Rise and rise of the 'gold standard'

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A-levels were first introduced in 1951, when only 104,000 exams were sat and the overall pass rate was just 75.3 per cent.

They became regarded as the "gold standard" qualification for preparing sixth-formers for university. This year, nearly 830,000 A-levels were taken across the UK.

In 2000, a new system of modular A-levels was introduced in which most pupils studied courses divided into six units instead of taking final exams after two years.

When the first results of the modular system were published in 2002, the pass rate soared from 89.8 per cent to 94.3 per cent. The number of A-grades also rocketed to more than one in five for the first time - and girls moved ahead of boys. A marking crisis surrounded the results and thousands of papers had to be re-marked amid claims that the exams had become easier.

Estelle Morris, the education secretary at the time, resigned soon after the row.

This year, more than a quarter of A-levels were awarded A-grades.

From this September, the number of units in A-levels is being cut back from six to four in most subjects.

A new A* grade is being introduced alongside harder questions to give universities a better chance of distinguishing bright students. The A*, for pupils who score marks of 90 per cent or more, will come into force when exam results are published in 2010.

Also from this September, the first 20,000 teenagers will take the Government's new diplomas. These courses combine academic theory with work experience and are intended as rivals to traditional A-levels and GCSEs.

Ministers have said diplomas could one day replace A-levels as "the qualification of choice" for all teenagers. A government review of secondary school exams is planned for 2013.

Some schools have decided to move away from A-levels to the International Baccalaureate, while Cambridge University's exam arm is planning a demanding diploma-style qualification called the Pre-U which many private schools have expressed interest in.