Well I thnk it's a fantastic idea. I'm only 17, having just dropped out of 6th form doing A levels because not only are they not enjoyable. Schools want what makes them look good, not necessarily what is good for it's students. If I was better informed of other options other than A levels I definitely would've chosen them, instead of now wasting 9months from now, until I'm accepted into college to do a BTec National Diploma. Additionally, it's not as if I'm not clever, my GCSEs came from Watford Boys Grammar school! Giving students more information about the choices they can take is a great idea, since Watford Boys teachers almost indefinitely promote A levels. Good for them, not necessarily good for us!

Greg Hill, Pinner, UK

This miserable excuse of a government do not want our Children educated at all.,because they would vote Conservative or UKIP then. Nobody educated would vote Labour.

William, Radnor, Wales

The ability to gain really good A levels does not exclude other skills. Let's not forget that you can have really bright carpenters or plumbers or just about any occupation.

Dawn , Hamilton, Canada

The reason the proposal is ludicrous is because it is unenforceable. Does anyone seriously think teachers are going to be hauled into court for suggesting that a particular child should do A levels rather than a diploma? How is anyone going to be able to prove that a teacher is "unduly promoting" one particular option, rather than simply offering advice?

Eleanor, London,

Some kids are right for a-levels, some for apprenticeships. You can't insist that a bright grammar school kid becomes a carpenter, and you can't insist that a below average student who is really good with his hands tries for Oxford.

The government is completely insane.

starling, Lancaster,

You might be interested to try to apply for a graduate job with a blue chip company these days. You start with an online application with your A level points and if you haven't got enough that's it - end of story. I have even met employers who say that they only recruit from Oxbridge as they don't have time to see every one else.
If you want your kids to have a decent job forget soft subjects go for quality ie A levels and a top university, it's the only product that sells.

Dennis, Dorset,

While I accept that 'A' levels and, indeed other formal educational qualifications don't suit all students, this seems to be yet another attempt at levelling the playing field to disadvantage the brightest kids. This seems to be a creeping communism where everyone must be treated equally and is an obvious extension of what has been seen in some schools for sometime manifesting in such drivel as not having winners and losers on sports day. It will also have the useful side effect of masking further falling standards at least for a year or two when there will be no basis for measurement.

carol, Leicester, UK

this is absolutely rediculous. what is a diploma anyway? a piece of paper, nothing more. im studying a ba honours in multimedia design and digital animation and i look around my class mates who are all basically talentless in every creative field but will get the degree in the end. but will anyone employ them? not a chance. so its basically a worthless piece of paper and thats applies to a lot of diplomas and degrees. what we should be focussing on is life skills which many ppl also lack. we should be taught how to read and write properly how to understand and manage money. how to use our brains effectively to study. students' intelligence is forever being rated based on grades in school but everyone is good at different things and we all learn in different ways. nothing is catered for this. pupils are bombarded with useless subjects that they dont know how to study and will never remember or use in life after school. id say about 80% of school is pointless. its a joke

ben, carlisle,

We need a more academic workforce, yet we are going down the road of vocational courses? People take too often the easier choice.
I am lucky enough to send my daughter to a private school where they are shielded by the tinkerings of governments. If seems if you lower the bar you have a government success.
We need to compete globally, and that means a gobally recognised qulaification. My son on the other hand would benifit from vocational training. Each parent/teacher should be allowed to work together for the best interest of the child, it is totally wrong that teachers be barred from doing their job? I feel the vocational route must be taken where it is approriate.
Leave A Levels alone, make a modern language a conidition of a GSCE, many years are lost changing types of qualifications, and affect a lot of lives and future careers.
We need a skilled labour force, it needs to be a combination of intellectual and vocational to compete if we are to be self sufficient ever again.

Mark Saunders, London , England

Is the plan for state schools to take diplomas, while private take other qualifications, therefore stopping the embarrassing comparisons between public and private education at age 18 ?

Unless you take 5, A levels do narrow a pupil at an early age.

roger, london,

Teachers should ignore the order.

'A' levels should be brought back to the standard they used to be in the 50s & 60s before the rot set in

Phil, Preston,

I think A-levels should not be shelved or replaced with diplomas, etc. The option should be there for every student. Teachers should actually be re-trained in teaching skills where they do not just focus on already high-achieving students but be fair and just. Then only can their opinion be valid.

