To want 9s not 7s for my child in their GCSEs?

To give a little more context to what some other posters have said, there are two main points to consider here.

1. Since Gove’s 2015 curriculum reforms many GCSE subjects are significantly harder than they used to be, for two reasons. The first is the increase is subject content and, by extension, the increased difficulty of content covered. The second is that many subjects no longer have any form of non-examined assessment, so where in the past students could ‘bank’ marks before the exam for coursework and controlled assessment, it now often all comes down to exam performance. The exception to this is private schools who can opt to do IGCSEs, which often have a significant coursework element, meaning that GCSE and IGCSE grades aren’t comparable.
2. Grade 9s were introduced to take the very top slice of the old A Star performers. I think the logic was to give greater differentiation between students for university entry etc. As others have said, a 9 is like an A Star Star (apologies for writing that grade long-hand but using an asterisk just bolds the text and loses the ‘star’).
3. It’s hard, as a teacher, to confidently predict a Grade 9. You tend to have a gut feeling about a student’s potential, i.e. that it may be possible, but there are many variables, like movable grade boundaries each year and slightly subjective marking in some subjects. Even if you’re absolutely convinced that a student has the skills and knowledge and is doing effective revision, it’s hard to have certainty.

So, in summary, GCSEs are now quite substantially harder than before, and your old A grade is not equivalent to a 9, not even close. More like a 7. Only truly academically exceptional students get 9s.

I hope that helps.

My son attends a grammar school and is bright - but very lazy! He put absolutely no work into his GCSE’s and admitted on the day we went to pick up his results that he wished he had worked. I didn’t put any pressure on his because there was no point. He got 7s&8s and I know he was disappointed. Here we are two years later and his A levels are looming. Again I have no idea if he is actually doing much work at all but he’s 18 and it’s up to him. He is however happy, very sociable and has held down a good part time job since he was 16. There is no point in nagging him as he’s so laid back it makes no difference.

Leave your kid alone. 7 is an A and it’s the rare child who can get 9s in every subject.
One of mine is likely to get 9s in a couple of subjects that they excel at and I mean EXCEL at and have been studying outside of school since the age of 7/8’on top of having talent and aptitude.
The only student I know heading for all 8/9s has a form of autism and can’t look people in the eye when talking to them and is oblivious socially. Probably be running NASA in 20 years though …

There’s no such thing as an extended paper. The exams are all the same. As someone who works in an academic independent day school I think too much pressure is not helpful. The teaching/school environment can have an impact but too much pressure is damaging.

Sadly, I taught some lovely, hardworking, motivated students, who could never have achieved the highest grades, although we all did our very best to support and encourage them. But they and their parents usually realised how well they had done and praised them for their achievements. It was enough.

The main point to consider is whether your child is trying their best and doing what is asked of them. If yes, then their grades are fine. If your child is being lazy and is capable of 9s, then their grades are not really very good.

Child is a model student and no problems with behaviour or attendance. Definitely seems intelligent and diligently completes homework, often without prompting.

If this is the case and they're predicted 6s and 7s, how exactly do you propose they achieve 9s?

I grew up with a parent always wanting me to do better and achieve higher grades despite me trying my best and doing very well as it was. Don’t be that parent. Your child will always think they’re not good enough.

You can want, doesnt mean it wlll happen.

Level 9s were put in place to separate the best students and the elite. In my subject (Art) we are told to expect to see a handful of 9 students in our career. This isn’t the same in other subjects, but when the grading was changed, it was supposed to separate the top 1%. In some subjects it’s more like top 5% statistically.

Aim high, but be realistic. Your DC will not thank you for piling the pressure on, when 6s and 7s is already a great set of grades.

Jumping in a bit but yes, at DC's academic school (indie - but most of the kids either did pass or passed selective/super selective) probably about 20% get all 9s. A large majority of these kids also do jultiple extra curriculars including sports, Saturday jobs and music/LAMDA etc. Very much more scheduled lives than when I was young but they seem happy still and with social lives/parties. The rest get a mix of 7/8/9s. Can be tough with those achieving less than this but, frankly, most were asked to leave in late primary if they were not up to working at this level Which is pretty harsh too.

There are a few who are super anxious and put pressures on themselves (or it's through parents). Think some of it is cultural or some, tbh, is because their parents are teachers. I think they emphasise effort instead of results which should be the way to do it but somehow they still seem quite unhappy/anxious. Anecdata though!!

Bottom line - you do want your child to be happy first and foremost. But also be prepared to gently support them to achieve THEIR best or THEIR potential. Which may be 5s or 9s. Boys in particular can be a bit lazy but those who are seem to eventually get it at A-level. Phew!

What year are they in? No students get their end grade throughout years 10 and 11. They are usually trailing 1 or 2 grades behind because of numerous reasons; don’t revise effectively for assessments, don’t have the full range of exam technique yet, timing, misconceptions with content. They can still achieve 9s but I certainly wouldn’t be piling that pressure on them.

I agree. DC should be aiming for the very best grades they are capable of with hard work- for some that will be passes, for others all 9s.

