2018 Scottish Exam Support Thread

[Groovee]

Practicals have already started for many, folios are being worked on... here's the 2028 thread to get us through.

I have Dd sitting 3 highers and D's sitting 6 Nat 5's. Oh the stress.

[ttlshiwwya]

I will join. One left at school. My most hard working one - sitting 8 national 5s. Just her art folio to finish. Only problem is that she'll be devastated by anything less than 8As. Don't know if this is worse than my boys (epecially my DS2) who weren't too bothered.

[WaxOnFeckOff]

I'm here yet again! DS1 3 AHs which he doesn't need to pass and DS2 with 4 Highers and Nat 5 maths...again!

He is due to confirm his 6th year options tomorrow and I don't think he is making the right choice but at the end of the day it is his choice.

[nothruroad]

Oh my God, I can’t believe it’s time for this already. I was just about to go to bed and now I’m all stressed again. And I’m just a teacher, not a pupil or parent!

[howabout]

I have DD1 doing Highers and DD2 doing Nat5s. Unbelievable amounts of stress atm due to all the portfolio stuff being finished off. Oh for the days when you just hoped for the best on exam day.

[prettybird]

Ds spent the day yesterday at Glasgow Uni on his AH Physics assignment (on Plank's Constant whatever it is ) . Took him much longer than expected - but it turns out that there was probably a fault in the machine as it wasn't giving accurate enough results. He's now going to incorporate that finding into his assignment.

Fortunately, he doesn't appear to be susceptible to unconditionalitis - it helps that he's not yet heard from his preferred choice, Edinburgh. And as I said to him last night, even if he were to get an unconditional (or even a rejection - in which case he falls back on his unconditional from Aberdeen) from Edinburgh, it would be a shame to waste his hard work over the last 6 months.

[Glendee]

Tension is mounting in our house! I’ll be glad when it’s all over.
I have DD1 sitting 2Advance highers and 2 crash highers, needs one of her highers to meet conditional offer from Edinburgh uni (even though she got 5 straight A’s in her highers last year). DD2 sitting 6 Nat 5s.
Best of luck to everyone.

[Lidlfix]

Battle scarred veteran of exam threads reporting for yet another wait. DD3 and 7 Nat 5s. She's a worrier so it'll feel like a long stretch.

[Groovee]

DD's drama exam is on Tuesday!

[decena]

DD sitting 6 Nat5s (all her school allows). Has done her assignments (chemistry, biology, geography) and her English portfolio without any input or assistance from me which should be a good thing but I wonder that other kids have had these spoon fed to them by parents/ teachers and she will lose out?!

French speaking was 28/30 which I thought was fab but then she said that was the norm and it was common to get 30/30. I was crushed! She isn't taking French to higher although she expects A in her N5, she hates the grammer.

Does anyone know if they get told their assignment marks before the exam or is it just part of the final overall result? She did her chemistry several months ago and didn't have a clue what she was to do and the teacher provided no guidance.

[WaxOnFeckOff]

The results of the assignments will only ever be known if you get the component marks after the results are out. All she will get us her overall grade from the SQA. The break down of the results and actual scores go to the school and you may or may not be able to get those from them. If it's any comfort, we've had no input to any of the assignments/portfolios either so your DD is definitely not alone.

[wigglybeezer]

prettybird DS2 was sent a slightly stern letter by Edinburgh telling him not to slack off with his AHs and to inform them immediately if he dropped one! They are obviously well aware of unconditionalitis.

DS2 has finished his English dissertation and handed in a draft of his History one, also finished National 4 Art! Still a way to go with the dreaded turgid Geography.

[prettybird]

Ds has now told me of the letters that the Unis are sending out to anyone who has an unconditional.

Still not heard from Edinburgh

Ds went to supported study yesterday for his AH Maths and is going again tomorrow - missing rugby training to go!

[WaxOnFeckOff]

Still not heard from Edinburgh here either and DS1 hasn't had any letters, stern or otherwise from anyone yet.

He is apparently on track with both his CS and Physics AH assignments. DS2 has now completed his assignments for Music and Modern Studies and is on the last draft of his English and still has a fair bit to do for Geography.

[WickedGoodDoge]

DS is sitting 8 Nat5s. He says all of his assignments are done now. I’m at a disadvantage being foreign and haven’t a clue as to how all this works! DS takes full advantage of this by just casually mentioning, “oh, that’s x finished up today” and I didn’t have a clue he was working on it!

He can’t wait to get Spanish over and done with. It’s his weak spot. He got a C in his prelim (one mark off a B) and he joined the class a year and a half late but languages are a struggle for him anyway. He hates them! I am nagging him about studying Spanish, just pushing through these last few weeks, but other than that, am leaving him to it with studying.

