Y11 2023/24 thread 5 - results!

What is also worrying about your DS's marks being so off is that I bet we can pretty much guarantee it's the middle classes who can a) afford a review and b) are more likely to push for one and therefore widening the attainment gap even further. My headteacher friend says it's shocking how far out some of the marking of A levels are. It's scary.

This is great for your DS! But also very worrying! This happened to a friends’s dd last year. Makes it seem like pot luck what mark you get !

DD has asked for the school to look her physics which is 2 off an 8. She doesn’t need it, but I can understand that she’d like it to be an 8!
I’m not fully across this, the school make the decision on asking for a review right? (But then I pay ?🤨). How long would it take for them to receive the script and look it over ? Are teachers back or would this now not happen until term starts? I don’t want to miss any deadlines.. DD had a tutor for physics so in theory I could also ask her to take a look as DD’s physics teacher was not very ‘present’. But I’m hoping the head of science would be doing this rather than the individual teacher?

@OhMrBennett I sort of hope they're being obstructive rather than not knowing what they're on about!

Thank you for the advise, that's really helpful. We have three subjects, so I've checked boards, AQA and Edexcel, checked the info from the exam board and they advise you to get a copy of the script before asking for a review. It seems it's my DD's school that's putting the barrier in place, telling us that if we have a copy of script we cannot then ask for a review! I have sent an email to the exams officer, let's see what she responds with.

Yes, if DS was getting 8's, that would have done him fine, too. Sadly not!

Wow! Same here in that DD is a few marks off some boundaries (I think 2 or 3 off a grade 9 in both Chem and Maths) but nobody has suggested a review, and I don’t really see much point myself. She doesn’t want to apply to Oxbridge or anything so 8s will do her just fine.

DS has just had his English Lit review back, and paper 2 has gone up by 10 marks, which does improve his grade. It's definitely worth doing. He was either 2 or 3 short of the grade boundary, but I can't remember which 😁😁😁

Oh bless her @Johaanah - I'm pleased she found a school which sounds much better for her.

Same here @Pharos I've just posted on the new Year 12 thread that DS has two which some schools it seems would routinely review (one grade boundary and one mark off grade boundary). However the school have said they will only review if the student requests it. I'd have thought they'd want to do it for their own stats. They are very competitive within their MAT- always vying for "top school" status.

@Johaanah So pleased to hear it’s worked out for your dd, sounds like the new place will be a much better fit for her all round.

It’s interesting hearing about how schools approach reviews - ds’s school is completely hands-off. He’s had no contact at all, even though a couple were just off the next grade. It’s very much up to the student to judge if they want to review.

Oh your poor DD. I'm so glad it's worked out and she's got a place at a school that sounds more supportive.

Hi!

I just wanted to update from my post on results day last Thursday.

DD failed maths and therefore wasn’t able to enrol on the BTEC she had her heart set on at a school sixth form, she was absolutely devastated and the school were not very sympathetic and there was no wiggle room even though the subjects she wanted to study had no maths requirement. She cried for the whole of Thursday and most of Friday and really felt like she failed everything even though she had good passes in all other subjects.

Anyway, today she has been offered a place at a different sixth form in a school much further away, the head of sixth has been so supportive, welcoming and kind and it’s really opened my eyes to the difference between teaching staff. She starts next week and is so happy even though it wasn’t where she thought she would be.

I’d also like to say thanks to all of the posters on here that offered support and advice when I really didn’t know where to look or what to do.

True!!

Sensible to check - "was robbed" isn't on the list of reasons OFQUAL allow, sadly!

Aah thank you- we requested copies. Yes, my son ‘struggled’ with English Lang so we got a tutor- we showed her the copies and she said he ‘was robbed’. I do trust her judgement as she was against reviewing until we showed her the paper- but I’m waiting for the opinion of his Head of English as well before we go forward.

@FrankWelker as long as you've not requested originals, you can request a review. Not a remark - that doesn't exist.

I assume whoever has looked at the scripts believes that the marks awarded are unreasonable, rather than that someone might find a few more marks.

Apologies MrsHamlet. So looking at the AQA info above, if you have requested ATS, can you then request a remark? We have just requested ATS for Language, got copies, and have been advised to get it re-marked (obviously at additional cost). Thanks for all your help in this thread!!

@OhMrBennett that's true with some boards - you can check for yourself, but AQA info is here: https://www.aqa.org.uk/exams-administration/after-results/post-results

You need post results services.

You need to request copies of scripts, not originals. If you get those, you definitely can't do any more.

A bit late, but hoping that someone can help. My daughter is borderline on three of her grades, so before asking for a review of her papers as it's going to be quite expensive, I thought I would ask for a copy of her script. The school are charging me £7.50 per exam paper (I have 7 that I would need). The school have also written, that if I request a copy of the script, I cannot then request a review afterwards. Is this correct? As in, this is what the exam board have stipulated or is this a barrier put in place by her school? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

The best advice you can get on reviews is from people who really understand the exams, their marking and the review process.

For anyone who missed it there is already a year 12 support thread.

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/further_education/5148656-year-12-202425-support-discussion-and-looking-after-each-other

Not wishing to undermine your new one @Waspie but it's probably easier to all be on one thread.

You get such different advice about reviewing. DD looked at her marks and is close to the grade boundary for a few. Heard nothing from school. A friend who is a headteacher said it's worth it if its <3 marks from the boundary (depends a bit on the subject). But people on here are saying something different.

I'm Scottish and back in my day then the school organised it all but there was a feeling that they were less likely to put your grade up from a B to an A than from a D (a fail) to a C. So the fact that DD has to be the one to contact school and that we have to pay is all new. We'll probably ask for a review for the result that's closest to the boundary and would potentially be a jump from a 6 to a 7 but for not for the 8 to 9 jump because what would be the benefit there? But I can afford to throw away £50 and it won't affect DD going forward.

I've started a Year 12 support thread for next week: Year 12 - 2024/25 | Mumsnet Please join me 😊

@Newlease Extra-curricular activities are largely irrelevant for UK university entry (with a few exceptions such as volunteering for medical school applicants, and some elite sportspeople). On the other hand, when people talk about supra-curricular activities for e.g. Oxbridge entrance it means studying your target subject over and above the curriculum requirements. Reading around the subject, taking part in Olympiads if relevant, writing competitions etc. A keen student will be taking up these opportunities anyway.

What is your DD hoping to study at university? Unless it’s Drama I would think the chances of any university caring about a grade in Drama for a student with 9s in the two English GCSEs are vanishingly small. A few medical schools might apply their algorithm and rank her a bit lower for having a less than “perfect” set of GCSEs, but that’s about it. And an 8 in German in excellent anyway.

My DD got 8,8 in Combined Science and was one mark off a 9,8. The school wanted her to put in for a review “just in case” but she laughed it off saying she’s never going to be a scientist, the 8,8 was a fair reflection of her ability and she didn’t think it would make the slightest difference to her future if she got 9,8 rather than 8,8. She’s looking to the future and browsing university courses (not in science!). Your DD also will have wonderful opportunities ahead with her excellent results. Best of luck to her.

Crikey my DD would be over the moon with one 8