The UK Education System

Primary schools offer key stage 1 education to pupils at 5 to 7 years of age, which are in Year 1-2.

• Core Subjects:   English and Mathematics
• Duration:             2 year

Key stage 2 includes pupils aged 7 to 11 years old, who are in Year 3 to 6.

• Core subjects:   English, Mathematics and Science
• Duration:            4 years

Pupils learn to develop their practical skills and deepen the knowledge gained at Key Stage 1.

At the end of this stage, pupils are tested as part of the National Curriculum Tests, these are known as SATs

The Standard Testing Agency (STA) develops and implements assessments for pupils in education between reception and the end of Key Stage 2. Their main purpose is to set and maintain test standards, including standards related to marking. STA is also responsible for overseeing pupils' progress and attainment through primary school.

• Developing and executing assessment policy for schools, including assessment evaluation for pupils performing below the standard of the National Curriculum tests.
• Providing national curriculum assessment cycles, including the development and delivery of tests at Key stage 1 (KS1) and Key stage 2 (KS2) in the main subjects of English and Mathematics.

Key stage 3 includes pupils aged 11 to 14 years old, who are in Year 7 to 9.

Core subjects: Maths, Science and English

They also have to study a further 9 foundation language subjects:

• History
• Geography
• Modern foreign languages
• Art and design
• Music
• Design and technology
• Physical education
• Computing (often called information and technology or ICT)
• Citizenship

Duration: first 3 years of secondary school

Religious Education is also a compulsory subject, however, parents have the option to exclude their child from it.

GCSE (also known as Key Stage 4) is designed for pupils who are aged between 14 and 16 , normally known as Year 10 and 11 pupils.

GCSEs are introduced in Key Stage 4.

• Pupils are required to take GCSE exams in eight to ten subjects, which normally includes GCSE English, Mathematics and Science.

The General Certificate of Secondary Education is an academic qualification taken by 14 to 16 year olds. In year 9, pupils are given the opportunity to make their GCSE- option choices.

GCSEs are available in more than 60 subjects and vocational areas. Most subjects offer two tiers of entry, foundation and higher.

• Foundation tier: Designed for students who are aiming for grade 1-5 (C-G)
• Higher tier: Designed for students who are looking for grades 4-9 (A-D)

Exam boards are organisations that offer qualifications to students, and it is their job to produce exam paper, mark the work that is produced by students and award the grade.

There are 5 GCSE examination boards, mainly:

• AQA
• Pearson Edexcel
• OCR
• CCEA
• WJEC

The International General Certificate of Secondary Education is equivalent to the GCSE academic qualification which is taken by pupils in Year 10 to 11 to prepare them for further studies. They are designed for pupils aged 14+ who want to progress to A-levels before entering universities.

IGCSEs are accessible in a wide range of subjects including:

• English Language and Literature
• Mathematics
• Economics
• Geography
• History
• Chemistry
• Physics

They are also accessible in a number of non-English language such as Arabic, Chinese, French, Spanish, Japanese, Greek and Urdu.

IGCSEs are accredited by either Cambridge (Cambridge International Examinations) or Edexcel (Pearson Edexcel) exam boards.

The old A*-G scale has been replaced by a new 9-1 scale. A grade 9 is the highest (it is also equivalent to high A*). The new average pass is considered now to be a grade 5.

An Advanced Level is a qualification that is required for entry into many university courses and professional training opportunities. A-levels are designed for pupils aged 16 to 18 year olds.

A-levels are divided into two parts.

• AS Levels are studied in Year 12
• A2 levels are studied in Year 13

AS (Advanced Subsidiary) is a subject-based qualification that is aimed at 16 to 19 year old students who would like to further their studies in university. Pupils have the option to study a subject for one year and achieve an AS-level qualification that's independent from those subjects you carry on with to the full A-level.

In order to attain the full A-level qualification, pupils are required to proceed to A2 level after completing the AS level successfully.

Pupils are required to choose three or four subjects to take in their final year of A-level studies. Some students take several subjects if they intend to enroll in a competitive university (eg Oxford, Cambridge) or a course (eg medicine, law).

• Most of the universities A-level entrance requirements are reduced to three A-level marks. At the end of the year, you take exams in all your subjects.

The A2 level is the second year of study at A level. Pupils proceed with the remaining subjects to reach a complete A level.

• By the end of year 13, the main exams will decide the final grades of A level.
• Depending on the offers you receive from university, the actual A-grade marks will determine whether you go straight to university, go through Clearing, or take a completely different path.

If you believe something might have gone wrong with marking your exam, your school or college may ask for a re-mark or recount.

• If you are still dissatisfied, your school or college may appeal to the awarding body and, if necessary, to the Independent Examination Board.
• You can also choose to resit individual modules (although there are time limits and some are not available in January).
• The awarding body will count the higher mark of your two attempts.

• You are eligible to resit a failed assessment once, except where you would be unable to retrieve your position through resit because of specific module requirements (for example, if resits are not permitted due to professional accreditation requirements).
• A reassessment task will usually have the same format as the initial assessment. You do not have to attain a minimum score or take a first attempt at the initial deadline / event to be eligible to resit a failed assessment.
• The mark you atain for a resit will be limited to the pass mark - this means 40% for modules up to level 6 or 50% for level 7. The only exception to this will be when you make a successful application in exceptional circumstances. , in which case the grade obtained in the resit would not be limited.
• If there are multiple assessment components in your module and you pass one component but fail another and take a resit, the full grade of the assessment item you passed on the first attempt remains and is combined with all points earned. at resit.
• If you do not pass the module after resiting, you will have only one chance to retake the module. There is an additional charge when you retake a module, unless you have made a request in exceptional circumstances. When you retake a module, you will have two attempts to pass - a first attempt and a resit - as you did when you first completed the module.
• Once you've passed an assessment, you cannot retake it; and after you pass a module, you cannot resume it. This means that if you pass some assessment elements of a module and fail others but pass the general module, you will not be allowed to resit the failed assessment element (unless you have successfully requested a claim in exceptional circumstances).

Pupils over the age of 18, usually ask if there is an age restriction for such exams. However, there is no age limit for a person to sit his or her A-levels as long as they meet the entry standards.

There are also some entry requirements that you must meet in order to be allowed to obtain A-Levels as an adult. To a large extent, it depends entirely on your GCSE marks. A-Level courses in the UK are highly competitive, your GCSEs will play the most important role in your application. The higher your GCSE marks on certain topics related to the intended A-Level course, the more higher chances of being admitted.