01.16.06
Radcliffe, Watson Will Sit Their “NEWTS”, “OWLS”
ContactMusic reports that filming of Order of The Phoenix will have to halt for a month this summer when stars Dan Radcliffe and Emma Watson sit exams. Dan will be taking the Advanced Supplementary (AS) Levels and Emma will be sitting her General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) exams. These exams are the basis for the NEWTS and OWLs featured in the Potter books.
Dan will be taking tests in English literature, history, religion and philosophy. Emma will sit exams for standard subjects including English, math and science.
It appears that the GCSE is akin to the American SAT or in some states, the Regents exams. We don’t have anything akin to the AS.
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weenie said,
January 18, 2006 at 9:46 am
AS levels are of the same standard as the UK A (Advanced) levels but cover less content. I think they were introduced to help students cover more subjects whilst increasing the breadth of their education. Generally, university entrance in the UK requires passes in A and AS levels - the number of passes and grades will depend on the university and the popularity of the course the student has applied for.
RavenclawWit said,
January 18, 2006 at 6:28 pm
Interesting. Here in the states, most high school students take two exams in their junior or senior year of high school (when they’re about 16-17) the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) and the ACT. Both tests are fairly general, measuring a students abilities in general subjects like math, verbal, reading and science. The ACT is measured on a 25 point scale if I remember correctly (it’s been a bit since I was in high school) and the SAT is measured on a 1600 point scale, but people actually scoring a 1600 is pretty rare. Basically, getting anything over 1000 on the SAT will let you get into college, however Ivy League schools like Stanford or Harvard usually want their students to have at least a 1400.
It sounds like in the UK that students take tests only in the subjects that they intend on studying in college or university? Am I correct in this impression? in the US, education is a lot more general; everyone comes out of high school with the same diploma, and for the most part, takes the same classes in high school as well.
weenie said,
January 20, 2006 at 6:34 pm
No, it’s not entirely true that UK students only take tests in the subjects that they intend on studying in university, although some do. I did A level Maths, Biology and French and studied Business Studies when I went to university. The Maths and French helped a bit I suppose!