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 A screenshot of BBC Bitesize homepage | |
Type of site | Free online study resource |
|---|---|
| Available in |
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| Predecessor(s) | BBC Schools |
| Created by | BBC |
| URL | bbc |
| Launched | 1998 |
| Current status | Active |
BBC Bitesize, [1] also abbreviated to Bitesize, is the BBC's free online study support resource for school-age pupils in the United Kingdom. It is designed to aid pupils in both schoolwork and, for older pupils, exams. [2]
GCSE Bitesize was launched in January 1998, covering seven subjects. For each subject, a one- or two-hour long TV programme would be broadcast overnight in the BBC Learning Zone block, and supporting material was available in books and on the BBC website. At the time, only around 9% of UK households had access to the internet at home. [3]
In 2023, videos from Bitesize were adapted and dubbed over in Dari and Pashto in order to be broadcast in Afghanistan, where education for girls has been stopped by the Taliban government. The show was called Dars , which means "lessons" in both languages. [4]
The Key Stage 1, 2 and 3 along with GCSE section covers a range of subjects. In Key Stage 1, 17 subjects are available, including Art and Design, Computing, Design and Technology, English, Geography, History, Maths, Music, Physical Education, PSHE, Citizenship, Religious Education, Science, and Modern Foreign Languages. [5] The Key Stage 2 site covers 23 subjects, [6] Key Stage 3 section contains 33 subjects, [7] and the GCSE section contains 49 subjects across several exam boards. [8]
Until 2014, the Standard Grade section of the site had 12 subjects: Biology, History, Chemistry, Computing Studies, Maths, English, Modern Studies (a course exclusive to Scotland), French, Physical Education, Geography, and Physics. [9] The site was updated in 2014 to replace the Standard Grade section with National 4 and National 5 sections. Gaelic versions of these were also made available.
Until 2014, in the Higher section, Biology, English, Geography, Maths, Chemistry, History, Modern Studies, Physics and the Scotland-only subject Scottish Gaelic were available. The Higher section was also updated to the new Curriculum for Excellence qualification. Early and 1st level, 2nd level, 3rd level, and 4th level resources were added to bring the site in line with the Curriculum for Excellence.
The CS3 and TGAU sections are in Welsh. Links to the English language sections are included. [10] [11]
In 2014, a Northern Ireland section was added to the site. It solely contains links to the English language KS1/KS2/KS3/GCSE sections. [12]
The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. However, private schools in Scotland often choose to follow the English GCSE system.
In the Scottish secondary education system, the Higher is one of the national school-leaving certificate exams and university entrance qualifications of the Scottish Qualifications Certificate (SQC) offered by the Scottish Qualifications Authority. It superseded the old Higher Grade on the Scottish Certificate of Education (SCE). Both are normally referred to simply as "Highers".
A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis of selection criteria, usually academic performance. The term is commonly used in relation to England and Wales, where comprehensive schools were introduced as state schools on an experimental basis in the 1940s and became more widespread from 1965.
The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is an English language based secondary qualification similar to the GCSE and is recognised in the United Kingdom as being equivalent to the GCSE for the purposes of recognising prior attainment. It was developed by Cambridge Assessment International Education. The examination boards Edexcel, Learning Resource Network (LRN), and Oxford AQA also offer their own versions of International GCSEs. Students normally begin studying the syllabus at the beginning of Year 10 and take the test at the end of Year 11. However, in some international schools, students can begin studying the syllabus at the beginning of Year 9 and take the test at the end of Year 10.
Caldicot School is a coeducational and non-selective secondary school in Caldicot, Monmouthshire, South Wales, with around 1,400 students. In 2013, the school was rated 'Good' by Estyn. At the time of the inspection in November 2013, 11% of pupils were eligible for free school meals against the national average of 17.7%.
Treorchy Comprehensive School is an English language, comprehensive school in the village of Treorchy, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. The school is situated on the southern side of the valley, and is 500 metres in length from the main gate on Conway Road, Cwmparc, to the rear gate at Tylecoch Bridge, Treorchy.
Hounsdown School is a secondary school in Totton, near Southampton, Hampshire, England The school has 1,215 pupils, spanning ages 11 to 16. Classes are held in renovated 1960s buildings and new specialist blocks built since 2000.
Ysgol Bryn Alyn is a secondary school in the county borough of Wrexham, Wales. Its catchment area includes its local primary schools within Gwersyllt and other nearby villages.
Framingham Earl High School is a secondary school located in Framingham Earl in the English county of Norfolk to the south of Norwich.
Our Lady's Catholic College (OLCC) is a mixed sex secondary school for pupils aged 11–18. It is located in Skerton, just off the A6 road, north of the River Lune, Lancaster in the North West of England. Formerly Our Lady's Catholic High School, it changed its name after being awarded Specialist Sports College status in September 2003. The college teaches Key Stage 3, Key Stage 4, and Sixth Form.
Coordination Group Publications (CGP) is an educational publisher and textbook publishing company from the United Kingdom, founded and owned by Richard Parsons. Having published over 1,000 books, their series of best-selling GCSE study guides are known for their light and humorous writing style.
Trinity School is a Church of England Secondary Academy located in Belvedere in the London Borough of Bexley. It is a mixed non-selective school located within a selective borough.
The A level, is a main school leaving qualification of the General Certificate of Education in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. It is available as an alternative qualification in other countries, where it is similarly known as an A-Level.
St. Patrick's College, also known as St. Patrick's Co-Ed Comprehensive College, is a co-educational 11–18 secondary school in Maghera, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It teaches within the Roman Catholic ethos. The school is widely regarded as one of Ireland's most successful athletic schools, having won five All-Ireland titles in gaelic sports.
The English Baccalaureate (EBacc) is a school performance indicator in England linked to the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) results. It measures students' attainment by calculating an average score from specified subject grades. The EBacc includes subjects which are studied in many subsequent university programmes.
St Patrick's High School is a Roman Catholic non-selective, mixed secondary school in Keady, County Armagh, Northern Ireland that was founded in 1970 by the De La Salle Brothers.
The Charles Dickens School is a co-educational secondary modern school located in Broadstairs in the English county of Kent. The school is named after Charles Dickens, the 19th-century writer and social critic. It is one of six non-selective schools on the Isle of Thanet, physically isolated corner of Kent.
Abbeywood Community School is a mixed secondary school located in the Stoke Gifford area of South Gloucestershire, England. Abbeywood Community School opened in 2010, replacing Filton High School, which previously occupied the site. Abbeywood’s governing body is the Olympus academy trust.
Chatham & Clarendon Grammar School is a co-educational grammar school in Ramsgate, Kent, England, formed as a result of the merger of the boys-only Chatham House Grammar School and girls-only Clarendon House Grammar School in September 2011.
Science education in England is generally regulated at all levels for assessments that are England's, from 'primary' to 'tertiary' (university). Below university level, science education is the responsibility of three bodies: the Department for Education, Ofqual and the QAA, but at university level, science education is regulated by various professional bodies, and the Bologna Process via the QAA. The QAA also regulates science education for some qualifications that are not university degrees via various qualification boards, but not content for GCSEs, and GCE AS and A levels. Ofqual on the other hand regulates science education for GCSEs and AS/A levels, as well as all other qualifications, except those covered by the QAA, also via qualification boards.
