Will the Cabinet Secretary confirm how many students left secondary education in 2019 with the ability to confidently speak Welsh?
Information is available on the number of GCSE Welsh First Language and Welsh Second Language entries by pupils in Year 11 or aged 15 years old. The table below shows how many learners were entered for GCSE Welsh First Language and Welsh Second Language in 2013/14, 2018/19 and 2022/23 (the latest final data available), and the percentage achieving A*-C.
Table 1: Number of GCSE Welsh First Language and Welsh Second Language entries and results, 2013/14, 2018/19 and 2022/23, Wales
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2013/14 |
2018/19 |
2022/23 |
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GCSE |
Number of entries |
Percentage achieving A*-C |
Number of entries |
Percentage achieving A*-C |
Number of entries |
Percentage achieving A*-C |
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Welsh First Language |
5,550 |
73.1 |
5,385 |
73.6 |
6,130 |
72.9 |
|
Welsh Second Language |
10,410 |
78.6 |
20,270 |
63.8 |
21,190 |
62.6 |
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Source: Welsh Examinations Database, Welsh Government |
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Information is also available from the Pupil-Level Annual School Census about whether learners are able to speak Welsh, fluently or not. The table below shows how many Year 11 learners are able to speak Welsh, by fluency, for 2013/14, 2018/19 and 2023/24.
Note that the GCSE information for 2013/14 is based on 15-year-olds. The information for 2018/19 and 2022/23 is based on Year 11 learners.
Table 2: Number of learners in Year 11 able to speak Welsh by fluency, 2013/14, 2018/19 and 2023/24
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2013/14 |
2018/19 |
2023/24 |
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Can speak Welsh fluently |
5,545 |
5,465 |
6,425 |
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Can speak Welsh but not fluently |
13,435 |
13,235 |
14,575 |
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Total can speak Welsh |
18,985 |
18,700 |
21,000 |
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Source: Pupil-Level Annual School Census, Welsh Government |
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