Five Things All Young People (and adults) Should Know About GCSEs on Results Day. 1. It is not possible for everyone to succeed in their GCSEs. The exam results are referenced against earlier cohorts, meaning that around 30% will get failing results every year. This is built into the system. No matter how hard everyone works, some will fail. 2. You can take GCSEs at any age. Schools require you to take them at age 15/16 because of the league tables. Research shows that those who are older (autumn born) do better on average than those who are younger (summer born) when they take them. Those whose lives have been easier tend to do better in exams. It is not a level playing field. 3. Learning does not 'only count' if you have a GCSE in it. If you are a passionate musician or linguist or artist, this will be much more important in your life than whether you have a GCSE in music or French or art. Don't let an exam result convince you that you are no good at something. 4. GCSEs can be a stepping stone to college but they aren't the only way. It is rare for a college to require more than five or six. Some colleges will take you with no GCSEs. Doing nine or eleven is something some schools insist on but it isn't essential. 5. A GCSE is a measure of how you performed in a particular set of tests at a specific moment in your life. It is not a measure of your worth nor a reflection of your future potential. Please share if you know a teenager who needs to hear this.