Pupils in Northern Ireland, England and Wales receive their GCSE results on Thursday
Offering pupils high-quality practical education during their GCSE years would require a “major overhaul”, an education expert has said.
Professor Alan Smithers, director of the Centre for Education and Employment Research at the University of Buckingham, also reiterated concerns over girls persistently outperforming boys in GCSEs and compulsory resits for English and maths.
His comments come before pupils in Northern Ireland, England and Wales receive their GCSE results on Thursday.
Last year, more than a fifth (21.9%) of UK entries were awarded the top grades – at least a 7 or an A-grade, up from 21.8% in 2024.
This was higher than in 2019, the last year before the pandemic, when 20.8% of entries achieved the top grades.
Prof Smithers said the proportion of GCSE entries scoring the top grades this year is likely to be similar to last year.
While traditional A*-G grades are used for GCSEs in Northern Ireland and Wales, they have been replaced in England with a 9-1 system, where 9 is the highest.
A 4 is broadly equivalent to a C grade, and a 7 is broadly equivalent to an A.
According to Prof Smithers’ analysis, the least frequently taken GCSEs include practical subjects like leisure and tourism, hospitality and construction.
He pointed to the greater popularity of BTecs and Cambridge nationals, questioning whether the current form of GCSEs is “capable of delivering hands-on practical training to industry standards”.
“The new Labour Government under Andy Burnham has been musing out loud whether the 14-16 curriculum should place more emphasis on practical skills,” he said.
“This is a very good idea which I was arguing for 35 years ago.
“It attracted a lot of interest at the time, but as far as policy formation was concerned it went nowhere. That could have been for many reasons, but one that is rarely mentioned is, I suspect, at the root of it.
“It is that schools are just not very good at providing the practical education that is needed, because they lack the specialist teachers, the equipment and can’t keep pace with developments.
“If the Government wishes to rebalance the Key Stage 4 curriculum to encourage technical and vocational pathways, there is a strong case for a thorough review.
“A successful transformation of Key Stage 4 would require a major overhaul.”
Mr Burnham announced last month that technical subjects will be available to 14-year-old pupils from September 2028.
In a similar report last year, Prof Smithers said the talents of boys are not being developed as “fully” as they could be.
But this year he questioned whether girls might have an “inherent advantage”.
In 2025, the gap between girls and boys at the top grades was at the narrowest this century.
Nearly a quarter (24.5%) of girls’ GCSE entries were awarded at least a grade 7/A compared with almost a fifth of boys’ entries (19.4%) – a 5.1 percentage point gap.
This is the narrowest gap since at least 2000, which is the earliest data available.
Prof Smithers said he has called for many years “without success” for the gender gap to be investigated.
“My first thought was that this was against the vibes of the time when the emphasis is on equality for women,” he continued.
“Since men generally come out on top in the workplace, why bother.
“More recently I have been thinking the unthinkable in these days when the cancel culture is in overdrive.
“The sex differences in education achievement are so regular and persistent that they could be inherent differences. This should be taken on board in any inquiry.”
In England, many students who do not secure at least a grade 4 – which is considered a “standard pass” – in English and/or maths GCSE are required to retake the subjects during post-16 education.
In his report, Prof Smithers said the results of this are “disastrous”.
He pointed to the new GCSE of maths numeracy which covers essentials for everyday life, and said the qualification should be improved and available to all pupils who fail, and an equivalent qualification should be developed for English.
The Department for Education has been contacted for comment.
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