JAMAICAN STUDENTS who sat the June 2002 A'Level examinations were not affected by the recent A'Level foul-ups in the United Kingdom (UK), Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) has said.
A press release from the examination body said that following an enquiry into the impasse, it was discovered that a small number of June 2002 UK A'level syllabuses may need to be re-graded by the UK examination boards.
On September 19, the British Government commissioned an independent enquiry into the UK A'Level examinations in the June 2002 session, following claims from some schools that their students' performance appeared to have been downgraded.
According to the press release, the principal aim of the enquiry was to investigate allegations about the setting of standards for A'Level grades this year, in particular, to make sure the conversion of marks to grades was determined to proper standards and procedures.
The enquiry, which was conducted by Mike Tomlinson, a former UK chief inspector of schools, concluded that possibly 12 UK A'Level syllabuses may need to be re-graded, improving some students' examination results.
But the CIE said the international qualifications it offers are completely unaffected by the current UK situation which relates to the qualifications offered by the UK examination boards, whose activities are overseen by the Qualification and Curriculum Authority (QCA).
It also said the division of the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLES) group responsible for UK examinations, together with other UK boards, provided evidence for this inquiry. CIE, the division of the UCLES group, responsible for international qualifications, is outside the scope of the QCA regulatory activities and has no part in the current enquiry. The press release added that CIE follows the best of UK practice and is answerable to the University of Cambridge for all aspect of quality assurance.
"When the UK adopted the new style A'levels, the UCLES developed international A'level. These were specifically designed for students in the nearly 90 countries which take them," said Ken Murray, chief executive of the CIE.
"We operate an international, not a UK, system and it has proved extremely popular with schools -- we've had a seven per cent increase in the numbers doing A'levels this year and the new AS qualification is also very successful."
According to the press release, International A'Level results in Jamaica and the Caribbean were among some of the best in the world and three Jamaican students recently received CIE awards at a prize-giving ceremony in recognition of their outstanding achievement in a range of A'level subjects in the 2002 examinations.
"The achievements of Jamaican students in their A'Level results this year were an improvement on previous years," said Elizabeth Norris, Cambridge's regional director for the Caribbean. "Results for the June 2002 examination session show increases in pass rates in many subjects - very commendable with the introduction of a new range of A'Level syllabuses for 2002."
Ms. Norris cited A'Level Economics for which there was a three per cent rise this year in the number of Jamaican candidates with passing grades, and Mathematics where the pass rate in Jamaica rose by six per cent.
Following the UK debacle about the below-par performance of several students there, a number of Jamaican educators and parents expressed concern about the number of ungraded results or U-grades some students received locally.
But, Education Minister Burchell Whiteman told The Gleaner that the Ministry wouldn't be launching any special investigation, as there was a process to check U-grades. The CIE press release also endorsed the Minister's statement, saying it has standard procedures for any enquiries concerning results, and that the examination body is now part-way through this process for the June 2002 examinations.
