5 thoughts on “Dumbing down

  1. [probably should note for the benefit of new readers that 1) yes, I know this doesn't really refute points about dumbing down in GCSEs 2) yes, Ed Balls is a bit of a tit. None of these alter the sheer joy of a Gove-smackdown]

  2. Nice.

    I had to do my first marking last week. Essays from second year biology students. The words "fucking shocking" do not even come cloase to describing the grammar and reasoning I encountered. I'm pretty sure I could write better than that back when I was in their position. I'll dig out some of my old essays and check.

  3. I left school 4 years ago, but whilst there our teachers would routinely give us exam papers from up to 40 years beforehand. Compared to these our actual exams were a doddle.

  4. My then-girlfriend studied Anglo-Saxon at uni. She found it harder than she found her main degree in English. Therefore, exams were harder in Anglo-Saxon times.

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