To think GCSEs and A levels are crazy

With the best will in the world some kids are just not academic what's the point in piling on pressure when it isn't going to achieve anything and just make kids feel evennmore of a failure.?

@Seeline - I think you have a good approach. I have yr11s who play in bands and orchestras, are competitive swimmers or cyclists, do dance and ice skating. There's enough of this to suggest it's manageable, and at least some hobbies are continuing!

Not all of my y11s got grade 9s, but most did well enough to progress to A levels or a college course of their choice. Those who vaped all break time and spent the lesson with their heads on the desk got grades 1-2 and struggled to find a post 16 course.

I don't agree with this. Both mine carried on with a variety of hobbies and interests until they went to uni. And school encouraged extra curricular activities.
My DS did a lot of singing - choirs, concerts etc, and continued with his Scouting commitments as a Young Leader. DD did 3-4 dance lessons a week and continued with her Girl guiding. She also did her DofE, and did knitting/crochet to relax.
Both had active social lives too.
All this was fitted round homework.

How would that be helpful to the many kids who struggle to get a grade 4 ?

I don't think you can change the school system unless you change the whole world we live in.
I know parents who said, don't worry, these exams don't define you, just relax about them.
So they did, came out with 2s and 3s and were then scrabbling around for a college place. Then had to reset English and maths because you can't get through the door anywhere without these.
GCSEs - 4 above a 4 - are the absolute baseline you need to get on and really, it's a disgrace that after 11 years of state funded education that so many kids are leaving without them (SEN aside). That, after all, is the point of going.
So yes, I put pressure on my kids to get through their exams with good results, because a lifetime of experience shows me that doing well in your teens can relieve a lifetime of pressure brought about by working in menial jobs and worrying about where the next penny is coming from.
Parents who try and save their kids from exam stress really are just creating more stress for them over the course of the rest of their lives.
And yes, there's always the off example of such and such who left with nothing and is now a millionaire - but it's not the norm.

YANBU

I live in Sweden and it was quite an eye operner getting my UK grades translated. My UK O-levels/GCSEs are the equivalent of 18/19 year olds school leaving certificate and my A-levels equal to the first year or two of university.

I don’t think there is that much pressure but I’m British Chinese and British people have no idea how much pressure and extra work some Asian parents give their kids. There is a reason that this ethnic group along with Indian children have the best exam results in the UK. Plus some of those kids will also work in the family business, I did.

The whole attitude to parenting is just so very different. I am far less strict than my parents but DS still had the strictest Mum by far diluted by very liberal white DH, we had a few clashes over parenting.

My son has spent his whole school life so far “working towards age related expectations”. He’s around 4 yrs behind due to SEN but we only know what the gap is because a lovely teacher went back and measured him against lower age expectations. Before that, all we knew is he was behind but the bar was about to be raised again as he moved to another year. None of the standard assessments helped us understand the gap prior to that.

We’ve fought for the support, but he’s still assessed with the standard chronological age assessments. He’ll leave school never having passed any test.

I think of him as going to school to be “schooled” and we educate him at home, making small steps progress that school’s assessments will never see.

I think the GCSE system (in England), which is what my child has just been through, is too high stakes. I also dont understand why pupils are put through qualifications they know they won't do well in. It seems so odd that it's not more usual to leave with a mix of level 1 and level 2 qualifications that include gcses and vocational ones too, taken at different points.

It's not really a system set up to show what pupils can do, it more ranks them against there peers.

It depends what you mean by "better".
There are pressures for good results. However, good schools will have processes and procedures in place for support.
Most of the students in my groups get through with no problems, especially with good support from home.
The whole system is ripe for reform imo, until then, we have to follow the process.

In answer to the question, it’s to do with league tables and performance related pay for teachers.

Nobody really cared how we did when I was at school, other than for reasons of wanting the best for us. Everyone went to the local schools, and teachers got paid and progressed through the various pay thresholds regardless of results.

Now teachers are under massive pressure to get results in order to keep the schools up in the league tables, because if parents vote with their feet, bang goes the budget. If they don’t manage to get those results, they’ll quickly find themselves stuck on a lower pay grade and in capability procedures…which can lead to massive stress and often being managed out.

Add Ofsted to the mix and all the stress that brings, and you’ll see that schools are under huge pressure from the top down, and ultimately all that pressure is on the students. That’s why we have a mental health crisis in schools.

I have never taught outside England. Perhaps others could help. The systems are different.
I'm sure you meant NI, because Ireland is an independent nation.

I see. My mistake, apologies.

@BrimfulofSasha - if she "falls apart" during exams, please contact the SENDCO. There are usually support strategies for anxious students.

I think because it does vary, depending on the devolved parts of the UK.

yes they are very full on. My DD did 11 GCSEs and 1 the year before. She got top grades but the amount of work that she did was insane and me telling her to take a break / tone it down was hopeless. I don’t know why they need to do so many. Thankfully she’s now onto A levels and less subjects but no doubt that will all ramp up soon.

What’s with the ‘no UK school system’ comments?

We all know what OP means.

Generally 'best' means most pressured. Sadly the more pressure kids are under, and the more work and study they have been forced to do, the better they perform in exams (a happy relaxed unpressured kid simply won't be stressed and anxious enough to do the mountain of work required to excel). Parents need to be aware of that when choosing a school for their kid. High attainment comes at a great cost to all but the most naturally academic.

As pp have said, there is no "UK school system".
As for your criticisms, I assume you're familiar with the French system?

@JubileeJuice https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/219167/v01-2012ukes.pdf

DD has just started year 10. Oh my goodness from day one of this year every teacher has been hammering home how important exams are and how much work they need to do. Insane to start and then continue with this level of pressure. I don’t remember year 10 being this exam focussed, but maybe it’s because I went to a rubbish school. DD goes to one of the best state schools in the area. She purposefully chose subjects that were more coursework than exam graded as she falls apart during exams