AS/A2 Level Overview
The Sixth Form at Haileybury provides a stimulating and friendly environment in which you can continue your academic education after I/GCSE examinations. As one of the UK's leading boarding schools, we offer a combination of excellent teaching, academic challenge, sound advice and good counselling to ensure that you are able to develop your potential to the full.
Politicians and the media expend much hot air and kill many trees in their debate about whether A Levels still provide a "gold standard" in academic education. In keeping with any metaphorical currency, the value of examinations changes over time. When the A Level qualification was created in the 1950s, it was designed primarily as a device to select pupils for university. In reality, it was a means of keeping people out of university. University places in those days were very limited.
At the end of the 1960s, only 7% of 18-year-olds went to university. A Levels provided a justification for rationing a scarce resource. Now, over 40% of 18-year-olds go to university. The Government says it wants that figure to rise to 50%. In this very different climate, A Levels take on a different function. They have become a qualifying examination for university. They are designed to encourage people to take up places, rather than drive them away.
However, despite this changed environment, A Levels still retain a high degree of respect and value. They are, overwhelmingly, the main method of access to university for the 18-year-old population. They still discriminate between levels of ability and, a point to note in particular, degrees of effort. They are still highly regarded in many parts of the world, including the USA, a university destination which will become more popular with pupils over time.
In short, A Levels provide a valuable qualification. High grades in them require ability, commitment and hard work. They are not a soft option.
