My sons mock results are poor. With GCSEs cancelled has he any chance to improve?

[TheLastDandelion]

If it were normal times I would get him a tutor. But with exams not going ahead is there any point?

He was predicted 7s and 8s and has got 4s and 5s in his mocks.

I dont know what to do. Is that it? Is that what his GCSEs will be based on.

He's had such a rough year. His mental health has plummeted. He's had no motivation.
I've tried but I'm a single mum to 4.

4 sets of teachers emailing me. 4 sets of zoom.

It's been a nightmare.

I'm heartbroken. I was told expectations were high for him. I was told he had amongst the high predicted grades in the whole year, in Yr 10.

Could you contact the head of year or form tutor and ask them? I think schools are planning another set of exams so the mocks shouldn't be the results he is given, plus they can use class work etc to inform them I think.

How responsive are his school?
You could email HOY to discuss it

I have emailed his HOY. I was just wondering if anyone else is in the same situation

My DD is y11 and is also having MH issues to the extent that she hasn't been accessing school at all since April, so i get how you are feeling.

Our school are sending out the message that the pupils still have everything to play for, that they expect to be doing another round of assessments at some point, that engagement and homework will be taken into account.

That said, MH is more important than GCSE results. 4s and 5s are still passes. Provided school/college accept him to next courses the actual GCSE grades won't matter much in the long run, this year of all years.

Can he be encouraged to focus on the subjects that he will (presumably) be doing A levels in? He needs the knowledge / skills for that, even if the GCSEs are cancelled.

It's likely that there will be an assessment window in the summer term as far as I am aware.

DD got her mock results on Friday and her predicted grades on Saturday, predicted grades were higher in some subjects and none were lower.
Luckily we get predicted grades at the end of every term so it’s very easy to make the final prediction and prove it if necessary.
DD is still having some exams set by school though.
I think if school are good at continuous assessment then your DS might be ok

When were his mocks? Did he do them online?

If he hasn't been motivated or working during lockdown, then I'm afraid that's what will happen - he won't do as well as predicted. I'm sorry. I'd talk to his teachers, urgently.

And to your son. They are his exams - he's the only one who can work for them. His attitude needs to change.

All his peers are going through lockdown; it's not just him. If he's really struggling, have you accessed help for him?

The government has said that GCSEs this year will be decided by teachers, based on school work, assessments and mocks. Your son may be able to improve his grades if he works really hard from now on.

How does your son feel about this? GCSEs are important, I'm not saying that they're not, but his mental health and wellbeing must come above everything else.

DS did 'OK' with his mocks last year and his GCSE results were fine - not outstanding, but fine. It got him the results he needed to stay on to do his A levels which was what he wanted.

He spent the previous two years with everyone at school telling him he could expect 8 & 9s and how he would be a superstar when it came to results and it was just too much pressure on him. He felt that he just couldn't cope with the expectations and completely took his foot off the gas. I should say that the pressure was really from school - I have always told him to do his best and try hard but I actually had to talk to school and ask them to back off. I'm all for encouragement but it was just too much for him. Could this have been the case for him? I agree with a PP, talk to his HOY and take it from there.

I don't think anyone really knows the details at this point. But I would certainly not expect his final marks to be equal to his mocks, though they are likely to be taken into account. In a normal year many pupils go up significantly between their mocks and final marks, especially if they do not put in much work for their mocks. Last year my son's GCSE marks (based on teacher evaluations) were about 2 marks high than the mock marks. Predictions immediately after mocks had been somewhere inbetween (I think they were a bit mean and they were trying to scare him a bit). Have word with the teachers about whether tutoring can affect GCSE results now. There was talk of mini exams wasn't there? Or even if they can't affect results much, it could be useful preparation for the next stage.

I am interested in similar advice.

DD is similar her predicated grades weren’t as high as your DD’s as were a combination of 5’s, 6’s, the odd 7 and some 3’s and 4’s. She is also dyslexic so was entitled to extra time. Her mock results were abysmal 2 U’s, one 6, 3’s and 2’s. I emailed HOY after an email saying one of her grade 7’S was downgraded to a 6 (due to a mistake on a spreadsheet). I was given short change and advised to ask DD to email teachers for feedback!!! DD is extremely quiet so no way will she do this.

She was so cold during the mocks (freezing cold classrooms/exam halls) northern england with windows open all day from first thing only allowed to wear jumpers that she didn’t take her extra time as it would have meant staying behind beyond the school day with an invigilator (which she described as creepy old men she didn’t know).

I think she is depressed and missing her friends working from home as none of her friends live close by so she hasn’t even seen them since before Christmas as I am CEV. Also her grandad died during lockdown 1 so she had to say goodbye to him via video call. Its just so awful for this year group.

4s and 5s are still passes. Provided school/college accept him to next courses the actual GCSE grades won't matter much

Our sixth form entry requirements are 5 grade 6s, and 6s in the subjects chosen, seems to be the same for others nearby as well

OP finding the same here. With the grades etc. When I spoke to sixth form admissions they said something about a 5 now is in line to improve to a 6 in the late spring, when exams are. But that was before they were cancelled.

DS also entitled to extra time in exams but as they are not going ahead he won't get that either. They have predicted grades based on general coursework.

it would have meant staying behind beyond the school day with an invigilator (which she described as creepy old men she didn’t know)

I'm sure your dd meant 'people who have been employed by the school and DBS checked', @Randomrebel

Many invigilators are retired, sure, because this means they're free to invigilate at exams, which are held during the working day. Your dd made a poor choice there. Why would she have expected to know an invigilator? Most are only employed for exams. And were they really all 'creepy'? I'm sure not.

Sorry my dd did make a poor choice not taking the extra time she was awarded (but she was shivering and practically blue when I picked her up) and a bad choice of words but she didn’t feel comfortable in a freezing cold old hut (away from the main school) in December in uniform just a jumper (no coat), the invigilator was 20 minutes late arriving at the hut (where the exams were taking place) so they had stood outside in the cold and rain in school jumpers. The invigilators weren’t keen on them staying behind (she wasn’t in separate room so most other kids were packing up and leaving) and in the north it was dark before 4pm. She was asked if she really wanted her extra time and didn’t feel comfortable staying behind in a freezing cold hut (any longer) when it would be getting dark soon and most people had already left.

Well, which is it, @Randomrebel? The post you've just added is a much better list of reasons for your dd not staying behind. No need to mention 'creepy old invigilators' at all. I hope you picked your dd up on her casual ageism.

Also, your dd will have to get used to emailing her teachers for feedback on work. That is literally how she will improve. If she's quiet, then surely emailing is easier for her than speaking to them?

Yes I doubt they were all creepy but she did definitely did look extremely cold, uncomfortable and was shattered as school had asked them to come into school before 8am for morning exams and with the invigilators being late and or people messing about (who weren’t entitled to extra times and because their lunch breaks have been moved (due to covid protocols) extra time for mocks had to be taken in her own time (which was too much at the end of the day with all the pressure this year group have lived with for almost a year).

It was a combination DD is very stressed and on a short fuse so no I didn’t pick her up on her ageism as such. But I did say I’m sure they weren’t creepy etc. She is quiet doesn’t want any attention (good or bad) from teachers so I have suggested she emailed, explained why (several times) but each times things get heated and she either shouts or bursts into tears and just refuses.

HOY is calling tomorrow.