Inequalities and the curriculum - young people’s views on choice and fairness through their experiences of curriculum as examination specifications at GCSE - Working paper

Sep 5, 2026

This paper examines how young people experience curriculum when it is delivered through GCSE subject examination syllabuses, assessment techniques, structures, and related national and school-level education policies. Using a qualitative dataset from a mixed-methods study of students’ views and experiences of GCSE in Northern Ireland and Wales, it analyzes perceptions of choice and fairness. It also details how available subjects and the administration of GCSE courses shape what students experience as curriculum, including perceived freedoms to choose what is taught and assessed.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages30

Reading Time1 h 16 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Non-technical summary

Introduction

Context: Subject Choice and Education Qualifications

Moderation of curriculum by assessment

Curriculum, subject choice and examinations

Curriculum as examination syllabuses

Subject choice

Choice and examination syllabuses

Why consider students’ views and experiences on these matters?

Methodology

Research Instruments

Sample

Data analysis

Presentation of the data

GCSEs and Subject choice

Assessment techniques

Tiering

GCSE structures: modularity vs. linearity

GCSEs in NI and Wales: Inequalities across jurisdictions

Discussion

Subject option choices and links to GCSE specifications

Access to subjects and curriculum: mediated by national and school level assessment policy decisions

Students’ concerns about the ways in which curriculum and assessment decisions are made

Concluding thoughts

References

Inequalities and the curriculum: young people’s views on choice and fairness through their experiences of curriculum as examination specifications at GCSE By Rhian Barrance¹ and Jannette Elwood² Centre for Longitudinal Studies Working paper 2017/6 Contact the author Rhian Barrance Research Associate School of Social Sciences Cardiff University [barrancer@cardiff.ac.uk](barrancer@cardiff.ac.uk) ] ¹ School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University ² School of Social Sciences, Education and Social Work, Queen’s University Belfast (corresponding author) This working paper was first published in June 2017 by the Centre for Longitudinal Studies, UCL Institute of Education University College London 20 Bedford Way London WC1H 0AL [www.cls.ioe.ac.uk](www.cls.ioe.ac.uk) The Centre for Longitudinal Studies (CLS) is an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Resource Centre based at the UCL Institution of Education (IOE) . It manages four internationally-renowned cohort studies: the 1958 National Child Development Study, the 1970 British Cohort Study, Next Steps, and the Millennium Cohort Study. For more information, [visit](visit www.cls.ioe.ac.uk)[ ](visit www.cls.ioe.ac.uk)[www.cls.ioe.ac.uk](visit www.cls.ioe.ac.uk). The views expressed in this work are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of CLS, the IOE or the ESRC. All errors and omissions remain those of the author. This document is available in alternative formats. Please contact the Centre for Longitudinal Studies. tel: +44 (0)20 7612 6875 email: [clsfeedback@ioe.ac.uk](clsfeedback@ioe.ac.uk) Contents Abstract ..................................................................................................................... 2 Non-technical summary............................................................................................. 3 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 4 Context: Subject Choice and Education Qualifications .............................................. 5 Moderation of curriculum by assessment ............................................................... 5 Curriculum, subject choice and examinations ............................................................ 8 Curriculum as examination syllabuses ................................................................... 8 Subject choice ....................................................................................................... 9 Choice and examination syllabuses ..................................................................... 10 Why consider students’ views and experiences on these matters? ...................... 11 Methodology............................................................................................................ 11 Research Instruments .......................................................................................... 12 Sample ................................................................................................................ 12 Data analysis ....................................................................................................... 12 Presentation of the data ....................................................................................... 13 GCSEs and Subject choice .................................................................................. 13 Assessment techniques ....................................................................................... 15 Tiering ................................................................................................................. 15 GCSE structures: modularity vs. linearity ............................................................. 17 GCSEs in NI and Wales: Inequalities across jurisdictions .................................... 20 Discussion ..................................................

FAQs

What does the working paper study about inequalities and the curriculum?

It investigates how young people experience curriculum through GCSE examination syllabuses, assessment techniques and structures, and how national and school-level policies shape subject choice and perceived fairness.

Which regions and data source does the analysis use?

The study draws on an original qualitative dataset from a mixed-methods study of students’ views and experiences of GCSE in Northern Ireland and Wales.

How are students’ perceptions of choice and fairness explained in the paper?

The paper links perceived choice and fairness to which subjects are available via school-level subject options and to how GCSE courses are administered, showing how these decisions effectively become students’ experience of curriculum.

Sep 5, 2026

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