Y11 2023-24 thread 4

Oh good @Countrylife2002 - well, not good that it was weird but good someone thought that too! I asked if it was bad but she said no, just weird. Tried to get her to elaborate but she is too tired. Science less high stakes for us as not A-level choice. Happy weekend, all. Almost there!

I was just coming onto say I got a ‘weird but good’ message !!

AQA Bio Higher report here was it was "weird"?! Some odd questions, a maths-y question that wouldn't usually come up and so far no two people she's asked got the same answer. She found paper 1 much better than expected. Not choosing any sciences for A-level though. Only four left now - yippee!

DS messaged to say AQA Biology higher paper was ‘beautiful’, which at least suggests there weren’t any really obscure questions or high markers about one tiny bit of the spec (looking at you, Geography!)

Thank you for posting this.very happy to hear that. Bio is one of the hardest for DD with other content heavy subs.
like someone else posted the other day, I get the itch when it’s nearly time to finish the exams, DD would take sweet time to message, so here is my first port of call to check how it went x
on to weekend. Maths Chem and then we have two days off in between, then Physics and Geography I think on 14th.
Can’t wait for this to be over

Daughter really pleased with AQA higher biology. Though she did say for the IVF question that you inject fsh and lh into the egg. But happy with how it went. Biology was her worst science subject over the year.

so sorry for all those with heavy weeks next week.
We have maths, chem and physics, so not bad at all.

dd is still in every day revising at school and revision sessions offered by school. Selective, but they are doing lots of support. Next week she is actually going to take Wednesday off! So we will pack her bag to go on holiday (she needs to pack days in advance)
Then finish with phyiscs on the friday.

Amazingly she has not had a single double exam day. I know we pulled her out of Eng lit and French, but even with those she would not have had a double day.

I do think those double days are hard on them.

Apparently last week there was one group with a triple exam day, they were shadowed by staff all day and started their Spanish exam at 3:30!!!!

@CactusPeach yep Maths, Spanish, History, Chemistry, Geography and Physics next week, it's a stinker of a week.

It's also discouraging. We have this conversation about the Higher Maths paper where anything beyond the staples is where you start moving into grade 8/9.

DD will be happy with a solid 6 in maths but likens the whole experience to being hungry until someone puts a dinner that's too big in front of you and you can't find the appetite to eat anything!

1:30 start for AQA Biology

Thanks @Techno56

Any news on how Biology 2 went this morning?

But for GCSE maths the grades go from (3)/4-9 (you aren't really meant to get a 3 on Higher). So 4,5,6,7,8,9 -> 7 is only half way up the required grades, so not as daft as it seems. (Given they feel a need for a grade 9).

Up until now they've had full school days at DD's school with exams / revision sessions / early morning revision etc timetabled in, attendance expected as normal school days. Yesterday they tell them they only have to come in for the exams from now on. With the result that DD didn't go to the science or maths intervention sessions this morning 😣
Really hoping she goes to the other sessions because I suspect she revises better at school, she's one of those that will NOT let help her at all though so kind of hard to tell.

A level Biology is the same. My DD desperately needed an A and got it with something like 52%. Its ridiculous!

Same with my DD, it's the kids that do double science and both history and geography, guessing your son does Spanish too?

Isn’t GCSE maths higher like this? I always remind dd she only has to get just over half right to get to a 7. Lunacy.

Feeling so sorry for all those with the tail exams exams after next weekend. 😢

Ditto

> fingers crossed not resit required but ... <

Yes! It's going to feel amazing next weekend we have lots planned!

Cannot.Wait

Yes triple higher AQA paper @dinomirror

That's interesting @BlackBean2023 - each school seems to approach it differently. DS started his GCSE options subjects in year 9 so has pretty much spent since October half term of year 11 in revision classes. They have been good about the revision sessions and masterclasses in holidays. They are part of a MAT and seem very competitive within the MAT and with the other comps in the borough.

Me too @Techno56 - this is the first time he's had an afternoon exam without a morning one too. DS seemed very happy though - get up late, leisurely shower, revise, mooch around a bit. I would have been bouncing off the walls! Takes all sorts

Is this triple? Dd thought there wasn't as much content (combined). Worried!

I'm very jealous of your schools doing revision sessions. DD is at a selective school and they don't offer anything like that- she's been on study leave since two days before the first exam.

For the most part it's probably been fine, as the kids are self motivated (and have pushy parents) and I don't suppose it would make much difference to her cohort if the school put on revision sessions as they already have an 80% 7-9 pass rate but there's a few subjects that I think DD may end up with a 5/6 and I wonder if, were she at a school that offered more targeted intervention, would she be a 6/7 instead...