By Justin Parkinson BBC News Online education staff

The biggest change in England's exams system since the 1950s has been proposed, prompting as many questions as answers to current problems.

Mike Tomlinson, the former chief inspector of schools, is recommending doing away with GCSEs and A-levels and other qualifications, replacing them with four-level diplomas for 14 to 19 year olds.

Sixth-form colleges are seen as a liberation from school discipline

Vocational education would become a more important part of the academic curriculum.

Within this plan is the scope for students to progress according to their own abilities, rather than through rigid age-based groups.

So, gifted 16 year olds could go to university, and mixed-age classes would become commonplace.

Where, then, does this leave England's separate sixth form colleges?

At the moment, these are the favoured choice of thousands of 16 year olds who want to sit their A-levels, or retake GCSEs, away from the more nannying environment of school.

Will the greater flexibility of the diploma put paid to this age-based divide, rendering sixth form colleges as we know them obsolete?

'Getting it right'

Judith Norrington, director of curriculum at the Association of Colleges, representing more than 450 further education institutions, also advises the Tomlinson committee on its plans.

She said: "We are trying to make sure we get it right for further education.

"Students are supposed to be the beneficiary of the system, rather than the other way round.

"The question is, how can we make sure people get the best choices and widest options?"

The Tomlinson report has come up with the idea of "interlocking" diplomas.

These would mean students' doing some subjects to "intermediate" (GCSE equivalent) level and others to "advanced" (A-level equivalent) level at the same time, depending on their abilities.

We are not expecting every institution to change overnight or change its character completely Judith Norrington, Association of Colleges

Sixth form colleges already provide a similar variety for students doing some A-levels and some GCSEs at the same time.

But what of the bright 14 year olds who are able enough to do the same?

Ms Norrington said: "Throughout our deliberations there has been a huge stress on institutions working together. There are some fundamental practical issues associated with that.

"We are looking for an area-based solution. It means that any given area will have all the things on offer that people might want and need.

"It's not an easy transition from where we are to where we want to be.

"We are not expecting every institution to change overnight or change its character completely."

Ms Norrington envisages that some students would study different parts of the diploma - academic and vocational - at a variety of schools and colleges in their area, to ensure they get the best choice.

Already, some sixth forms offer "master classes" for some bright secondary pupils, stretching them further than the standard curriculum.

But 16 year olds have a well-known dislike of studying in the same place as those two years younger and "less mature".

It has even been suggested that 14 year olds and adult learners would get on better in the same class than 14 and 17 year olds.

'Cultural change'

However, in the spirit of flexibility, the government would have to drop its definition of 16 to 18 as an educational "age group".

Again, where does this leave sixth forms?

Ms Norrington said: "We are talking about a cultural change in the way we teach our young people.

"What would be the other option, some sort of huge institution that covers everything?

"It's not about tearing down buildings; it's about making opportunities available and sharing expertise wherever possible, not making everything the same.

"At the moment, if you have a small school sixth form, you may offer a limited range of academic subjects.

"Separate sixth form colleges might offer a fuller choice and some alternatives.

Compromise

"A full further education college might offer almost as many academic courses and an awful lot of Level 2 (the equivalent of GCSE) and vocational subjects.

"So, we already have a system where not everybody offers everything.

"There is, however, a feeling about the place we choose to go to. Parents may be desperate to get their children into a separate sixth form college.

"I don't see that changing overnight. It may also require some compromise.

"These will be evolutionary changes as time goes on, to make sure we are meeting people's needs."

Perhaps the Tomlinson plans could be better described as an ongoing "cultural revolution" than simple evolution.

The idea of educational "institutions" and belonging to a single one would certainly alter, if not disappear. Could we still "leave" school in the same sense?

Whether the "sixth form" as we know it will survive in this world of ageless, flexible, area-wide learning remains to be seen.

What do you think the future holds for sixth form colleges? Let us know your views.

Disclaimer: The BBC may edit your comments and cannot guarantee that all e-mails will be published.

Your responses:

I live in an area where the LSC (Learning and Skills Council) are planning to abolish our school sixth forms against the wishes of pupils and teachers and form a single "tertiary college". Although I support the Tomlinson Report, I feel it would be better implemented within schools instead of creating separate sixth forms off on their own in "tertiary colleges" which is the policy of the LSC. In short the future should be secondary schools which run from 11-18 with school sixth forms so those under 16 can take advanced courses where they go to school.
Alex Scrivener (Youth MP Hastings and Rother), Hastings, East Sussex, UK

Being in the sixth form trying to complete my AS-levels in a small school that I have been in since I was 12 has been a great benefit to me. Mainly because the size makes it feel like a family rather than a school, everyone knows each other, teachers know you, and as you grow up with the girls going through the same stages of life together things seem to be to be more harmonious that it would feel if it seemed you were tackling the world alone.
Miss B Patel, London

There is certainly a need for change, but these plans at present are vague, confusing and uncertain. The central problem is that there is a large rump of British students who have been trained only to follow direct instructions and pass tests, this is no fault of theirs but of a league table obsessed system where the data and numbers matter more than the product. There is a refusal to accept that failure is a part of a robust sytem and an obsession with the 5 C passes (data and lists again!). There is certainly a need for a more varied system to cater for all levels and to get some children out of the current curriculum that simply does not suit them.
E Rawson, East Sussex

The idea of separating age and educational level is massively flawed, especially when it comes to university. An exceptionally bright and well-educated 16 year old may be able to handle a biology degree but would not have the maturity or experience to handle a subject such as medicine or law.
AH, UK

I think that some further serious thinking needs to be done before bringing in these new proposals. In Accrington there are no schools that go beyond Year 11 (age 16), college or a school in nearby town is the only way to go at present. Therefore if brighter students want to take a/some subject(s) at GCSE early, how do they continue it those subjects without taking a gap year etc.? Or are we limiting this only to those who are ahead in the majority of subjects? Maybe we should look into the idea of not changing school at 11 but at 14, so that all intermediate qualifications (GCSE, ND C&G VQ's etc) are taught and taken in one establishment. This could do away with the Sats at age 11, maybe?
Andy Haworth, Accrington, Lancs