A-level hopefuls face chaos
Anger mounts as independent schools expect to dominate awards
London: A-level hopefuls face chaos this week when a new ‘supergrade' is awarded and a row is ignited over public-school ‘discrimination'.
Anthony Seldon, Master of Wellington College in Berkshire, urged universities not to succumb to political pressure to ‘positively discriminate' by letting pupils from less academic schools win places with lower grades.
Up to 200,000 school-leavers could be left without a university place, and tens of thousands of results will be disputed, as the introduction of the A* grade coincides with an unprecedented squeeze on higher education.
With independent schools expected to dominate the award of the A*, Dr Seldon, a widely-respected author of political biographies, fears that privately-educated pupils could be hit by a backlash.
Overall, the A* is expected to be awarded to seven per cent of pupils, compared with 27 per cent who won an A grade last year. But the A* figure for private school candidates is predicted to be closer to 17 per cent.
This gulf in performance has led to the A* being boycotted in admissions considerations by all but a handful of top university departments. Colleges fear being penalised under social-engineering policies for attracting too many privileged students.
