File photo dated 09/01/17 of students sitting their GCSE mock exams at Brighton College in Brighton, East Sussex. The new GCSE grading system has "ratcheted up the pressure" on teenagers, school leaders have warned. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issu
THE new GCSE grading system has “ratcheted up the pressure” on teenagers, school leaders have warned.
Heads have raised concerns that GCSE reforms in England could have an impact on the mental health of young people, adding that schools have responded to the situation by giving students extensive support to help ease stress and anxiety.
Teenagers across England, Wales and Northern Ireland will receive their GCSE results on Thursday.
According to one study, as few as 200 students could score a clean sweep of 9s - the new top grade - in all of their GCSEs this summer.
Under the biggest shake-up of exams in England for a generation, traditional A* to G grades have been scrapped and replaced with a 9 to 1 system.
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