Ah...I think I'm starting to get it....so the A level exams are something like the SAT...kind of? Except yearly, and by subject, with results assigned to both the student and the school?

Yeah, that would be more difficult to get a high score, I would bet. As it ought to be.

I'd be upset too if the tests were suddenly dumbed down so much that everyone was getting wonderful scores...let's not damage the poor babies' self-esteem! Not to mention artificially inflating the 'quality' of the school.

Grr. The educational system is a racket, any more. It's all about raking in the cash, and if someone happens to scrape up a decent education in the process, well, bonus! :-P