The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is the name of a set of British qualifications, taken by secondary school students at age of 14-16 in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland (in Scotland, the equivalent is the Standard Grade). It is usually taken between these ages although some students may have the opportunity to take one or more GCSEs early. The education systems of other British territories, such as Gibraltar and ex-British (influenced) territory South Africa, also use the qualifications as supplied by the same examination boards. The International "version" of GCSE is IGCSE, which can be applied to the whole world and which includes some more options, such as coursework options, language options, etc. When GCSEs are taken in high school, they can often be combined with other certifications such as a GNVQ.

Structure
GCSEs were introduced for teaching in September 1986, and replaced both the O-level GCE (Ordinary level General Certificate of Education) and the CSE (Certificate of Secondary Education) qualifications, which suffered problems due to the two-tier nature of the system. Grade C of the GCSE was set at equivalent to O Level Grade C and CSE Grade 1. Thus the final students to sit the former O'Level/CSE examinations were those of May-June 1987 and the subsequent retakes in September 1987.
The table below shows what each GCSE grade is equivalent to (note that the O Level grades are the ones used at the end of the system):
The format of the GCSE has been basically the same since its inception, though many minor changes have been made. Initially, there were three tiers for examinations: Higher (grades A-C), Intermediate (grades B-E) and Basic (grades D-G). Basic was renamed to Foundation fairly quickly. During the 1990s, all subjects except Mathematics moved to the current two tier system (see above) and Mathematics eventually followed suit in 2006 (for the first examination in 2008).
In 1994, the A* grade was introduced to distinguish the very top end of achievement.
Introduced in 2000 was the Vocational GCSE, which encouraged students to take the work-related route and included courses such as Engineering and Manufacture, Applied Business, ICT and leisure and tourism. From September 2004, the word 'Vocational' was dropped and a Vocational GCSE is now known simply as a GCSE. This is to show that the vocational side is 'on par' with the traditional academic side.
Science GCSEs were overhauled in 2006 (for first examination in 2008). The most popular course, Double Science, where students received two identical grades for a course with twice the content as the normal Science GCSE, was scrapped. Students studying for two Science GCSEs now study the single Science GCSE (known as Core Science)and then one of two complementary GCSEs: Additional Science (which has a more academic focus) or Applied Science (which has a more vocational focus). Students now receive separate grades for their Science GCSEs.

History
For students with learning difficulties, an injury/RSI (repetitive strain injury), or a disability there is help offered in these forms:
There are other forms of help available, but these are the most commonly used.

Extra-time (the amount depends on the severity of the learning difficulty/disability/injury/RSI)
An amanuensis (somebody, (normally a teacher) types or handwrites as the student dictates, this is normally used when the student cannot write due to an injury, RSI, or disability.
A word processor (without any spell checking tools) can be used by students who have trouble writing legibly or who are unable to write quickly enough to complete the exam
A different format exam paper (large print, Braille, printed on coloured paper etc.)
A 'reader' (a teacher/exam invigilator can read out the words written on the exam, but they cannot explain their meaning)
A different room (sometimes due to a disability a student can be placed in a room by themselves, this also happens when an amanuensis is used, so as not to disturb the other candidates) Special educational needs
Some commentators would say that in reality a pass grade today is a C rather than the pass grade previously being an E, and that this confuses many outside the education system.

Criticism
Note: Many of the subjects in this list are not offered by every school. Also note that subjects that are extremely rare, such as minor languages or subjects taught by only one or two schools, are not listed below.
List of GCSE subjects

English

• Many schools also insist on students taking English Literature
  Mathematics
  Science (students can take a number of different 'routes'):
  
  
  
  • Science as a single subject (which includes elements of Biology, Chemistry, and Physics)
    Science as a single subject and Additional Science (a more academic course)
    Science as a single subject and Applied Science (a more vocational course)
    Science as separate subjects (studying one or more of Biology, Chemistry and Physics)
    Welsh or Welsh Second Language (in schools in Wales) Core subjects
    
    Modern Foreign Languages
    
    
    
    • Arabic
      Bengali
      Chinese (Cantonese or Mandarin)
      Dutch
      French
      German
      Modern Greek
      Gujarati
      Modern Hebrew
      Irish
      Italian
      Japanese
      Maltese
      Persian
      Polish
      Portuguese
      Punjabi
      Russian
      Spanish
      Turkish
      Urdu
      Welsh
      Classical Languages
      
      
      
      • Ancient Greek
        Biblical Hebrew
        Latin Languages
        
        Design and Technology
        CAD / CAM
        Electronics
        Engineering and Manufacturing (Double Award)
        Food Technology
        Graphic Products
        Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
        Product Design
        Product Design: Electronics with Resistant Materials
        Product Design: Resistant Materials
        Product Design: Textiles
        Resistant Materials
        Systems and Control Technology
        Textiles Humanities
        
        Citizenship
        Health and Social Care (Double Award)
        Home Economics: Child Development
        Home Economics: Food and Nutrition
        Law
        Leisure and Tourism (Double Award)
        Psychology
        Social Science
        Sociology People and society-related subjects
        
        Applied Art and Design (Double Award)
        Art and Design
        Art: Fine Art
        Art: Graphics
        Ceramics
        Dance
        Design
        Drama
        Expressive Arts
        Fashion Design
        Graphics
        Media Studies
        Moving Arts
        Music
        Photography
        Sculpture Expressive arts
        
        Additional Mathematics
        Applied Business (Double Award)
        Archaeology
        Astronomy
        Business Studies
        Business and Communication Systems
        Business Studies and Economics
        General Studies
        Human Biology
        Human Physiology and Health
        Nautical Studies
        Outdoor Pursuits
        Physical Education (PE)
        Rural and Agricultural Science
        Sports Studies
        Statistics Others
        
        A Levels
        IGCSE
        Standard Grade See also
        
        Revision
        
        Assessment and Qualifications Alliance (AQA)
        Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA)
        Edexcel Limited
        Oxford Cambridge and RSA Examinations (OCR)
        Welsh Joint Education Committee (WJEC)
        Cambridge International Examinations