-platforming” those who continue to adhere to those viewpoints is where does this stop and perhaps more important who decides who and what we can listen to. I’ve always believed in freedom of speech and that the way to deal with those views that may be deemed eccentric, mad or just plain wrong is to argue back consistently, continually and robustly.

Mark Thomas
Histon

The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s report to the UN about the situation for disabled people in Britain makes for grim reading. The work I do day in, day out, leaves me in no doubt about the troubling reality many disabled people in Britain face.

Seven years of sustained local authority cuts have left thousands of deaf children without specialist support at school. NHS England’s refusal to make audiology services accountable and inspected has meant the quality of care is a postcode lottery. Deaf young people are being denied vital benefits under welfare reforms, not because they don’t need help, but because the application process isn’t even accessible for their disability.

Up and down Britain, there are countless examples of where government must do more to protect deaf and disabled people. I can only hope the UN can exert some influence on this Government to act.

Jo Campion, Deputy Director of Policy and Campaigns at the National Deaf Children’s Society

Brucie handed on his wealth after his death as is his prerogative. We don’t really know what he gave up to earn that wealth. We don’t know how many folk he helped to employ. We don’t know what he gave to charity or good causes.

We do know his fame and wealth was earned by bloody hard work over five decades, unlike the instant fame and wealth of reality TV stars and vloggers of today.

Furthermore he had the nous to build it up. Then after a couple of divorces which neither party felt so aggrieved about that they had to dispute publicly, suggesting fair settlements, he handed his earnings onto his kids. Where is the fault here?

Inherited wealth is an issue of course. But if you work hard, pay tax, help to employ others and thus play a full part in our society, then you deserve to have the choice of how to disperse that money.

Otherwise why bother working at all?

John Sinclair
Pocklington

I am very concerned at the problems that might be caused after we leave the EU, especially for dads like me who have kids in another European country. Having spent thousands trying to keep my daughter in the UK, although contact agreements are in place, leaving the EU court system will make things much more difficult.

I am not alone – there are thousands of dads in my position. The family court system is biased in favour of mums, and doesn’t always concentrate on the best interests of the child. Now many dads face losing contact with their children because of Brexit.

Gary Martin
London E17