An increased number of students in the North have gained the highest grade in this year's GCSEs.
Figures released today by the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) revealed that 7.1 per cent of pupils in the province achieved the top A (A star) grade, an increase of 0.2 of a percentage point on last year's results.
The figures also revealed that girls continue to outperform boys at A (A star) by 3.6 per cent and A (A Star) to A grades by 7.9 per cent. The CCEA also confirmed there was a small increase in the entries for this year's examinations gaining A (A Star) to C, rising from 69 per cent last year to 69.4 per cent.
The total number of entries also rose in Northern Ireland by just over 0.7 per cent. CCEA chief executive Gavin Boyd said the results revealed that Northern Ireland students had once again performed excellently well in their GCSEs.
"We are all extremely proud of their achievements and wish them well in their future education and career. "I would also like to pay tribute to the teachers whose hard work and commitment have helped these students excel in their examinations.
"Each year the support and guidance provided by Northern Ireland's excellent teaching force plays a crucial role in the continued improvement of our GCSE
students," he said.
The first set of results for Northern Ireland students taking the new work related for applied GCSEs showed that 1.4 per cent received A (A Star) grades, with 48.2 per cent attaining A (A Star) to C grades.
The work related for applied GCSEs are more vocationally based and are the equivalent of two GCSEs.
PA