On a side note, I’m trying to promote a local petition. West Lothian Council is proposing to remove all strings and percussion tuition (and associated ensembles) while retaining free tuition for brass and woodwinds.

This is going to have a terrible impact on the overall provision of tuition (reduction of 27%) and will greatly impact students wanting to go down the Nat5/Higher route. We know cuts have to be made and are not fighting them, but we want the Council to go back and look at fairer methods (e.g. charging across all instrument groups, charging for concerts, private sponsorship opportunities etc).

Should anyone be inclined to sign our petition, it’s here:

you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/save-strings-tuition-in-west-lothian-schools

Or if anyone has gone to battle with a Council over how cuts are implemented and has any advice, I’d greatly appreciate any suggestions by PM.

[Sevendown]

DS is doing 8 Nat 5s.

He should get all A’s but he suffers from overconfidenceitis and makes silly mistakes like missing out questions!

[howabout]

Wicked being foreign doesn't put you at much of a disadvantage. I am so old I sat O Grades and so have no clue about any of the assignment stuff. That said I didn't get involved in DD1's last year and they were fine. This year DD2 asked me to read over one of her English essays and then proceeded to tell me I had absolutely no idea what the object of the exercise was and so I should just butt out - I have taken her at her word and she now seems happy she has it covered. Fingers crossed.

We have had similar issues with music provision in our council. It is really frustrating because one year they cut all the funding and then the next they reinstate it slightly differently and wonder why they don't have a pool of eager students ready to sign up. No advice other than taking what opportunities are available and if you are able to supplementing privately. The one upside is that the DC don't develop over reliance on "inspirational" mentors but are much better at seeking out what they want.

[Mrscaindingle]

I need to join this, DS1 sitting 5 highers, we sailed through Nat 5's so obviously it's payback time.

We are having drama over the Drama exam next Tuesday, yesterday DS didn't go to school and was in tears for most of the day as according to him his teacher sat him down on Thursday and told him he is going to fail it. School are disputing she actually said this but he is adamant that she did. I'm upset because it's a bit late in the day to turn things around and am struggling to give him the confidence he needs to go and do it on Tuesday. Aagh....I opened the last night.

[WickedGoodDoge]

Thanks howabout. My DC are at a private school where we pay for lessons on top of the school fees so they aren't actually impacted but I played the violin growing up and am in a whirlwind of fury about it, hence my getting involved. We've got a little group going and are not giving up!.

[dementedma]

DS has two Highers and and 3 Nat 5s. The only one he cares about is his Nat 5 sound tech which he got over 90% in in his prelims. he either failed or scraped the others. If he fails Higher English i will throttle him. Even musicians need to be literate!!!
No sign of any revision even being considered in the future as all his time is spent practicing his bass for The Little Shop of Horrors school show in June!
I swear he will be the death of me.

[WaxOnFeckOff]

Ds2 is a much happier boy this year and seems confident enough about English to have put down to do AH next year! He feels he is doing better in Maths (Nat5) this year but he keeps saying that most of the class don't have a clue and he is doing better than them. I keep reminding him that the SQA don't give a toss if he gets more than everyone else in the class, they only care whether he gets over the pass mark or not. He either failed or scraped his prelims but he did no work whatsoever for them and has promised to do better.....

Also still playing the Bass (and guitar too) but now that he has done his practical he is trying to focus on the written exam and he is struggling since we aren't musical and he didn't do Nat 5.

[dementedma]

wax I think we might share a son...
DS hated nat 5 maths last year and we were all staggered that he passed it. He is doing Nat 5 music this year and Nat 5 sound tech, and will do them both as Highers in S6.

[WaxOnFeckOff]

I think we do :) He applied to do sound at college on day release last year but didn't get a place so ended up crashing Geography higher which he hates. He's chosen AH English, Higher History which he wanted to do last year but it couldn't be accommodated on the timetable and also Higher Politics. It was a choice between that and Philosophy which he really wanted to do but it was in the same column as Politics. It's also the same column for Nat 5 Maths again so that's another incentive for him to pass it as he really doesn't want to do it again next year!

[dementedma]

It's a bugger when the columns don't work out. I know they can't possibly accommodate the choices of every pupil but DS has really struggled with his choices and ended up with subjects he didn't want to do just because its what was in the column - a factor in the poor attendance, although not excusing it. I think he has chosen Higher History next year to go with Music and Sound....
I suspect a re-sit of Higher English will be on the cards

[WaxOnFeckOff]

Yes, I appreciate that it's not easy to accommodate everyone, you'd think though that out of two DSs are 3 times of choosing each, that it might have worked out for one of them once. :(

[WickedGoodDoge]

DS just chose his Highers for next year and really really wanted to do both Engineering Science and Computing Science. I think he would have happily sacrificed English. Sadly for him, he is not allowed. Engineering Science won out.