Sciences ‘a grade harder' than arts
Students are being put off Science subjects at A-level because they are harder to get top marks in, it has been found.
A report from Durham University has revealed that sixth formers studying science and technology subjects like Maths, Physics or Chemistry find it much harder to achieve top exam grades than those taking subjects including Psychology and English.
Sciences are a grade more difficult than Drama, Sociology and Media Studies and three quarters of a grader harder than English, RE and Business Studies, according to the research.
The research contradicts a report released by exams regulator the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority earlier this year which found that some exams may be harder than others, but concluded that subjects were broadly in line.
Students will be more likely to choose the ‘easier’ subjects, the researchers warned, leading to a lack of science and technology students. Researchers have therefore called for rewarding students who choose ‘harder’ A-levels, perhaps by acknowledging some subjects to be worth more than others.
Report author, Dr Robert Coe, deputy director of Durham University's Curriculum, Evaluation and Management Centre, said:
"I can't see how anyone could claim that all A-levels are equally difficult. If universities and employers treat all grades as equivalent they will select the wrong applicants. A student with a grade C in Biology will generally be more able than one with a B in Sociology, for example.”
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