Congratulations on GCSE results!

Today GCSE results came out for all those young people who have been worked so hard and put in so much ffort over the past two years. I want to say congratulations to you all, I know it was not that long ago that I got mine, and despite what the old-folk would like you to think, GCSE's are hard work even for the most intellegent. It takes discipline and skill to develop multiple subjects to the standard of A*-C, especially if you came from a relavtively poor school like I did, and for that you should be applauded.

With 67.1% of all entries awarded an A*-C grade, young people have shown that they are not a mass of 'hoodies' who simply roam the streets stabbing people, and are quite capable of working hard and achieveing the goals that they want for themselves and that society (for better or for worse) expects of them.

With the usual mudslinging of how exams are now so easy, or the newer and more trendy questions of, as former chief inspector of schools Mike Tomlinson seems to imply, whether GCSEs are worthless or not, it seems like we are getting to a point where people almost want young people to fail. It saddens and somewhat sickens me to imagine that there are people out there, some even sat in parliament, that have little better to do that knock people down so early in life.

I'd be interested to see how far this impacts on the psyche of young people. Young people who struggle academically at school seem to make up the majority of thonse who become involved with crime or struggle to hold down jobs later in life. I wonder whether this endless speculation of whether GCSE's are worth the paper they are written on is part of the reason why many decent hard working young people have little faith in themselves or their ability, and low expectations for themselves throughout life? It's a contagious downward spiral, if young people are devalued and somewhat de-humanised by the whole process, then that affects both how they see others around them, and more importantly how other people see them.

So I say, if you got good grades today, go and scream it from the roof-tops. Show the world what you can do and be thankful of the opportunities society has given you. Ignore the old folk who turn their noses up at you and your "bits of paper", and achieve everything that you can.

But for me, the key point to always remember was this: When society invests in you, it also invests in itself through the things you do and say and how you live your life. So go out, do great things, and help build a better society for us and our children.