How hard is it to get a 9 gcse grade

[LovelyYellowLabrador]

? Like how common

It was supposed to be a % of the top grades - so only so many people could get a 9 every year, whereas technically everyone else could get an 8 or a 7 if they got a high enough score.

But 2020-21 saw all that fly out of the window and they were given our left right and centre

ofqual.blog.gov.uk/2017/04/05/setting-grade-9-in-new-gcses/

It was supposed to be a high A* so very difficult to get, but DDs friends still got a string of them (some got all 9s).

I agree that you can play the system (or you could) by doing past papers.

Our family can't write essays for toffee, but DS found out a way the 'science-ify' it by picking out key words and elements that needed to be included. Both DS and DD then got 9s.

We are waiting for my daughters (year 10) predicted grades but based on her raw scores if they translate to gcse grade boundaries is probably looking at a couple of 9's, a couple of 6's and the rest 7/8 (they were doing past paper stuff)

Interestingly you saw about lower grades being devalued as to her a 6 will be worthless even though that's a 'b' on old money. Given it's science which she doesn't like and finds hard I would be quite happy with a 6 for her!

She sat 11+ but didn't pass well enough to get in so she is fairly bright but what I would say is she is very organised and methodical in her revision. She goes off and finds past papers online to do at home. She plans her questions so rather than start at the beginning and work through she will plan a path - eg in English start with the 40 marker and then go back to others.

I would say it's that organisation that will probably help her get the higher grades.

I would add in English their teacher always goes through example of work they have done on screen to the class (usually names blanked out!) and tells them exactly why that example got the score it did - what they would need to do to get full marks if it didn't have it already.

It was unfortunate that Covid which caused massive grade inflation happened just after L9 was introduced. It will be interesting to see exactly how the ‘between 2019 and 2021’ thing pans out for GCSE results this summer across the whole cohort and in individual subjects and boards.

Some highly selective schools always get high percentages getting L8/9 - can be 80% or more. Other schools have hardly any of those grades. When a new grade is introduced it starts off harder to get a even top schools will have just a handful with top grade across board and many others with good smatterings, and within a couple of years, teachers master the mark schemes more and the kids are more highly trained and more get the grades.

This year, they say that in languages, they need to be closer to 2021 boundaries not 2019 boundaries as the boundaries made languages not compatible with other subjects in difficulty to get top grades. Given that in many subjects, you can get L9 with perhaps 75%, I think it gives an unsatisfying learning experience for most. If even the very top students routinely cannot get 1/4 of the marks, then those getting L7 are often losing almost half the marks and those on L5 or L6 probably never getting over 50%…and these are solid grades. To me, it suggests the subjects are too difficult, because it should be possible for the very top students to get close to 100%. For those gwtting L3/4 they might only ever be on 25%. It’s totally demoralising.

One of the things in humanities is the massive time pressure. They have to do so much in such a short time period, and the demands for top levels are pretty unachievqble in the tight time. Therefore they can’t achieve it and that’s why the grade boundaries have to be low. When they understand that getting 6/8 for a question will be good enough, or 12/16 will be L9 they don’t feel so anxious, but often the very clever really want to get full marks and can feel demoarlaised when it’s not possible. And to be honest, what’s the point of having things required in the top levels of mark schemes which you simply cannot produce in the time allocated? What it means is either examiners become very liberal in their interpretation of the mark scheme so they can apply the full range, or more likely, quite simply the grade boundaries drop hugely. Every year in Maths, someone will come onto say something like 21% achieved a pass grade.

I know swathes of teens who got all 8/9 grades in 2019. They go to highly selective schools, are bright (not genius level but bright) and well taught, coached and work hard. It’s enough at GCSE. Even at A Level, hard work and being well taught with a modicum if intelligence is enough to get most students a B and probably an A.

9 Good grades too

Thanks for info
puts it into some sort of context

AQA History is an example of this. There are very specific ways you need to jump through the hoops. Thank goodness for YouTube videos.

I don't like 9s. To me they add stress to more anxious students, and seem to exist for boasting rights of parents and schools. They add no value, and A levels exist to separate brighter students.

My son got grade 9 across the board, he honeschooled himself since age 13 and the information is all free online.

Wow
Just 837 students in the whole country got all 9s in 2019 so he did amazingly. Out of 700 000 students! Great achievement.
Those other students should go online more, hey!

(it did go up to a couple of thousand students getting all 9s in the pandemic years of teacher assessed grades, but I don't know how that worked for home schoolers?)

Ime 9s differentiate bright but lazy students from the bright and hardworking. It's possible for relatively bright DC to pick up a 7 or 8 without much work but harder to get a 9 that way.

My DC are all expected to get 9s in tests/assessments as I know that's what they're capable of when they apply themselves fully. In that regard having the 9 grade available is useful as it shows me whether the DC are genuinely working hard or doing the minimum and trying to scrape an A*.