Straw poll for those with dcs in y11 and/ or y13

[nostaples]

If you have dcs in y11 or y13:

1. Is the school still setting work?
2. Are they checking the work is done/ providing feedback?
3. Are they suggesting that work completed after school closure may still contribute to their GCSE/ A Level grade.
4. Do you know what sort of grades to expect your child will achieve? How confident are you that your child will get their university place if in y13.

Thanks

Yr13 DD
1.no
2.no
3.no

1. I know her predicted grades. Feel like they were achievable and hope that she will get her preferred place but who knows?

I’m more worried that this years University students will defer leaving next years places overcrowded.

Who wants kids at university with lots of overseas students?

Or the overseas won’t come til next year making it more overcrowded and less likely a coarse being available

I have a son in Y13. The school are re starting online lessons next week and have implied that they will be able to use evidence from work between now and when they submit their grades in May which I don't think is allowed. These are 2 paragraphs from the Ofqual document sent to teachers. They appear to contradict each other, what does anyone else think?

1. 'DfE have confirmed that they will not hold schools/colleges to account on the basis of exams and assessment data from summer 2020, and that the data should not be used by others, such as Ofsted, local authorities, academy trusts, etc to hold schools/colleges or teachers to account.'

1. 'There is no requirement to set additional mock exams or homework tasks for the purposes of determining a centre assessment grade and no student should be disadvantaged if they are unable to complete any work set after schools were closed. Where additional work has been completed after schools and colleges were closed on 20 March, Heads of Centre should exercise caution where that evidence suggests a change in performance. In many cases this is likely to reflect the circumstances and context in which the work is done.'

No idea about whether he'll get his predictions, just keeping everything crossed and preparing to possibly sit at least one of his A levels in Sep. Although at the moment I can't get him to do any work at all!

1. Yes, lessons on Zoom & Firefly.

1. Yes, one to one catch up with teachers to discuss work done.

1. No, though the expectation is that they will finish coursework still outstanding.

1. Probably 3 Bs or maybe ABB. DD's offer was unconditional so she'll get her university place. Pre pandemic she was planning on deferring for a year and getting a job but she's now decided she will take up her place this September.

y11.

1. yes
2. yes
3. in case they want/need to sit the proposed September exams rather than contributing to teacher assessments.

4 yes

1. No
2. Not applicable
3. Not applicable
4. His predicted grades were 4 x A. His mock results were 4 x A and he got the highest marks in his year group. There's no guarantee that he will get the grades needed for his offer, but we feel hopeful.

@GreenTulip I'm not sure it's been suggested that Uni students defer. My DS is in his final year and he is being graded on his work to date as a minimum mark with any work submitted before the end of the course in May giving them the opportunity to increase the grade but it will not be downgraded. There was no suggestion that they could defer until next year - and unless you had a crap grade, at £000's per year, why would you?
The overseas students may well not come - but who knows what will happen from mid September.

Who wants kids at university with lots of overseas students?

You actually wrote that???

I have one of each

No work set for either

Confident GCSE grades will be a reasonable reflection of ability and enough to get into chosen A level courses

A level grades a different matter

Mocks were either 1 grade above or below ucas predictions but performance over the last 6months has been inconsistent-they tend to pull it out of the bag for formal exams but I'm not sure tutors will factor that in to the calculations

1- 3 NO
4 yes

I feel the school has somewhat washed their hands of y11 from the start of lockdown. The only teacher who is remotely trying is the science teacher, she has started to teach y11/12 stuff 2x week withset homework - according to DD.

I have a DS in Y11

his school are still setting work through school VLE/ paper learning packs which is either

• completing the GCSE syllabus where this hasn't happened
• consolidation of GCSE syllabus areas
• "sideways" challenges relating to the subject probably not on the GCSE syllabus
• GCSE/ A Level bridging work

They are not intending to use it for assessments. Depending on the work he is asked to submit it and teachers mark and give feedback.

We have no idea what grades he will get in most subjects as he's performed inconsistently. His plan is to carry on to school sixth form, so we are reasonably confident there will be some leeway to allow him to carry on to do what he wants even if he doesn't get grades necessary.

