THE Government’s new diplomas have been dealt a blow after research showed that many teachers did not believe they were a good qualification for pupils aiming for university.

A poll of almost 1,300 teachers found that just a quarter (24 per cent) believe that diplomas are suitable for bright pupils, and just a fifth (21 per cent) say they are suitable for those wanting to go on to higher education.

In comparison, the overwhelming majority thought that A-levels were the right qualification for academically able students (94 per cent) and those wishing to go to university (96 per cent).

Ministers have hailed the diplomas as a potential replacement for GCSEs and A-levels and the first five courses – which combine work experience with academic theory – were introduced in some schools last September.

The survey, commissioned by the Sutton Trust, found that the vast majority of teachers (83 per cent) think the diploma is best suited to pupils who want to pursue a vocational route. This figures rises to 93 per cent among secondary teachers.

Less than a third of secondary teachers (30 per cent) think they are right for bright pupils while 29 per cent think they are a good route to university.

The poll also found stark differences between qualifications and the schools that teachers thought they were right for.

Three quarters of teachers (74 per cent) believe the diploma is suitable for schools in poorer areas, but only 29 per cent thought they were right for private schools.

James Turner, the director of policy at the Sutton Trust, said: “At a time when diplomas are being heavily promoted to schools and pupils, it is worrying that the perception among teachers – who should be best informed – is that these are not for bright young people with university ambitions.”

He said young people need to be given clear advice on where their qualification choices can take them in the future.

Mr Turner said: “In the absence of such clarity, there is a real danger of a divide emerging between those pupils in independent and top state schools who are set on an academic path, leading to places in selective universities, and students from nonprivileged backgrounds who have those opportunities closed to them early on.”

The survey, carried out by the National Foundation for Educational Research, also looked at teachers’ views on other qualifications, namely the International Baccalaureate, favoured by a number of private schools, and the new Cambridge Pre-U exam.

Many teachers said they did not know enough about them, but those who did believed they were more suited to independent schools and bright students who want to go to university, rather than schools in poorer areas.

The first diploma courses are in engineering, construction, IT, media and health. Eventually 17 will be offered, including subject-based diplomas in humanities, science and languages.

Employers have remained sceptical about the benefits of the subject-based diplomas.

At a conference last September Richard Lambert, director-general of employers’ organisation the CBI, said many employers had “serious reservations” about their worth.

About 12,000 teenagers are now working towards a diploma.

Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) general secretary Dr John Dunford said the new exam would eventually be accepted.

He said: “The diplomas are an ambitious attempt to introduce radical, system-wide reform that shifts the culture and thinking of English education. This kind of change takes time, especially with the reform of qualifications.

“ASCL firmly believes that the diplomas have the scope and breadth to cross the divide between academic and vocational study and will be taken up both by students applying to university and going on to more practical learning.

“The majority of secondary school teachers will not start teaching the diplomas until autumn 2009 or 2010.

Therefore, it is not surprising that they are sceptical that diplomas will be appropriate for students of all abilities. As the diplomas become more widely available, and when the first cohort begins applying to university in a few years’ time, I would expect this view will change.

“The diploma model is complex, so it is no surprise that teachers have struggled to grasp what it is attempting to achieve.

“ASCL is continuing to press the case for a general diploma, which would draw GCSEs, BTECs and A-levels into the diploma family of qualifications. This would ensure that they are seen as appropriate for students with a wide range of abilities, interests and ambitions.”

● The survey questioned 1,297 teachers in December