Exam mix-up

SIR, – I warmly congratulate the students of the BeauSandVer consortium who have just successfully completed the very demanding International Baccalaureate course. However, I must take issue with the article and assertions by their head teachers which ar

SIR, - I warmly congratulate the students of the BeauSandVer consortium who have just successfully completed the very demanding International Baccalaureate course.

However, I must take issue with the article and assertions by their head teachers which are woefully inaccurate. Alan Gray of Sandringham asserts that "these are the first students from St Albans to benefit from this fantastic qualification". They are most emphatically not. Oaklands College pioneered this qualification in this area, running the diploma course highly successfully from 1991 to 2002 for many local and international students.

I would also dispute that taking the IB is "a leap of faith" as Mr Gray claims. The qualification has been established for many years and is highly valued, often over A levels, for its breadth and depth by top universities both here and abroad. In what sense was it a "gamble"? Check your facts, heads.

Students, I'm afraid you have not "made history by being the first ever St Albans pupils to complete the qualification" but you have done extremely well. I am sure you will go on to achieve more success.

JOHN HILL

Former IB Coordinator