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Original poster

How common is it to get an exam question on topic not covered in revision guide or class?

102 replies

Trevors · 26/05/2021 05:55

So ds just had yr 10 English lit exam. Essay theme was something that isn’t mentioned anywhere is his revision books. It hadn’t been covered in class teaching either.
I’m guessing that once in a while this could happen in a real yr 11 gcse exam but in that case the students would normally have had two full years of teaching so should know the text really well. Current year 10s have had nothing like the teaching they should have had over one year.
What would be the motivation for school setting an obscure theme like this? Ds is really disappointed. For the very first time ever he actually did some revision but now he feels like he wasted his time as no matter how throughly he might have revised he would never have covered this. So, in his eyes now, all revision is pointless and all teachers are just trying to make life difficult and catch students out.
He has been struggling so much with his mental health over the last year, like so many teenagers. This is a blow to his confidence that he just didn’t need right now. I know lots of you will say life is tough, they have just got to suck it up, but honestly, I think they have sucked up enough shit over the last year and this was just unnecessary.

OP posts:
redcarbluecar · 26/05/2021 06:13

Maybe school hoped that students would know the literary text well enough to be able to discern the relevant theme, however it’s a bit tough on them if it was really obscure. If the exam doesn’t count for much ie not the final GCSE, maybe the school were trying to show that it can be a tough test.

balloonsintrees · 26/05/2021 06:04

Go back to the exam board specification, if it is on there then questions can be asked on it no matter how obscure.
However, as teachers are setting the questions (using those sent out by exam boards) then it should have been covered? Possibly a discrete word with the school? Maybe the head of English determined the exam questions without discussing with the dept. as to what they had already covered.
Teachers aren't out to entrap, honest, my ethos is very much ensuring my students have every opportunity to prove to me how amazing they are and for me to guide them to achieve the best for them as an individual.