Yr 11

1. No
2. No
3. No
4. Yes, I think her predictions reflect her ability and she had very recent mocks in core subjects.

Yes
Yes
Yes
No (ish)

Yr11
1-4 No. Hope as due to stay on in school's sixth form, actual grades will have little bearing on that. School has already done individual application and interview for the sixth form and particular courses, so feel they've had the opportunity to reject already.

1. Is the school still setting work?

Not yet for year 11. They said to continue revising in case they want to resit

1. Are they checking the work is done/ providing feedback?

No

1. Are they suggesting that work completed after school closure may still contribute to their GCSE/ A Level grade.

No. If they raised or lowered a child's ranking due to work done after closure they'd be going against government guidelines.

1. Do you know what sort of grades to expect your child will achieve?

Yes as they've been graded every term.

DD yr 11

The school did set work but with no way of submitting it for marking.
Once exam cancellation announced Head suggested students should complete courses as they are "entitled to that knowledge".

No suggestion that the work would or wouldn't be assessed towards grading.
Last week once the further guidance on how the grades will be assessed were announced they were told not to bother completing their art sketchbook (which was the only work DD was actually doing.)
I think her grades will be as expected. Very much "average" expecting grades 4 &5 in most subjects (doing foundation papers). Hopefully will get higher in art and DT. Don't anticipate issues with her place at sixth form college.

1.Minimal, but they are now uploading A level prep work to be done after Easter

1. No, not really
2. No, absolutely not
3. Very little: we've always been given 'target' rather than predicted grades that are based on their SATS (where ds had two undiagnosed SEN which have now been diagnosed and acted on). I am confident these aren't what they'll use, as ds has been performing 1-2+ grades above nearly all of them so far. However, I know he'll get the grades he needs to progress to A levels and that is all that matters. I can't get too het up if he gets a grade higher or lower than he might have got.

OH, state school (as I am imagining that's a key question you haven't asked: I'd expect all private schools to be setting and marking much more assiduously!

Yes, yes, no, yes

Slightly different as we are in Scotland. With Spring break there were only 3 teaching weeks till the exams started.
Dd2 is in 6th year.

1. Nothing from school but chemistry courses was finished and maths had one short topic to go. Physics is done externally in a local university and classes finished at the same time as the university closed, there were a few online lessons to finish the course.
2. No, but was from physics at first.
3. No but both chemistry and physics suggested finishing and submitting their coursework. Dd had already handed hers in before the closure was announced.
4. Dd will get at least AAB if not AAA for her Advanced Highers given the current guidance to Scottish schools. She has already accepted her university place as she had unconditional offers based on her Highers last year but lots of her friends are worried.

Year 11 parent

1. Is the school still setting work? They were until the government announcement about how GCSEs would be awarded last week
2. Are they checking the work is done/ providing feedback? no
3. Are they suggesting that work completed after school closure may still contribute to their GCSE/ A Level grade. no
4. Do you know what sort of grades to expect your child will achieve?

mine were halfway through the second set of mocks when the school closed and we didn’t get the results for the ones taken. DT1 will be 7/8 with maybe one 9. DT2 really can’t tell, he didn’t do very well in English and maths first set of mocks and had worked really hard for the second set. I’m hoping 5s with a couple of 6s. I think that the college will be a bit more forgiving about grades so both will get onto their a level courses.

As much as a worry as it is for my year 11, I’m very very grateful that they’re aren’t waiting on A level results for Uni.

No, no, no, yes have an of predicted grades - not confident they won’t change.
Year 11, going on to do btec for which it seems more difficult to find pre work

1. Is the school still setting work? y13 college, yes
2. Are they checking the work is done/ providing feedback? Yes I think so
3. Are they suggesting that work completed after school closure may still contribute to their GCSE/ A Level grade. No. I don’t think so
4. Do you know what sort of grades to expect your child will achieve? How confident are you that your child will get their university place if in y13. I am hopeful she will get the grades needed.

I have one of each and I’m a teacher.
My year 13 got her offer grades in mocks, has been told to complete her coursework but otherwise nothing.
My year 11 under achieved in mocks. She’s being given a lot of intensive work.

My students are being asked to continue to work. For some who are borderline based on the evidence I have it will matter a lot, others I’m just keeping busy.