Editing GCSE (section)

{{short description|British public examinations, generally taken aged 15-16}}{{Other uses|GCSE (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}

{{Use British English|date=April 2025}}

{{Infobox examination
| name                = General Certificate of Secondary Education 
| image_name          =
| image_size          =
| image_alt           =
| caption             =
| acronym             = GCSE
| Year started        = 1989
| type                = Prerequisite to a [[List of secondary school leaving qualifications|school leaving certificate]]
| test_admin          =
| skills_tested       = Varies depending on subject, but in almost all GCSE subjects, general knowledge, fundamental writing, and numerical skills are tested.
| purpose             =
| year_started        =  {{Start date|1988}}
| year_terminated     =
| duration            =
| score_range         ={{Plainlist|
* England: Grades from 9 to 1, with 9 being the highest
* Wales: Grades from A* to G, with A* being the highest
* Northern Ireland: Grades from A* to G, with A* being the highest. There is also a C* grade}}

| score_validity      =
| attempt_restriction = All units for a single subject must be taken in one examination series. Only the first attempt of a student is recorded for [[School league table|school league table purposes]], but students may take a subject as many times as they like.
| regions             = [[England]], [[Wales]] and [[Northern Ireland]]
| language            = [[English language|English]], [[Irish language|Irish]] {{ref|IBirish|a}} and [[Welsh language|Welsh]] {{ref|IBwelsh|b}}
| test_takers         =
| prerequisite        =
| fee                 = Free to students in schools. Resits and private entries incur variable fees.
| score_users         =
| qualification_rate  = 
| free_label          =
| free                =
| website             = <!-- {{URL|example.com}} -->
| footnotes           =
{{note|IBirish|a|Irish-medium exams are only available in Northern Ireland, from the [[Council for the Curriculum, Examinations & Assessment|CCEA]] exam board.}}{{note|IBwelsh|b|Welsh-medium exams are only available in Wales, from the [[WJEC (exam board)|WJEC]] exam board.}}
|image=}}

The '''General Certificate of Secondary Education''' ('''GCSE''') is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in [[England]], [[Wales]], and [[Northern Ireland]], having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools in [[Scotland]] use the [[Scottish Qualifications Certificate]] instead. However, private schools in Scotland often choose to follow the English GCSE system.<ref>{{Cite web |title=GCSE options 2024: What GCSE options are there? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zrjh92p |access-date=2023-10-28 |website=BBC Bitesize |language=en-GB}}</ref>

Each GCSE qualification is offered as a specific school subject, with the most commonly awarded ones being [[English literature]], [[English language]], [[mathematics]], [[science]] (combined & triple), [[history]], [[geography]], [[art]], [[Design and Technology|design and technology]] (D&T), [[business studies]], [[economics]], [[music]], and [[Modern language|modern foreign languages]] (e.g., Spanish, French, German) (MFL).<ref>{{Cite web |date= November 2013|title=GCSE subject content |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/gcse-subject-content |access-date=2023-10-28 |website=Gov.uk |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Editor |first=Think Student |date=2022-02-20 |title=The 10 Most Popular GCSE Subjects – Ranked for 2024 |url=https://thinkstudent.co.uk/the-most-popular-gcse-subjects-ranked/ |access-date=2024-12-06 |website=Think Student |language=en-GB}}</ref>  

The [[Department for Education]] has drawn up a list of core subjects known as the [[English Baccalaureate]] for England based on the results in eight GCSEs, which includes both English language and English literature, mathematics, science ([[physics]], [[chemistry]], [[biology]], [[computer science]]), geography or history, and an [[Ancient language|ancient]] or modern foreign language.<ref name="gov eng2">{{Cite web |title=English Baccalaureate (EBacc) |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/english-baccalaureate-ebacc/english-baccalaureate-ebacc |access-date=2020-03-04 |website=Gov.uk |language=en}}</ref> 

Studies for GCSE examinations take place over a period of two or three [[Academic year|academic years]] (depending upon the subject, school, and [[Examination board|exam board]]). They usually start in [[Year 9]] or [[Year 10]] for the majority of pupils, with around two [[Test preparation|mock exams]] – serving as a simulation for the actual tests – normally being sat during the first half of [[Year 11]], and the final GCSE examinations nearer to the end of spring, in England and Wales.{{efn| In Northern Ireland they start in Year 11 and examinations are sat either at the end of that year or at the end of [[Year Twelve|Year 12]], since Northern Irish schools begin numbering years with pupils aged 4 to 5 as [[Year One (education)|Year 1]] (rather than [[Reception (school)|Reception]] as in England and Wales). The GCSE was introduced as an amalgam of the former [[GCE Ordinary Level (United Kingdom)|O-Level (GCE Ordinary Level)]] and [[Certificate of Secondary Education|CSE (Certificate of Secondary Education)]] qualifications.}}

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