Number of GCSE IT students falls again

Exam popularity drops by a third in three years

Fewer children are taking GCSE ICT

The number of students taking GCSE Information and Communication Technology (ICT) exams fell by 14 per cent this year, the third consecutive year of decline.

Only 40,629 boys and 32,890 girls took the subject this summer, compared to 47,561 and 38,038 respectively last year.

Numbers have fallen by a third (33 per cent) in the past three years, from a total of 109,601 in 2006 to 73,519 this year.

The decline mirrors that seen in Computing and ICT A-levels, which both saw a drop in numbers of more than 20 per cent this year, according to figures from the Joint Council for Qualification.

Education watchdog Ofsted has highlighted the issue as a problem, particularly as the number of women entering IT as a career is still very low. It recommended that schools find ways to engage more pupils with ICT, improve the training of teachers, and ensure ICT is used as a tool in other subjects.

A Computing report in March found that ICT as a subject is now considered irrelevant by many children because ICT is used as a tool in so many other subjects.

And the subject is seen as a soft touch at GCSE and A-level by many employers, according to the CBI, meaning schools encouraged students to take maths instead.