To not believe my friend about DDs GCSE's...

[adhominemhaterr]

My friends daughter sat her first two maths GCSE papers (one last month and one yesterday).
After the first exam, she texted me asking about my daughters maths exam, she's claiming her DD was given an AQA paper when the school they're at only offers edexcel.
She also says her DD was given lots of questions based on topics she hadn't studied for.
Is there any way her DD could've been given an AQA paper by mistake? Surely this would have been noticed?
My DD definitely did an Edexcel paper, not AQA....

I can't help but think she is lying about this. Why would the school order one AQA paper by mistake when the exam boards are completely separate!?
She is now writing a complaint!

Ncpuffin - what you say couldn't possibly be true - I know in my DCs school the had all the science exams in the same hall so triple and double, of course a student wouldn't have to have done the wrong paper if there'd been a mistake. I think sometimes they might even have 2 different subjects, common sense would tell you they couldn't be forced to do the wrong subject.

Never worked in a school where they did 2 different boards for one subject except at a level, where they might switch boards, so eg GCSE AQA, A level Edexel. Seems crazy. I think the mum was lying. This would be picked up by the exams officer, the invigilator, the child, the exam boardwhen the paper is returned etc. There are way too many layers.

I’m marking exams this year, the teachers have presented the papers well, done a register, exams officer packed and sent the materials, I then send it back to the exam board. Too many checks in place, an incorrect paper would’ve been/will be picked up.

Well....has she spoken to the school about it? This seems extremely odd as exam papers are checked and rechecked in conditions of great security. Is she an attention seeker at all? Her or her DD?

Why do you care? It’s not your child and if she’s doing what you think she’s doing (preparing for a bad result) then be gracious and acknowledge that her child may be v upset

If she's always off school she'll be clueless about the topics. Is she suffering from ill health ?

Why didn't she day something after the first exam? She'll look rather foolish complaining if her DD is wrong and can't decipher what the exam board is.

@Strongmummy
I wanted to know whether or not this mistake was possible.

Why though? The woman is quite capable of asking the school as it effects her child. It’s really not your issue.

All the invigilators instructions and info comes with the papers. You would notice if these were different from the papers. There’s also an exam timetable up in staff room etc, all papers come out if the safe just before and you have to check the unopened packets are for the listed exam. Just can’t see it.

OP, even if this happened (which I doubt), the maths syllabus for each board is almost identical and covers pretty much the same stuff. I tutor maths at GCSE and often give pupils papers from other boards to give a bit of variety - and a lot of my pupils tell me their schools do this too. It's not like History or English lit where you might read entirely different texts or study different topics and really would be in trouble with the wrong paper.

The boards sometimes ask the questions in a slightly different way, but I wouldn't expect a student to do significantly worse on a maths paper from a different board.

The names are not written on beforehand, either, the student does that. And schools will have told students over and over AND at the start of the exam if anything is wrong/ paper not right in any way to put their hand up and say.

I call bollox.

ask candidates to check that they have been given the correct paper for the subject, unit/component and tier, if appropriate;

OP, when invigilators invigilate, there are a set of instructions they MUST read to candidates and procedures they must follow. This is common to all exam boards who draw up a set of instructions between them which must be followed for all exams. I've been an invigilator and it's all very strictly controlled. The bold above is in the invigilator's instructions to candidates before the exam. The requirement to say this is in bold print in the instructions so it cannot be missed. The invigilator will have said the above. So even if she was given the wrong paper (which she wouldn't have been, and which wouldn't have mattered much anyway in maths), the school would be well within their rights to say "tough, she was told at the start of the exam to check".

Your friend is going to make herself look stupid if she complains.

Why on earth do you care?

Just that Museumland. If the DM is lying or covering up she's only to be pitied and making her and her DD look silly

Exactly @monty and @museum. This OP is just rather sad when there’s a kid who’s probably fucked up her maths paper here.

OP - you only need to concern yourself about your own kid’s results. You don’t need to play detective on this other mother especially when she’s badly trying to cover up her poor kid’s potential failure.

OP - you only need to concern yourself about your own kid’s results. You don’t need to play detective on this other mother especially when she’s badly trying to cover up her poor kid’s potential failure.

Except that she is also trying to blame the school.

Strongmummy - being concerned about your own child and being interested in someone elses aren't mutally exclusive.

I have a child doing GCSEs this year and have plenty of time to also concern myself with how my friends children are getting on. In fact a friend of mine did tell me about something that happened at her DCs school, it sounded very unlikely to me and I've asked a couple of other friends about it, OK I haven't posted online about it but it's the same thing.

I'd hate to only be interested in my own DCs to the exclusion of others

This might be the OP' and the friend in the final throes of a friendship. I remember my best friend since I was a child becoming more and more annoying ( and probably me her) whereas previously Id have overlooked the annoying bits because we go on really well and she was great company, as we grew apart and had less and less in common, the irritating bits overtook the good bits(although the irritating thing to me was her evangelical anti child veganism, so she was a bit too 'good' compared to me!) I'm not sure any good bits could have overcome her being an inveterate liar and blaming innocent people for her own and her childs faults to me, but it could be the dying embers of the OP's friendship is making her look for ways to get out of it. I'd definitely not waste my time on a 'friend' who annoyed me so much!

@Patti - I’d agree if that was what the OP was doing. She cares about whether the mum was lying! Read the oP

@Strongmummy
she's badly trying to cover up her poor kid's potential future
Yes, she is.
But she's doing it in a way that reflects in the school.
It's one thing to lie about how you did in an exam, but it's pretty shitty to then write an official complaint to the school for making a mistake that your DD made up.
@Museumland
I care because she's getting the school involved in her DD's lies.
Who knows, she might write public reviews online, turning future parents away all because of a massive made up story.

Would agree with many others

In theory if there were different exam boards for the same subject (which you say there isnt) then she could have the wrong paper...in which case she should have told someone

But there is no way on gods green earth that one single aqa paper would have been handed out

I was told by a mother the other day that an invigilator had hit a child round the head...apparently police called etc, that was complete bullshit as well

The story part of their English exams must be fantastic

Well it will be easy for the school to check if it's true.

Yes, they will check, and find out and that will be the end of it.

But then op wouldn’t have the opportunity to have this completely appropriate and totally not bitchy or gratuitous thread about her dear dear “friend” and her 16 yo “compulsive liar” of a daughter

lol at her writing reviews online

Where is this ‘trip advisor for schools’ website pls

You sound super sanctimonious and judgmental op

Are they at the same school?

I know an instance where the school taught one curriculum but then entered them all for a different exam board by mistake.

But a whole year group or set, not just one individual.

@MissVanjie
Google reviews can be left for schools, the same goes for Facebook.
She could also very easily go to the press. These sorts of incidences are news-worthy, and could make the front cover of our local newspaper.

Op - she’s told you she’s writing to the school. Has she? I’d imagine it’s part of the bravado. Even if she does, they’ll tell her she’s wrong. That’ll be the end. How will this effect you, your daughter or the school? It won’t.