A Level Reform
How will Waldegrave manage the changes to A Levels?
A Levels have been reformed. This means the subject content and assessment style has changed.
The main features of the new A Levels are:
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Assessment will be mainly by exam, with other types of assessment used only where they are needed to test essential skills.
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AS and A Levels are assessed at the end of the course. AS assessments will typically take place after 1 year’s study and A levels after 2. The courses will no longer be divided into modules and there will be no exams in January.
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AS and A Levels will be decoupled – this means that AS results will no longer count towards an A level, in the way they do now.
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AS Levels have been designed by exam boards to be taught alongside the first year of A levels.
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The content for the new A Levels has been reviewed and updated. Universities played a greater role in this for the new qualifications than they did previously.
2018-2019 Entry
Students will choose three A level subjects to study across two years. Waldegrave Sixth Form will offer a mixed programme of study and some subjects will run a two year linea course with internal exams at the end of Y12, whilst others will continue with the AS exams at the end of Y12 and then progress onto the A Level in Y13. The decision to retain AS in some subjects has been made by departments based on the suitability of the new style A level courses for this approach.
Subjects not sitting AS exams at the end of Y12 include: Biology, Chemistry, Drama, English, Geography, History, Maths, Media, Further Maths, Music, Physics, Philosophy, PE.
Subjects continuing to sit the AS exam in Y12 include: Art, Economics, Fashion, French German, Photography, Psychology, Sociology and Spanish