Aditi, London, UK

So - an academically very bright pupil who is not very good at vocational subjects cannot be advised to take A-levels, and a pupil gifted with exceptional craft skills cannot be advised to take a vocational qualification.

Pretty much sums up the ludicrous policies of comrade Brown and his fellow Martians. Pity it is, as ever, the future talent of our country tha has to pay the price for the stupidity of our so-called "leaders".

Peter, London,

Choice is all well and good.

But time and time again, Brown tells us in this era of globalisation (a topic which Tony Blair recently said he is very interested in...) we need to compete with the emerging markets such as India and China and we have to produce more Science, Maths and Engineering graduates. Surely the only way this can happen, if Teachers do thieir job properly (In my experience, they don't) , and encourage their students to pursue these subjects as early as possible, by taking Additional Science at GCSE for example, this will never happen.

Things are bad enough as they are in the state sector, but this announcement will simply ensure that Teachers can have an even easier life than they already do. And our country will suffer on the world stage, yet further.

Say what you like, but the A-Level is still the "Gold Standard" of education, internationally recognised. Sure, the IB is ok, but the A-Level is taught all over the world, for entry to the best universities.

Hassan Azam, Banbury, Oxfordshire, England

Clause or not Teachers are a fairly head strong and stubborn lot. They'll tell the kids what they feel is correct whatever the Gov tried to impose.

They'll be lucky to get any teacher to read this anyway.

Paul, Dundee,

really a wake up call -
when we are at a stage when the Govt. passess laws to gag our teachers.
I believe a 'soft' form of communisim is evolving in this country-yes we have a 'freedom' but do we have a 'voice'?
But then look at the positive side....
If labour can increase the number of idiots leaving school the better chance they stand at being re-elected...

mike cassidy, oxford, england

The problem with the education system (and the NHS for that matter) is politicians.

Until they learn to set policy and then keep their incompetent noses out of the rest then there will be problems.

Chris, Ashford, Middlesex,

When I was at school no-one told me I had a choice. Because I did well at 16, everyone simply assumed I would do A Levels and go straight to university. With hindsight, I wish I had taken a practical qualification. I feel cheated by my teachers and to some extent by my parents, because I was denied basic information about the options open to me. For this reason, I say three cheers for the Government's plan - young people should be given all the facts so they can make an informed choice.

David, Leeds, UK

You have to feel sorry for children in, and entering, the educational system. In Scotland they want to stop having Standard Grades and in England 'A' Levels. As a result of all of this more and more people are going to be less and less able to enter the jobs market, which will lead to a further reduction in the UKs standing in the rest of the world. The government wants to stop children leaving school until they're 18, but wants to have them taught this rubbish.

David Leslie, Perth, Scotland

Schools can, of course, switch to the International Baccalaureate which, in addition to being more demanding, broader, more socially and culturally aware, more intellectually rigorous and (consequent on all the above) a good deal more fun, has the overwhelming advantage of being beyond the obsessive, parochial and pernicious meddling of the British Government.

eric campbell, harrogate, uk

Amazing!

As if this bunch of incompetent unintelligent retards in 'power' haven't done enough damage to A Levels in the last 10 years!

Oh how the gold standard falls... And the RPI, the economic 'cycle'... et al ...

Austin Tassletine, South West, UK

Better still, keep politicians of all political shades out of Education and leave it to teachers.

Neil, Gloucestershire, England

Is Ed Balls' middle name Stalin?

Ann Lavery , Stratford upon Avon , England

The universities should be the only authorities setting their own entry conditions. The government should keep its nose out of matters they do not understand or care about. They only have a political agenda to destroy excellence at any cost. It cannot cope with the idea that one student is more able than another.

Roger Parkes, Tunbridge wells, Kent

There is no point in making rules that cannot be enforced. A vague, subjective rule like this just means more wasteful and demoralising harrassment of schools and teachers by desk-pilots from the Department of Obfuscation.

Frank Upton, Solihull,

As usual the government forces forward something that the rest of the population dont want. When will these inept Labour politicians ever learn.

Louis Blanc, Liverpool, UK

Sad, but not surprising. Time to rid ourselves of Brown and his corrupt and clueless rabble.

