The largest examining board in England and Wales is launching a controversial new A-level that will see students tested on a range of teenager related issues.
The A-level in communication and culture is being branded as "excellent preparation" for higher education by the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance (AQA).
But critics suggest that the new qualification, which replaces the obsolete and derided communication studies A-level, lacks the academic rigour of other subjects. There is also concern that schools will use the lightweight subject as a means of artificially inflating their standing in the league tables.
The syllabus is reported to include topics such as the cult of celebrity, body modification, forms of communicating including texting, computer games, graffiti and street art.
Nick Seaton, of the Campaign for Real Education, said: "Many parents and employers will consider this a waste of school time and expect an A-level covering 'culture' to concentrate on great literature, art or music."
An AQA spokesman said the syllabus had been approved by the exams watchdog Ofqual.
The A-level in communication and culture is being branded as "excellent preparation" for higher education by the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance (AQA).
But critics suggest that the new qualification, which replaces the obsolete and derided communication studies A-level, lacks the academic rigour of other subjects. There is also concern that schools will use the lightweight subject as a means of artificially inflating their standing in the league tables.
The syllabus is reported to include topics such as the cult of celebrity, body modification, forms of communicating including texting, computer games, graffiti and street art.
Nick Seaton, of the Campaign for Real Education, said: "Many parents and employers will consider this a waste of school time and expect an A-level covering 'culture' to concentrate on great literature, art or music."
An AQA spokesman said the syllabus had been approved by the exams watchdog Ofqual.
