Press Release
Date: Thursday 27 August 2009 (NR/12/09)
CCEA Releases Northern Ireland GCSE Results 2009
The Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) has published Northern Ireland GCSE examination performance figures on behalf of all the awarding bodies operating in Northern Ireland.
The figures show a small increase in the percentage of entries achieving the top A* grade, rising from 8.9%.to 9.1%. Grades A*-A show a 0.7 % increase to 27.1%, and entries gaining grades A* - C has increased by 0.6% to 75.1%.
Once again students here outperformed their English and Welsh peers.
This year’s entry figure has decreased by 4% to 184,748 continuing the overall downward trend of falling pupil numbers in Northern Ireland. Entries for applied subjects also decreased by 3.6% to 1284 at double award. Single award applied subject entries continue to grow; now totalling 11,299. This is a further increase of 42.8% from 2008.
The subjects with the highest entries in Northern Ireland overall are in the core subjects; Mathematics, English and Science Double Award. In addition, Religious Studies, English Literature, French, History, ICT and Geography are the most popular choices.
Sciences
There were further rises in entries for all three of the individual sciences again this year with Biology increasing most by 11.8% to 4150, followed by Physics which is up by 11.5% to 2861 and Chemistry with a 5.5% increase in entries now totalling 2954.
Entries for the new Science specification decreased by 5.8% with Additional Science also dropping by 6.4%
Entries for Double Award Science decreased by 9.9% however it remains the most popular of the sciences with 15,188 entries in 2009. Single Award Science entries decreased by 10.9%
Modern Languages
In Modern Languages there was a decrease in entries for Spanish (-6%),
French (-15.3%) and Irish (-10.5%). German remained relatively constant. With 7781 entries, French remains the most popular language choice.
Applied GCSEs
Applied Single Award GCSEs continue to grow in popularity in Northern Ireland. Entries increased by a further 42.8% to 11,299. The percentage of entries gaining an A* to C has risen from 64.3% last year to 70.2% this year.
Applied Double Award GCSE entries saw a slight decline from 1332 in 2008 to 1284 in 2009. The percentage of entries gaining an A* to C rose from last year’s figure of 61% to 67.2% this year.
Commenting on this year’s results CCEA’s Director of Qualifications, Anne Marie Duffy said:
This is a day of celebration for students in Northern Ireland and they can be proud of what they have achieved. I would like to thank the many parents and teachers who continue to support learners and have contributed to their success.
For two years running we have seen a significant increase in the number of entries for Applied Single Award GCSEs. This reflects the positive response to the introduction of further choice from a more vocational range of qualifications.
From September 2009, schools and colleges will be teaching CCEA’s revised GCSE specifications. 3 exciting new GCSEs in Health and Social Care (Single Award), Moving Image Arts and Business and Communications Systems have been introduced. We look forward to supporting schools as they begin teaching these new specifications.
Students or parents with concerns over GCSE results should contact
By telephone
Tel No. (028) 9026 1260
By website
Search for answers from the Frequently Asked Questions section.
By e-mail
Additional Information
Detailed tabulations for Northern Ireland GCSE results are available here.
GCSE Full Course - Headline performance figures 2009 (2008 figures in brackets)
| 2009 prov | Overall | |
|---|---|---|
| NI | England, Wales and NI | |
| % A* | 9.1 (8.9) | 7.1 (6.8) |
| % A* - A | 27.1 (26.4) | 21.6 (20.7) |
| % A* - C | 75.1 (74.5) | 67.1 (65.7) |
| % A* - G | 98.6 (98.4) | 98.6 (98.4) |
| Entries | 184,748 (192,360) | 5,469,260 (5,669,077) |
GCSE Full Course - Results broken down by gender
| 2009 prov | Boys | Girls | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NI | England, Wales & NI | NI | England, Wales & NI | |
| % A* | 7.2 (6.9) | 6.0 (5.7) | 10.8 (10.8) | 8.2 (7.9) |
| % A* - A | 23.6 (22.1) | 18.7 (17.9) | 30.5 (30.3) | 24.4 (23.5) |
| % A* - C | 72.3 (70.9) | 63.6 (62.1) | 77.8 (77.8) | 70.5 (69.3) |
| % A* - G | 98.3 (98.1) | 98.3 (98.1) | 98.9 (98.7) | 98.8 (98.7) |
GCSE Applied Courses Results 2009 - Single Award
| 2009 prov | Overall | |
|---|---|---|
| NI | England, Wales & NI | |
| % A* | 3.1 (2.5) | 3.3 (2.6) |
| % A* - A | 20.5 (17.7) | 17.1 (14.6) |
| % A* - C | 70.2 (64.3) | 66.1 (62.4) |
| % A* - G | 98.0 (96.8) | 98.1 (97.6) |
| Entries | 11,299 (7915) | 20,484 (15,935) |
GCSE Applied Courses Results 2009 - Double Award
| 2009 prov | Overall | |
|---|---|---|
| NI | England, Wales & NI | |
| % A*A* | 2.1 (1.2) | 1.3 (1.2) |
| % A*A* - AA | 11.4 (10.9) | 7.3 (6.9) |
| % A*A* - CC | 67.2 (61.0) | 49.2 (46.2) |
| % A*A* - GG | 97.0 (97.7) | 96.8 (96.1) |
| Entries | 1284 (1,332) | 96,117 (122,529) |
GCSE Short Course Results 2009
| 2009 prov | Overall | |
|---|---|---|
| NI | England, Wales & NI | |
| % A* | 11.4 (10.6) | 4.9 (4.5) |
| % A* - A | 26.7 (27.3) | 15.9 (15.2) |
| % A* - C | 65.7 (63.2) | 54.2 (53.0) |
| % A* - G | 90.7 (86.7) | 96.6 (96.0) |
Media enquiries to Ruth Maguire on (028) 9026 1216, Mobile 07796947993. E mail rhmaguire@ccea.org.uk
ENDS
Note to Editors
CCEA is the Northern Ireland Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment.
CCEA places learners and those who have a concern for their educational and personal development at the forefront of its thinking. CCEA's mission is:
"To enable the full potential of all learners to be achieved and recognised"
What we do
CCEA is a unique educational body in the UK , bringing together the three areas of curriculum, examinations and assessment.
Advising Government – on what should be taught in Northern Ireland ’s schools and colleges.
Monitoring Standards – ensuring that the qualifications and examinations offered by awarding bodies in Northern Ireland are of an appropriate quality and standard.
Awarding Qualifications
– as Northern Ireland’s leading awarding body we offer a diverse range of qualifications, such as GCSEs, including the new GCSE Double Award specifications in vocational subjects, GCE A and AS levels, Entry Level Qualifications, and Graded Objectives in Modern Languages.
- CCEA also offers a range of Awards and Certificates in Education, Training and Skills (ACETS) targeted at learners who want to get
the knowledge, understanding and skills needed
to hit the ground running in the world of work.