OP seems to have gone but me too… Mine is likely capable of all 9s and got 7-9s in his mocks, although school generally like to predict down to avoid complacency. We are trying to balance between ensuring that he pushes himself and gets what he is capable of, but at the same time remembering that it’s not the end of the world if he doesn’t get all 9s, as long as he’s tried his best, because sometimes an exam throws a curve ball or you have a bad day.

Please don't be like this.

I was an A+ pupil, but I felt exceptionally pressured. My dad literally used to pay me for every A I got, but nothing at all for any grade less, and I was a kid who never set a foot wrong and always tried my best.

It was incredibly damaging, and I've grown up hating my dad tbh, and with very deep rooted issues that I'm still unpicking in therapy due to my entire childhood feeling like a competition and love that felt conditional dependent on grades.

Edit: sorry, accidentally highlighted some text and idk how to undo it 🤣

I'm not talking 6 and 7s. 3s are good for some.

Mine went to a regular comp. Was a hard worker and model student and received 8s and 9s.
Just to show that it’s not only for privately educated teens to get high marks. Very much possible for state school kids - as long as they are motivated and want to put the work in.

1 In 600 children get all 9s for their GCSEs.

65% are female

Gets it in perspective.

I totally agree that 6s and 7s are great results for many students. I have far more respect for DC who work their arses off to pass than those who do the bare minimum and get 7s while spending hours on Xbox.

Mine should be getting 8's and 9's - aside from a 9 in Maths, he's going to be getting a range between 3 and 6. I pray to God 2 of those are 5's in English. I've done his revision for him and he still doesn't care enough to actually do anything useful himself. I'm a control freak and find it supremely hard not to care too, but the old 'you can lead a horse to water' proverb certainly kicks in with teenagers and their GCSE's. As long as your child is getting the grades they need for their next step, I wouldn't worry too much about what they actually are for GCSE .

My mum had the same attitude.

I was a hard working, high achieving model student and generally good all round. For perspective, I was the highest scoring GCSE student in the school in my year. I also took several a year early (I have 16 in total 😳) and even those I scored higher than the kids a year older who had had an additional years worth of teaching.

Was my mum proud? She never said she was. I vividly remember proudly telling her I got 99% on one exam, her immediate response was "why wasn't it 100%?"

At Sixth Form I went on to do 7 A-levels across three years. Again, despite studying hard (and also working mornings before sixth form and evenings after, in order to pay the rent she insisted I contributed), my best was never good enough.

I went on to go to a top 10 university studying a very specific degree - there were 12 places for my degree program, and I was given one of them.

And I crashed and burned. The pressure of all the years of striving to be perfect, trying to meet my mothers impossibly high expectations finally took its toll. I was burnt out. My mental health nose dived, I could barely function. I was suicidal, ended up under a psychiatrist for several years and all in all it took me a good 12 years to fully recover. And a big part of that recovery, was going no contact with my mum (as well as years of therapy)

Ironically, I am now successful and happy in my career, for which I have no relevant qualifications and my GCSEs and A Levels are irrelevant.

So my suggestion would be...
Celebrate your child's successes
Reward their effort rather than attainment
Don't pressurise

My experience is recruiting grads for professional roles. There is a huge correlation between grades and participation in other activities. The vast majority of applicants I see with 9s at GCSE and A* at A level have also been involved in things like sports, music, debating etc.

In contrast, I often see those (even from top private schools) who scraped 6s and 7s at GCSE and say ABB at A level who’ve done nothing else (probably because they’d rather be on TikTok or Xbox).

I have huge respect for people who work really hard to get 7s, but I wouldn’t be employing those who’ve had huge advantages in life but do the bare minimum and get mediocre grades.

If they get through to Y11 with their mental health intact, an active social circle and 6s and 7s, you've won.

1. Pupil's targets grades are set for teachers not by individual teachers. They generally take into account KS2 SAT scores in maths and English then are fed into something like Fisher Family Trust. These are generally a minimum target grade. However, a pupil's ability in year 6 is only an indication and, just because they achieve high SATs results, is not always a reflection on their future ability. There are different ways of calculating target grades. Pupils should know what their target grades are.
2. Schools would tell parents/pupils if they thought they were underachieving and what they need to be concentrating on in the last few weeks before exams.
3. For some pupils, a lower grade is good for them. It does not mean they have been sitting around on their X Box. It is good for them and is not a reflection on future earnings or career.
4. Exam boards do not write different exams for state and private schools.
5. I have no idea what the extended papers are.
6. I do see, on a daily basis, children with mental health problems who feel they are not good enough, stressed, putting too much pressure on themselves and that is happening more and more. If a child needs a kick up the backside because they're not working, fair enough but for a child who is working hard and trying their best, don't put more pressure on them. They will fall apart.
7. A grade 9 is an A**
8. In my school, we do not mark mocks harder than they should be. We use the relevant mark scheme and grade boundaries.
9. Yes, I do work in a school.

We all parent differently but I always tell mine that it doesnt matter what the outcome is as long as they have tried their best, thats all we can ever ask of them, and thats not accepting less its just celebrating that they have done as much as they can.
Youve just outlined why your child has done that and then expressed your disappointment. I feel sorry for your child.