Girls outperform boys at GCSE

Performance increased at the top grades A*-A by 0.6 per cent in English and 0.5 per cent in Mathematics according to the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA).

Girls outperformed boys at A* by 4.0 per cent, at A*-A by 8.6 per cent and at A*-C by 6.8 per cent. The performance gap was comparable to 2010.

STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) remained popular. In particular there were increased entries and strong performance in Science. Double Award Science was the most popular science choice here.

Outside the core subjects of English and Mathematics, Science was the most popular choice with a combined entry of 28,970 across all Science subjects. Double Award Science was the most popular science choice increasing by 1.4 per cent this year to 7602 entries.

Chemistry entries increased by 6.0 per cent and performance remained steady in comparison with 2010.

Physics entries increased by 1.7 per cent with performance at the A*-A grades increasing by 1.1 per cent.

Biology entries remained steady at 4264 with an increase of 0.7 per cent in performance at A*-C.

Additional Mathematics entries increased by 1.1 per cent with 1.3 per cent more achieving the top A* grade.

Information Technology entries also increased by 4.3 per cent to 8040 placing it among the subjects with the highest entries.

Design and Technology entries decreased by 8.1 per cent however, it remains a popular subject with 5144 entries. Religious Studies was also popular with 12,495 entries followed by English Literature with 11,347 entries.

History entries decreased slightly this year. However, it remained a very popular subject with 7755 entries.

French remained the most popular language and showed strong performance as the percentage achieving A*-C increased by 2.9 per cent. However entries for French decreased by 8.2 per cent to 6647 this year.

Spanish entries increased by 5.4 per cent reaching 3474, whilst German saw a 16 per cent decline in entries to 1072 making it the least popular language choice. Irish entries also decreased by 195 to 1966 entries.

Anne Marie Duffy, Director of Qualifications at CCEA said: “Our students have again produced an excellent set of GCSE results and they should be proud of what they have achieved. It is encouraging to see that the STEM subjects remain a popular choice, particularly the Sciences.

“Preparation for GCSEs requires a huge amount of work and commitment. Our students, their teachers and their parents are to be commended for their efforts. I wish them every success and hope they continue to excel in their future studies and careers.”

Students or parents with concerns about GCSE results should contact CCEA’s examinations helpline on (028) 9026 1260 or email [email protected]

Useful information can also be found on the Frequently Asked Questions section of the CCEA website at www.ccea.org.uk