Bill Clift, Truro,

I can only say, what a load of Balls. How DARE the government deny teachers freedom of speech in advice to pupils. As a retired teacher, I deplore the way this Govt has interfered progressively on education; ( from a succession of non teaching Ministers of Ed)without providing the resources to the profession to carry it all off. The paperwork at the end of my career 12 years ago was already beginning to pile up, and now is impossible. Poor pay, poor other resources, long hours and increasing disrespect from parents leeading to poor discipline in the classroom makes (school)teaching a most unattractive career. What next? Are our bodies the property of the Govt? (sic)

Peter Groves, Surbiton, UK

Most people don't like change. Many always view qualifications of "their day" as being better than qualifications of today. I think we should give history a hearing:

When I was at school, schools and youth careers advisers were encouraged to push Youth Training Schemes (YTS) instead of college and junior positions with training. Many people who took the YTS option didn't receive the full benefits that the scheme should have provided: employers received subsidies for YT's whether they cared to train them or not. Consequently many YT's felt undervalued and finished 'em needful of retraining and reeducating.

Many other qualifications offered in the past were available for a few years only; and most employers and educators (then and now) didn't (and don't) understand the value of those qualifications that had been hyped-up for students to take. Again, the option: retrain or reeducate.

We should concentrate on what we have else scrap the lot and restart. Stop wasting childrens lifetimes.

Lee, Spilsby, Lincolnshire

Is the corollary that the Government will also tell universities which qualifications to accept and which to reject?

wilson, London, UK

"The first 14 diplomas covered subjects such as hair and beauty, travel and tourism"

Tells you all you need to know about diplomas....

I'll be damned if I let my children do a "diplomas" instead of A-levels. If the government wants choice they can turn to the tried and tested International Baccalaureate which is accepted internationally.

This is has infuriated me.

Fred, London,

How many others have tried to get you to put "It's Balls isn't it?"/

Peter Schofield, Nottingham, England

No wonder teachers are leaving the profession in droves. Now this Stalinist Government is telling them what they are allowed to think and tell their pupils about the appropriateness of educational qualifications.

As a parent, who would I trust and believe to have my child's best interests at heart:: Ed Balls and Labour or a committed, experienced Headteacher/Head of Subject? No contest, is it!

Donna Walker, Effingham, Surrey

This is staggering, the legislative equivalent of banning tailors from saying the emperor isn't wearing any clothes.

The new diplomas are over complicated, poorly designed, the trials are behind schedule and they don't have the confidence of schools, colleges or universities. The Govt.'s reponse, don't fix the problem - ban the criticism - how very new labour.

david, brighton,

What about free speech? We are banning teachers from expressing their opinions on what they see, know, and think? And the discussion above seems to miss that point entirely.

Bill Beaman, York, UK

How is this a story? My understanding of undue is that it means not appropriate or not justified, I don't think teachers should promote anything unduly. However there are many kids to whom the promotion of A levels would be entirely justified.

Jeremy, London, UK

G. Brown is proving to be exactly the neo-socialist despot we expected. People must be thin if they want to get medical treatment. If they die, fat or thin, the state can take their body parts without asking. And now teachers must ignore their own observations and opinions and say what the state tells them to. It looks as if everything is to be channelled to the service of the higher social good as perceived by Brown and his bureaucrats.

Bill Beaman, York, UK

Lots of people might criticise these new Diplomas but they need to seriously consider do GCSE's / A Levels adequately prepare young people for the world of work? Do they provide young people with the skills and knowledge that employers need from them in the 21st Century??? This isn't about banning GCSE's or A Levels - it's about giving young people a choice between academic learning and vocational. About time too....

Dave Barrett, Southampton, Hants

Why do we continue with the mis-nomer "United Kingdom"?
Yet again we see a massive devaluation of standards in eduction, but only in England and Wales.
This govenments drive to destroy us in favour of Scotland must be racially motivated.The er can be no other reason.

Danny, Ashford, Kent

If this doesn't show New Labour in their true colours I don't know what does. The total and utter disregard for pupils best interests in favour of political expediency is a disgrace.

Jonathan, Auckland, New Zealand

Another nail in the coffin of the British education system.When oh when will politicians and civil servants leave education to the experts?Let teachers teach and the Education department officials sit in their plush officeand contemplate their navels.

Brian, Retford, England