General Certificate of Secondary Education or GCSE is a compulsory course in English secondary schools for teenagers in Year 10 and 11 (ages 14-16).
Generally, students HAVE to do
GCSE's in: English Language, Mathematics, some kind of Science and one foreign modern language such as French, German or Spanish.
Optionally, students will take some extra subjects, including
English Literature, Statistics, Geography, History, Drama, Art,
ICT, Music, Double Award Science or if you're smart enough and got a Level 6 in the SATS in science; Triple Award Science (if you pick neither double or
triple science, your school will instead force you to do singular Core Science).
The GCSE's are completed in a series of exams (the finals being set in June of Year 11) and coursework, which will be a lifesaver if you're not so good at exams.
Your GCSE's are really a foundation qualification, and it determines what the student generally does next.
Example:
James got 10
GCSE's, with many A's and B's. He stayed on
Sixth Form to do four
A-Levels in Maths, Physics,
ICT and Psychology. He can write essays for England, and is clearly an academic person who wants to go to Oxford, Cambridge or an Ivy League University in USA.
Shane on the other hand didn't do quite as well, getting loads of D's and 2-3 C's in Maths/English/Science, however, he has gone to college and is learning a trade in a vocational course to become
a plummer, because he's not very academic.
Bob the school chav and bully and "cool kid" skipped his GCSE exams, and never bothered doing most his coursework, so he could not get into a college or
sixth form, he now just sits at home smoking weed, while making somewhat of an attempt to find a job and apply to do his GCSE's again at college next year, although his 15 year old girlfriend is pregnant.