Commentary: Today is about what every student has achieved

The media's obsession with the "dumbing down" of exams and the debate over whether GCSEs are now easier detracts from the wonderful achievements of so many of our young people.

In my experience exams are not easier. The syllabuses may change, coursework content differs, course structures vary, but ultimately students still have to do the work. The results are there for all to see.

As students receive their results today, we as teachers know there is nothing more that we can do. Have we inspired, encouraged and motivated enough?

Have we cajoled, badgered and hounded enough? Will those incredible young people in whom we have invested so much, supported, parented, policed and loved, really achieve their genuine potential?

Year on year, I have found the answer to be a resounding "Yes". Results day is always an uplifting experience, despite the negative headlines. In a climate where the pressure to meet targets is high (rightly, I believe), our students leave clutching their results with the confidence that they will be coming back to study.

A journey that starts at the age of 11 ends at 18, with virtually all of our students achieving so much more than exam qualifications.

But we do need a formal exam structure. We need benchmarks by which to measure competence. We need to understand what young people are capable of and if they have been successful in achieving it. The real measure of school improvement is exemplified every year by our students' incredible successes. They excel in spite of the many and varied barriers that so many have to their learning.

Schools must have an ethos in which every child really does matter; where all students have an individual learning plan that is shared with and understood by parents.

The climate within schools must accept that every student is different with different strengths. While for some 10 A*s is a magnificent achievement, for others five GCSEs at any grade can be a fantastic result. When measuring school effectiveness, it is the progress each individual student makes that should count above all.

As another set of satisfied customers drifts away from the school gates, students and staff - and everyone else for that matter - should be genuinely delighted in their achievements.

* Jo Shuter is headteacher of Quintin Kynaston School in St John's Wood and Pimlico School. She was named headteacher of the year at the 2007 Teaching Awards.