Headteachers’ concerns over the Cambridge exam board iGCSE have been revealed following a Freedom of Information request.

International GCSEs, as set by Cambridge International Examinations (CIE), were adopted for the vast majority of subjects taught in the island’s secondary schools from 2014.

But in December last year, the Department for Education, Sport and Culture decided that all five schools can move away from the Cambridge exam for maths iGSCEs and choose to use the Welsh exam board instead - or a combination of both.

This decision followed a series of meetings with secondary school headteachers and heads of maths over problems with the Cambridge specification maths exam.

Information released under Freedom of Information have revealed the reasons for the change. The request by parent David Watts was initially turned down by the department. But the DESC then released the information after he lodged a complaint to the Information Commissioner.

A joint letter from the secondary school heads said repeated concerns had been raised over the decision to follow the Cambridge syllabus.

But they felt ’compelled to express the escalation’ of their concerns in light of analysis of the results of Year 11 students who sat both CIE iGCSE in maths and the Edexcel iGCSE.

Of the 274 students from the four schools who were entered last year for both exams, 66% performed worse in the CIE exam taken four months after the Edexcel exam.

Students at the fifth school, Ballakermeen, took Edexcel at the end of Year 10, again in January of year 11 and then those who did not have a C grade took the CIE exam.

Of those students 20.5% had the same results, 8.4% had a higher result with CIE and 71% had a lower result.

’Clearly if these results are replicated in the summer [of 2019] a considerable number of students will fail to meet the 5 A*-C + English and maths benchmark,’ the headteachers noted.

In a discussion paper the secondary school heads of maths suggested Manx students are being measured against independent, mostly selective schools and this may be one factor in many receiving lower mathematics grades than those they received with other boards.

CIE iGCSE requires a reading age of 13.7 years, whereas Edexcel iGCSE requires one of 11.3 years, putting students at the C/D borderline at a further disadvantage.

The DESC’s position initially remained that the use of the Cambridge specification ’did not constitute a considerable disadvantage to Manx students’.

But the department subsequently gave heads the option of all five schools moving to a mix of Cambridge and Welsh board maths, or moving to the Welsh board entirely.

In a letter to the schools’ heads of maths, chief executive Professor Ronald Barr stated: ’It is noted you did not have the same concerns for any of the other Cambridge iGCSEs.

’However, it would be prudent to have a wider review of the policy on all GCSE examination specifications.’

One headteacher wrote back, welcoming the DESC’s commitment to a wider review of its policy on all GCSE specifications.

They added: ’I do have serious concerns about science, business studies and the whole exam set up, including the lack of easily accessible subject specific training, the administration, cost and exam calendar that goes with the CIE package.

’These concerns are based on professional discussion with subject leaders, leadership team and with our exams officer.’

But Professor Barr replied: ’The politicians have been quite clear in our discussions that there will be no further move from iGCSEs. This decision should not be taken as any endorsement that there is any prospect over the next three years of moving away from Cambridge iGCSEs.’

Arts GCSE has also changed from the Cambridge to the Welsh board.

Education Minister Graham Cregeen told Tynwald in February that, unlike other subjects, the specified content within maths and art is very similar across the two specifications so the overwhelming majority of students’ learning would be relevant in either case.

A spokesman for the DESC said: ’Any decision to change board ought to be maintained for a minimum of three years before any further review is considered to ensure stability and certainty.

’If any headteacher has concerns then this will be listened to by the department and any relevant action taken.’