to ask someone to explain the Year 10 mocks

[user7469322]

Are they actually important? Do they have any bearing on the final GCSE results? Are they used to gauge which tier a Year 11 pupil sits their exams next year? Or are they just used by teachers as prep for the actual GCSE’s?

Depends on the school. Can be used to check a student is on track or for resetting classes. They may also form the basis of predicted grades when applying to sixth form or college.

Ask the school. Every school will have different uses.

It’s not for my child, my friends daughter is Y10 and I’m a bit worried about the amount of pressure said friend is putting on her daughter to make her work hard - “cruel to be kind” as she says.

In our school they are used to solidify exam levels, there are a lot of kids doing a cross-over papers to see whether they should be doing higher or foundation. They are used for the professional predictions and what are sent to college or sixth form. Ultimately they are for the kids to get used to being in the hall, in exam conditions, the more they do it the easier and more relaxed they feel about the real things.

I thought the purpose was to give the kids practice at what an exam season feels like. Also to set realistic expectations that hard work is required to do well, and where they might be going with previous level of work.

We were told that they form the basis of the predicted grades at GCSE for 6th form applications...

Ds1 gets his mock results on Friday 😖

They important. Need momentum, if you don't place importance in all exams then when GCSEs and A levels come round it's difficult to ramp things up and you won't have practiced revision techniques etc. There is a knack to exams.

@lljkk

That’s what I thought too. Friend obviously wants her daughter to do well in the actual GCSE’s next year as she wants her to better in life than her and not stuck at a factory job. Just her approach is always push, push, push (all of her kids) and I think her eldest especially feels she can’t do enough right for her mum (in fact I know this as daughter has told me). She’s not even 15 yet and it just seems she has skit of pressure on her.

@MrsRRR

When you say they they form the basis of the predicted grades at GCSE, does that mean they’re used to work out which tier the pupil sits in Y11?

It depends if they are doing mocks in year 11 as well? I think usually year 11 mocks are used for predicted grades, but certainly the year 10 mocks are an important practise. They may provide evidence (usually in addition to the classwork) to move a child into final sets for year 11. This would be part of the information used to decide if students are entered for foundation or higher papers. By the year 11 mocks, it’s late to make this decision (although sometimes possible). Revision for mocks isn’t wasted, it helps consolidate knowledge and makes it “stick” which will help in year 11.

@Notevilstepmother

This is useful, thankyou.

That's the case at my son's school op

They don’t count towards GCSE results, but the work put towards them will. It will be far easier in Y11 if a student has already consolidated their Y10 knowledge, organised their notes/revision guides and worked out how to revise effectively.

We also do set shuffling for Y11 (maths) and may make changes to tier of entry (although this is usually looked at again after Y11 mocks).

@MrsRRR

Ok thankyou.

I guess what I’m trying to work out is when the results come through for these mocks, is the daughter gonna get bollocked for not getting C’s or higher and made to feel she’s not done her absolutely complete best. She will of course, be compared to her younger sister whos currently in Y8 when it comes to her turn to do mocks and GCSE’s. Which is a shame as they’re both very different kids.

I teach KS4 at a large High School,
We are using them to primarily ensure that students are in the correct sets in September. Also to identify 'gaps' in their learning so that we can focus on these prior to the final exams. And to get them used to sitting exams in the hall under exam conditions.
They are marked by us teachers.
They sit year 11 core subject mocks in December.

@Cary2012

It seems a lot of pressure for children who are currently only 14/15 years old. My friends daughter will still only be 15 when the exams finish next year. Thankyou for your reply though, it’s interesting to hear it from a teachers perspective.

DD1 has just done her GCSEs (and is, by the way still only 15). Yes it is a lot of pressure. But the fact that her school started taking revision and exams seriously in year 10 has really helped her to be well prepared and not have a last minute panic.

She also has a friend who was badly injured just before the actual GCSEs and came to wish that they had worked much harder for their mocks, because they might actually have just become quite important.

There's a balance, of course, and there is a fine line between helping students learn to work hard and pushing them so hard that they break. But taking Mocks seriously is probably a good principle.

The school I work in use them for clarifying sets, making predictions for grades and starting to decide tier entry. We also look at gaps in knowledge and strengths and weaknesses so that we can target these areas in year 11.

Pupils should certainly be revising thoroughly, however, too much pressure can be detrimental.

Students needs to be working throughout year 10 amd 11 to get the best grades for them. Working towards assessments is often the only way to get some students to put in enough work independently. Also e am conditions and lots of exams at the same time gives a more accurate picture than spaced out class tests.

They can be used to set, or even to see if it is actually worth entering a student for whom there are already concerns about.

They are used to inform estimated grades.

Im head of year 10. We've had mocks this week to give pupils the full exam experience. Nothing counts towards their final grades. Teacher assessments should inform projected grades not just mock results. At my place, some depts have written the exam, using exam questions from past papers and focussed only on stuff they have covered. This is best practise imo and the kids have come out of those exams feeling successful and motivated. Some very lazy departments have given them whole past papers. Highly unfair because those papers are designed to test what they know in 11 months time. Ive complained to SLT and it will change for next year. Year 10 mocks are a very first attempt. A chance to practise revising and coping with exam pressure. That is all. Not many teachers will have taught exam technique yet as that comes later and makes a massive difference. Ive felt for the kids this week. I looked at them in the exam hall for their first exam and had a flashback to seeing them all staring up at me in our very first assembly on induction day and I got a little emotional (privately of course). Im so proud of them. I've made sure that I have been at the start of every core mock exam to wish them luck and I've caught up with them at the end of every exam and praised them (they have to walk past my classroom). Its been stressful enough for me and im just the HOY. Im looking forward to a large glass of red on Friday! My advice would be to go easy. Not too much pressure, just lots of encouragement. They do not need to feel they've failed befote they have even got started.

@LokiBear

This is a really lovely side to hear of. I don’t even know why it’s got me so wound up, she’s not my daughter, I don’t have a right to worry about her! I just wish that my friend would encourage her (daughter) for herself and not for wanting her to be like her sister. She’s putting a lot of pressure in her to perform well in the Y10 mocks and I dread to think what she’ll be like next year. I really hope her daughter doesn’t get too upset.