To ask if you only have one CSE grade 1

[Cumberb]

.. and the rest all lower grades - you're not that academic?

For reference - I'm talking about someone born prior to September 1971

@Parky04 technically I left at 15 in 1991 - my 16th birthday fell after we were on study leave and only had to go in for the exams. If you didn't turn up your parents could get charged the exam fee but really if you didn't turn up there wasn't much the school did. I had a friend who missed most of the exams due to some personal issues he was having at the time (because of when his birthday fell he was still 15 too).

1 CSE at grade 1 meant they only got one GCSE equivalent pass, not that they weren't academic. If a 1 at CSE was equivalent to an O-level (GCE), then some lower CSE passes would be equivalent to lowers GCSE grades. So someone with one grade 1 and a clutch of lower grades would have several GCSE equivalent passes.

CSE was brought in to give Secondary Modern students an exam to take. But then it was found that employers were ignoring CSEs, so they brought in GCSE to span the whole range, with C and above being equivalent to a pass at O-level (old GCE), lower grades lining up with the CSE range.

I left with one CSE grade 1 in English and grade 3 in Biology, nothing else

I went to college when I was late 20s and did the AMSPAR Diploma Medical Secretary.

I am now (in my 50s) doing Functional Skills Maths as I have no qualifications in Maths at all, I do not even know my times tables😬 I have always struggled with numbers

@BatteryPoweredMammy I’m not sure why you are arguing about this. What I’ve said is accurate. I was responding to you saying O levels never had number grades, neither you nor I said anything about specific boards. But ok.

I only got one CSE grade one. However I went on to do Open University, and a physical University, and I have a 2:1 degree, and a Masters. I was born in 1963. My school was shit to be honest, so its not always that the person is not 'academic' or 'intelligent' Sometimes the school is not the right environment, or the timing is not right for the person.

Though having a check, to ensure I was entirely accurate, it seems the number grades weren’t reported to candidates for all boards pre 1975, but JMB did use number grades then…

You’ll need to click on that image as it’s zoomed in in an unhelpful bit @BatteryPoweredMammy

It depended which board. Cambridge board had numeric grading for O-levels.

It depends what you mean by a “short period”. They started with the 1944 Education Act, and went on till 1987, so 43 years. GCSEs haven’t got to 40 years yet.

It means the individual did not achieve highly academically, yes. However its too simplistic to say that means they aren't academic, as you need to see it in the context of school at that time.
I was at school in the 80s, comprehensive, relatively deprived area, and academic success was down as much to your peer group, what band you were placed in age 11, your sex (girls still shunted off to cooking and child care while boys got to go on THE (singular!) computer), the value parents placed on education as oppose to contributing to the household budget, what you got up to in your spare time (very permissive, we were clubbing at 13 if we looked old enough) and a whole range of other variables.
Basically for a WC child in a challenging class, with a teacher who spent more time on crowd control than teaching, with no real targets, and parents who assumed you'd follow them into the local industry; you could be extremely bright and come out with little or nothing on paper to show for it.

Unfortunately your statement O'levels were never graded by number. They were always A-E and U for unclassified was equally factually incorrect

It has relevance if you're applying for a job.
Even 60 year olds look for a new job from time to time.

I suspect most employers would be much more interested in a 60 year old’s work history than school exam results.

I can’t remember the last time I was even asked what GCSEs I have.

I would've loved to have gone to your school @5128gap if this meant clubbing at 13!!!

Totally agree @Nellieinthebarn - this applies to me as well

I'm not sure I agree.

1966 here, passed my 11+ with flying colours and whilst I do have 3 O'Levels too I have a CSE grade 2 for Maths thrown in there. I loved my all girls' grammar school, but I wasn't there to learn, I was there for fun and a massive underachiever. All my own doing, I'm not proud of it.

I left school at 16.

Worked up the career ladder and took early retirement this year at 57, can comfortably not work again. DH earns well into six figures, passed for grammar, dropped out at 15 without taking any exams, not even a single CSE.

I think neither of us were disciplined enough to want to achieve academically, but neither of us are thick and it hasn't stopped us achieving in other areas.

We also both know all our timetables, which is more than can be said for my two graduate DC, with a 1st and a 2:1 😀

@BatteryPoweredMammy

JMB most definitely did give number grades for O Level. I have the certificate to prove it.

CSE grade 4 was considered the average grade across the ability range. It was a completely different sort of exam syllabus and paper(s) to O level. I used to teach both and I was also involved in the 16+ trials which bridged the old system into the new GCSE exams.

That's really interesting!!
I was entered for CSEs at my (awful) Comp, just like everyone else (I think it was 'policy' official or not). I chose to also take GCSE papers in 5 subjects as well, as I needed them for 6th form at a different selective school (Kent, 1980s).
The difference in the questions in the exam was noticeable eg an HBiol Qu at O level was: 'describe the function of deoxyribonucleic acid'. The CSE Qu eg was: 'which organ pumps blood around the body'. I passed all my papers at A or B grade for O level, except Maths as I didn't sit it as I was ill that day. I got a grade 1 for CSE Maths which was good enough for 6th form. Five years later I applied to Edinburgh Uni & they would not accept it as evidence of O level Maths standard & I had to provide supplementary evidence to gain entry.

Not quite right. GCE O levels existed from the early 50s to the mid 80s. London university board used letter grades; A to E were pass grades, F and H were fail grades. All other examination boards used numerical grades until around 1975 after which A to C were pass grades. Prior to that your grades did not appear on your certificates.

No-one ever says GCE O’level they just called them O’levels and A’levels. The distinction was only noted when schools started teaching both CSE and GCE streams which was mainly the preserve of the ‘new’ Comps. The Grammar schools around us only offered O’levels at that point.

People might never have said it in normal conversation but that’s what they were called and that’s what appeared on the certificates

They were the 16 + exams. I forgot about the two certificates thing! @MorvernBlack

I am 53 and I only have a grade one CSE in English plus a collection of grade B 0 levels in other subjects.

The reason for only having a CSE ( and it annoys me to this day) is that there were teacher strikes and a ban on covering teacher sickness. My English teacher went on long term sick leave and we were left in class with a glorified baby sitter and the school decided we could get ourselves through a CSE exam.

I was a book worm and had always been in top set for English but even though my mum requested that I be given the O level syllabus to learn at home the school refused to enter me for the exam.

It didn't hold me back as I did well in my career anyway.

It was a bit bizarre, I have A grades and CSEs in the same subjects!

Even weirder, we were sold it as a trial exam for the future GCSEs and no one batted an eyelid. Now parents would be up in arms about their kids being used as guinea pigs (as would I, if I'm being honest😆).

They were GCE O levels and GCE A levels and CSEs. No-one ever said the GCE bit even though it was part of the formal full name (and still is for A levels)

O levels were graded numerically until the late 1970s, when they merged 1-2 into A, 3-4 into B etc

A-C were pass grades for O levels; A-E all passes for A levels (minimum university matriculation requirement was 2x E grades, ie 2 passes (so in effect the old version of an unconditional offer, though in practice such offers were rare)

CSE grade 1 was equivalent of an O level pass (ie C or higher)

In the run up to the roll out of GCSE a number of schools were in pilots where for one or more subjects pupils were entered for both O level and CSE so that equivalencies could be checked - this was mainly in the early 1980s

Tbh, it could be just that the person has dyslexia. There was no support + children were often written off as stupid and badly behaved.

@MorvernBlack yes, definitely would be up in arms. I have it in my head that the trials were only in the North West, but I could be wrong. Are you NW?