Introduction of the GCSE

GCSE About Us

GCSEs were introduced in 1988 to award a national qualification to the students who decide to leave school at 16, without pursuing further academic study towards qualifications such as A-Levels or university degrees.

GCSEs replaced the former United CSE and O-Level qualifications . However the GCSEs exam papers are designed to address the more able and the less able candidates. GCSE test papers on gcsepapers.co.uk are designed to be as close as possible to the real exam.

Under a new scheme, all GCSE subjects were revised between 2015 and 2018, and all new awards will be on the new scheme by summer 2020.

Thus we also revised the GCSE subjects on our website to design the test papers accordingly.

GCSE Examination boards

In the past there were a variety of regional examination boards, or awarding organisations (AOs), who set examinations in their area. Eventually, deregulation allowed schools to choose which boards to use. In this context mergers and closures led to only 5 examination boards remaining today. GCSE Papers offer the GCSE test papers that are suitable for all the five boards.

Let’s have a look at the five GCSE boards.

It absorbed the following boards: AEB, JMB, NEAB, and SEG. AQA is one of the principal Exam boards for GCSE Mathematics in Britain and is taken by thousands of students across the United Kingdom. Like other exam boards AQA also has two Exam Tiers; Foundation and Higher. Parents need to consult the appropriate teachers to decide the tier in which their child might sit for the exam

AQA is for everyone. It is diverse, and an essential in equipping students with the right skills to reach their future goals. AQA design qualifications and support to enable students to explore, enjoy and succeed in.

It absorbed the Oxford Delegacy of Local Examinations, Cambridge Local Examinations, Oxford & Cambridge Examinations Board, MEG, and RSA exam boards. Like other exam boards OCR Exam also has two tiers: Foundation and Higher.

It absorbed the LREB, BTEC, and ULEAC boards. Pearson Edexcel runs one GCSE syllabus called (1MA1). Like other exam boards Pearson Edexcel Exam also has two tiers: Foundation and Higher.

It is the main examination board in Wales. WJEC, formally the Welsh Joint Education Committee, is an examination board providing examinations, professional development and educational resources to schools and colleges in Wales, England and Northern Ireland under its own name and the Eduqas brand.

Council for the Curriculum, Examinations & Assessment (CCEA) This is the examining board and regulator in Northern Ireland.

EDUQAS GCSE Exam is made up of two papers and like the other boards exams consists of two tiers: Foundation and Higher.

The examination boards operate under the supervision of Ofqual (The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation) in England, Qualifications Wales in Wales, and the CCEA in Northern Ireland.