Board of Studies says farewell to the School Certificate in Mathematics

For Mathematics, the School Certificate was a poor measure of ability. Being aimed at a 5.1 level, it missed the majority of students that studied to a higher degree. Surely an exam like this should have provided exit points for students to clearly show where they are on the continuum from Stage 4 to Stage 5.3. Ultimately the SC became a big waste of money and time.

It remains to be seen how schools will change Term 4 of Year 10, where traditionally schools have held activities such as Work Experience, Community Service, Camps and Expeditions and Australian Business Week. It would be disappointing if students lost these valuable activities, although it would definitely free up the teaching time right through Year 9 and 10.

With the school leaving age being raised to 17, the School Certificate had little value. In my opinion, the new school certificate should be awarded to all students as a statement of the subjects they have studied, the % of their attendance and possibly A-E grades issued by the school for each of their subjects.

Also with the introduction of NAPLAN in Year 9, there seems no need for another benchmark in Year 10.

Ultimately, I believe that since every student must be at school until 17, that every student should be able to get their Higher School Certificate (whether they get an ATAR or not). Schools need to become more flexible and inclusive of all students. Links with industry, more TAFE courses that interest students and also the possibility of becoming a 'school-based' apprentice in a trade should be investigated.

It is disappointing that people go through life, believing that they are a 'failure' because they do not have their HSC, when the system was unable to cope with them.

We eagerly await what the Board of Studies has in store for the future.