GCSE Home Coursework is Scrapped

Traditional GCSE coursework is to be scrapped for most academic subjects following a report by exam watchdogs.

From 2009, it will be replaced by what is being called "controlled assessment", where pupils will do projects under supervision in class.

The changes come amid concerns about pupils cheating by copying from the internet or getting help from parents.

They will apply across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Science coursework will not be affected.

This is because science GCSE courses changed last year and much of the coursework involved is already done in school.

Reliable

The changes follow a review by the exams and curriculum body for England the QCA, working closely with counterparts in Wales and Northern Ireland.

They will affect nine subjects, including English literature, geography and history .

A QCA report, published last autumn said GSCE coursework had become "less valid".

Two-thirds of teachers surveyed for the study had said they did not think coursework was valid and reliable.