At the moment, we use academic results to assign social worth. That has to change
Over the next few days, hundreds of thousands of young people will get the grades that they have been told will define their futures. In many cases, these will represent years of study boiled down to a few hours in an exam hall. But for many of those young people, once the results are in, the memory of exams will quickly fade, only to surface in the occasional anxiety dream. All that training – the cramming of quotes, the learning of formulas – may never be used again.
So why the fuss? Why do we put our young people through this? Part of the answer is that grades matter. I’m a teacher, and when I say to my students that the marks they get will determine the paths they take, it is absolutely true. Entry into professions such as nursing, once regarded as practical and non-academic, now requires a degree. All sixth-forms ask for maths and English GCSE, even if you want to study art or plumbing. And university entrance is a finely tuned process of selection, with precise entry criteria for each course (alongside expected careers and projected earnings to advertise their worth).