The Birmingham Evening Mail decided to put A-levels to the test by sending one of its own reporters back to school.

Women's editor Diane Parkes returned to the school where she studied, Queen Mary's High in Walsall, to re-take an English Literature A-level.

The 37-year-old had gained an A grade when she first took the exam in 1986 - and matched it with an A grade this time around.

Diane said: "Every year the A-level results come out and every year all these stuffed shirts who haven't sat an exam in decades claim they are easier.

"I thought the best way to really find out was to actually sit one."

Diane crammed the course into nine months of home study, spending holidays reading the texts and weekends doing test essays.

"It was a lot of work for one feature, but I think it was worth the effort as it actually allowed us to test the system rather than just talk about it.

"Sitting alongside all those nervous 18-year-olds in my old school hall was a strange experience and it was weird having no one to compare your answers with.

"Even though the result didn't matter, I was still nervous as hell when I went to pick up my grades from the school."

And her verdict?

"This English Literature exam certainly wasn't any easier than the one I took 19 years ago but if you know the system there are ways of improving your grade."