GCSE English Literature Exams

Emma Lewell-Buck Excerpts

Monday 24th April 2017 Westminster Hall

[Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck (South Shields) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Mrs Main. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Warrington North (Helen Jones), the Chair of the Petitions Committee, who was on top form this afternoon, as always, for introducing this debate. I also thank all those, including my own constituents, who signed the petition.

Although sadly it is too late to change things for this year’s entrants, it is not too late for the next Government—whoever they may be—to change their mind for future pupils. The new structure of the GCSE English literature closed-book exams poses numerous serious issues for students and teachers. It is not simply about the subject being made more difficult than it needs to be; it is about the very reason our schools teach English literature in the first place.

English literature enlightens us. A popular quote says:

“Life depends on science but the arts make it worth living”.

English literature is not an exact science. It makes no sense to test it in a way that basically amounts to a glorified memory test. Studying literature is a way of understanding our world and learning skills to engage in it by learning to express ourselves and by learning critical thinking, research and writing skills and independent thought. It teaches us to build arguments, analyse, probe and read between the lines. It also teaches us eloquence, which my hon. Friend displayed finely this afternoon, as I hope the Minister noticed.

I have noticed that many of us in this place often do not memorise our speeches. We carefully craft our arguments in prose, and if we need to check the validity of a piece of information, we have a whole host of organisations on hand, inside and outside Parliament, to equip us with briefings and facts. We are not expected to memorise every word we say in here. If it is not expected of MPs, why are we placing that burden of expectation on pupils in our schools? Why do we want students to remember up to 250 quotes? What purpose does that serve, other than displaying a student’s ability to learn parrot-fashion?

Closed-book examinations for GCSE English literature encourage the business of learning by rote, not meaningful learning. That is not the best way of assessing learning outcomes or the acquisition of skills for any child. Can the Minister explain how remembering quotes is the best way of showcasing a student’s true ability in a small window of time? It is simply not. It is a test not of content but of exam technique, which of course privileges those who can afford private tutors and the like. It is also worth saying that many universities do not examine their literature students in that way, because they know that rote learning is not a sign of intelligence or original thought. It is robust analysis and understanding that count and that undergraduates are rightly tested on, so why on earth do we expect our children to learn lines?

Just as we have seen the Government take our education policy back to the 1950s with the forced reintroduction of grammar schools, so we see them applying a very old-fashioned and traditionalist mentality to GCSE literature examinations. Such a mentality distorts the emphasis of teaching towards drumming quotes into students, rather than analysis and context—what a quote means and why it may be significant. Additionally, under exam pressure even the most capable students may not be able to recall the details of a critical quote. It is absurd that that may prevent them from achieving top marks, or that they may devote all their revision time to learning quotes rather than practising arguments, essay technique and narrative. In this age of technology, we need to be purposefully teaching students and pupils how to access, organise and apply information, and not simply to memorise it.

There is an abundance of thought out there, and thousands of teachers are saying, that this way of testing does not achieve anything positive. One teacher has said:

“I teach students who are capable, intelligent, articulate people with excellent appreciation and critical faculties—in short, brilliant literature students—but who don’t have great memories. I myself can’t quote from films or songs that I’ve heard 100 times. These students will gain average-poor grades despite their deep knowledge of, appreciation of and critical analysis of these texts, simply because they cannot remember the precise wording from the text. Either we’re testing memory or skill and in a literature exam, I believe that a critical appreciation is more important than an ability to memorise quotations.”

Surely the Minister cannot go on ignoring teachers when they tell him that this way of examining pupils is not fit for purpose. Why will he not listen to teachers or industry experts who say that closed-book exams place a premium on accurate and extensive recall, with students’ knowledge dominated by that ability, whereas open-book exams place the emphasis on higher-level learning, whereby students can focus on analysing, evaluating and synthesising knowledge? If the Government are determined not to listen to those who are tasked with teaching the new GCSEs, in the same way that they will not listen to other experts on divisive policies such as grammar schools, who will they listen to?

GCSE examinations are a very stressful time in any young person’s life. At a time when students are more stressed than ever before, and when teachers and school leaders are struggling to respond to years of chaotic chopping and changing in the curriculum, the Government should be asking serious questions about the impact of any changes to assessment.

Poor mental health in teenagers is a growing issue, and child and adolescent mental health services are hugely overstretched as a result of this Government’s neglect. Has the Minister assessed the likely impact of the changes on the wellbeing and achievement of students? The requirement to learn 15 poems, two plays and one novel could be a stretch for even the most able students, never mind those who already struggle academically. A memory test of this sort is not fair for any student, but it appears that the Government have failed to acknowledge the difficulties it could cause for those pupils with special educational needs. We in this House know that frequently the texts pupils are expected to read contain, as one teacher put it,

“complex and often ambiguous language”.

The expectation that those with SEN will understand these texts well enough to analyse them in the first instance, and then to memorise quotes, is simply unfair.

In an open letter to the then Education Secretary, one teacher said that the reformed English literature GCSE will discriminate against pupils with dyslexia and special needs, because of the Government’s “breathtaking ignorance” of these conditions. Even if rest breaks and access arrangements such as extra time can be put in place to level the playing field, I hope—as that teacher hoped—that the Minister can see that no amount of extra time will correct a memory deficit. I would like him to tell us in his response to this debate what provisions, other than extra time, his Government have put in place to ensure that the exam is fair for pupils with SEN.

Once again, this move shows a Government who have no progressive ideas for education or any understanding of the curriculum, regarding what works and what does not work for children; a Government wedded to the educational ideas of the 1950s of segregation and divisiveness, rather than inclusivity; and a Government interested in teaching children how to pass exams and grammar school entry tests, rather than in creating a level playing field, so that all children, regardless of background or disability, can reach their full potential. We should instil in our children a lifelong love of learning and not reduce a magnificent subject such as English literature to forcing kids to learn quotes by rote.

My hon. Friend the Member for Warrington North, teachers, students and many others are urging the Government to look at this issue again and to realise the problems they are creating for huge numbers of our children and their English literature education. I will leave the Minister with one final question: closed-book exams—“To be, or not to be, that is the question”.