Letter: Those who can't spell can vote

WHEN I got up to face another day of revision in the run-up to my A-levels, I was greeted by the Independent on Sunday's headline 'A-level pupils face new penalties for bad spelling and grammar' (29 May). This really boosted my confidence.

Does the Government realise how it feels to be told a week before exams, which hold the key to the future, that the method by which I thought I was to be assessed has been changed? It is like a team of footballers being told as they walk on that the goalposts, literally, have been moved.

What should be tested in my exams is my proficiency in mathematics, physics and chemistry; if I had wanted to be examined on my use of language I would have opted to take English. It has always been the case that the spelling of the terminology of the subject has been taken into account and the vast majority of A-level students will have already proved themselves proficient in English language at GCSE.

Doesn't the Government realise that many 18-year-olds, who will be affected by their decision, will be voting in the European election? It is not exactly a vote-winning strategy. At least I was lucky enough to read the article and did not have to find out just seconds before starting the exam papers of the changes. This is a typical panic decision by this Government, which seems to think nothing through properly.

E A Groves

Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire