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GCSEs are “a great opportunity to shape your own future and pursue your passions and interests”. That’s according to the .

As someone who has recently completed GCSEs myself, I would say this is a fair description. At face value, getting to choose subjects you are interested in can, indeed, help you to pursue your passions.

However, I’d argue that the way in which GCSEs are taught and assessed - and the amount of pressure that comes with this - can quickly make students’ enthusiasm fade.

To be clear, this is not a criticism of teachers, who are doing their best for their classes, but of the qualifications themselves, and the accountability system attached to them.

GCSEs: the pressure to achieve

When it came to choosing my subjects, I was at first excited to be able to have control over my education. I chose to do history, citizenship, art and creative imedia. 

I wasn’t thinking about requirements for the future when I chose these courses. I just wanted to pick subjects I would enjoy.

Despite choosing courses that excited me, my experience was somewhat negative. I felt that the priority of the qualifications was not to support students in pursuing our interests and show us how these could lead to potential careers, but for us to get the highest grades possible.

This made subjects that I had previously enjoyed feel like a chore and something I just had to get through.

I also felt an enormous amount of pressure to achieve high grades. This is something I know is common and can lead to stress, anxiety and isolation for some people.

It makes me wonder whether, as a society, we should be willing to make young people sacrifice their wellbeing for the sake of a grade. Whose benefit is it really for?

Positive takeaways

Despite the stress, I do have some positive takeaways from my studies. The content of my courses was genuinely interesting to me. I enjoyed learning new things and widening my knowledge.

History was my favourite GCSE. My teacher made the subject feel exciting and didn’t take away from this by making it all about the exam results. I remember recreating the Battle of Hastings in the school car park, and although some might say that this sounds like a waste of a lesson and just a bit of fun, I do remember all the events of the battle. Due to this style of teaching, I got my best grade in history and enjoyed the subject at the same time.

In terms of GCSEs preparing you for A levels or further education, the exam aspect prepared me well - getting used to the environment of an exam hall and learning how to revise well, and generally studying independently. What I would say they didn’t prepare me for was the sudden change in workload. Three A levels are far more challenging than nine GCSEs, which is something I did not expect.

Overall, I would say the subjects were not the issue for me, but rather the external pressure to get the right grades. This created a mindset that GCSEs are vital to your future career, when, in fact, I don’t think this is the case. I think GCSEs should be seen as an opportunity to discover your strengths and interests, and that your final grade isn’t necessarily a reflection of how successful a student can be.

How do we improve GCSEs?

Currently, I don’t think that GCSEs are entirely fit for purpose. So, what could the government and exam boards do to make them better?

If I were to change anything, it would be to create an environment where students get more opportunities to learn and discover, maintaining their enthusiasm for the subjects they choose. I would do this by:

Cutting down on content

Prioritise quality of learning rather than volume of information covered.

Making courses more relevant

There should be a greater focus on the life skills and knowledge students may need in the real world.

Introducing different assessment methods

I would have more continuous forms of assessment and coursework so the whole two years don’t lead to just one exam.

The government’s recent curriculum and assessment review did recommend that exam time be reduced by at least 10 percent.

In my view, this would help. However, without also reducing the pressure to achieve high grades, students will increasingly be left burnt out.

Hannah O’Brien is a freelance writer and current Year 12 student