More students taking ‘traditional’ subjects

The increase follows government efforts to promote the traditional core subjects that are part of the English Baccalaureate (Ebacc), which includes English, maths, science, history and geography. These subjects are considered to be ‘facilitating subjects’ and are often favoured by Russell Group Universities.

Citizenship at GCSE has seen exam entries drop by 50 per cent, with A level general studies seeing a fall of 25 per cent and modern foreign languages continuing to see declined uptake.

Ofqual’s chief regulator, Glenys Stacey, said: “The subjects that are proving to be more popular are the more traditional subjects, so we have seen modest increases in the sciences – what the Russell Group of universities would call facilitating subjects.

“I assume that’s in response to some of the performance measures you see now with the Ebacc (English baccalaureate), and no doubt there will be a good number of students who are thinking about their futures and where they wish to go to university.”

Malcolm Trobe, Deputy General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “It is unsurprising that young people are turning to traditional subjects given the importance of these qualifications in gaining university places and the emphasis the government is placing on them as English baccalaureate subjects.

“It is very encouraging if there has been an increase in the take-up of A-level maths and science courses. This is key to securing a good supply of science and technology graduates in the future, which employers say they desperately need. Having a strong science and technology sector is essential for the economic health and wellbeing of the country.

“It is disappointing to hear, however, that there has been a decrease in the take-up of modern foreign languages at GCSE.”

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