To start a Proud Parent GCSE Thread when the highest result was a 5

[HateIsNotGood]

Just that really - very, so proud of ds who got way better results than his 'profile' expected when the educationalists threw him on the scrapheap all those years ago.

There was no where else really to post in celebration of our dcs results - (not appropo in the dc got ten million 9s and an 8, how can we remark? threads), for me any result was a result..

Share your celebrations here...and any disappointments, we'll do our best to help if we can.

Well done our kids.

If ds1 gets any 5s when it's his year I will dance! As long as he tries his best, puts real effort in, I will be proud of him.

I teach English. I had ‘bottom’ set (hate the phrase!) and they got grades 1-4.

I’m bloody ecstatic! Most of them didn’t speak English until they were teenagers. I’m so, so chuffed for them! My favourite is the student that got Grade 1 for Lit- he arrived in this country in JANUARY! And he fecking passed!

Cartwheels 😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃

Op- thanks for starting this thread :)

I would like to share my story if i may-

My ds is 15 and has just left year 10.
He has Aspergers and terrible anxiety.

He was bullied out of his first secondary school and we then went through a failed appeal for the only mixed sex Catholic school in the city which was unsuccessful.

He literally had no school. For 10 weeks.

I then agreed to a school that on paper was not good but was local (ish) and 3 of his friends went there. He started with weeks left of year 7. The school has been the absolute making of him!

It changed to an academy a few years and and ended up being the top performing secondary in our borough. That's great but for me, the pastoral side of things is what I love about it, he has made friends for life and loves school.

Year 10's do their English literature GCSE exam a year early and though he's good at English, he hates reading and struggled with the revision. He ploughed on, lived and breathed his 20 poems and 3 texts and I just told him to do his best and that's all I wanted.

The week of the exams he was in a state. One paper was good, he remembered his "key quotes" etc but the second one was a bit of a disaster. He didn't write a thing for the first 15 minutes, he froze. Then he saw a huge bloody spider on the floor right next to him and had to get the invigilator to remove it he also ran out of time... and was devastated.

Anyways- Thursday came, he was beside himself. He went to school at 9.30 and the look on his face was priceless. He got his 4. That's what he wanted so badly but knew the odds were against him as he didn't even finish paper 2. I have never been prouder.

It's given him a massive boost for year 11. He knows that hard work can pay off.
Out of his close friends he was the only one to pass ( others got mainly a 3 ) so he knows he can do it.

Lots to be said for our middle grade children. My dd is more likely to be a high achiever, she's only 7 but is clearly very very bright. Her grades will be good no doubt but there's a lot to be said about the child who struggles and gets just what they need.

So sorry for the essay. Lovely to read all of the posts on this thread.

“And I meant to add success is contextual to each child. Comparison is rubbish really”

I agree. When DD took her GCSEs she did well as she is quite academic. One of her friends isn’t, yet still managed to gain 10 GCSEs (nine Cs and one B), but IMO she did just as well as DD as she worked just as hard if not harder. You have put it very well TeenTimesTwo

“Is there a new scoring system?”

I’m struggling to understand how you could fail to know this as there has been an awful lot in the news about the changes to the public exam system.

This thread is really refreshing. I admit that as DD has just sat A levels I have been spending time on the further and higher education threads. There are an awful lot of posters who have very high achieving DC and it seems that parents of averagely capable DC don’t post on them, so I am glad to see this thread as well. (I hope this doesn’t come across as patronising)

I notice that some posters are mentioning A – E grades. Are some exams still being given grades under the old system, or are they iGCSEs?

YANBU one tiny bit - well done to all the exam-takers on this thread!

Lots of teachers in my family, and they all say the same thing: effort is the most important thing.

Well done to your DS!! Also well done to every other kid that knuckled down and achieved passes.
Super proud of my DD too. She was getting 3's in her mocks but came away with one 4, seven 5's and a B! Totally unexpected but she worked her backside off and revised hard. I was thrilled when her Maths teacher sought her out to congratulate her because he said he always had faith in her that she could pass.

Very proud mum here. DD has been in and out of hospital for the last 5 years with an attendance of about 70% each term. She's attended school on strong painkillers that made her sleepy and has had to catch up in her own time yet she managed at least a 4 in every subject except 1. She's a little star.

I started a thread on Thursday with a similar theme. We are absolutely over the MOON with my DS average grade. I still can't believe he got a 5 in English language when he couldn't even get a level 3 in his English SATs. Also struggled in science because you need to be articulate to express yourself and got 55! Still dancing

Well done to the normal people who worked hard outside the comfort zone of who they are

I runs local youth organisation. One of my girls has learning disabilities and mental health issues. She got a 5 in maths!! What she has had to overcome to get that (including lack of parental support!) is BIG deal. She has resilience and has learnt to fight her corner all so valuable.

As a teacher I know kids who have worked far less for higher grades but they are useless at looking after themselves!

And a huge well done to your son!!

Thank you for this thread!
Well done to your son and to all of the others.
My boys grades were as predicted - mostly 4's, a couple of 5's, and a couple of 3's (including a 3 in English meaning he has to resit).
I must admit, I was slightly disappointed (and also slightly resentful if I'm honest, when I saw lots of posts on fb about others who did so well).
My boys have gone through their education doing the absolute bare minimum - and despite nagging, bribery, tears (mine!), revising for their exams was no different.
However, what I need to remember is they were born nearly 3 months premature and spent nearly 3 months in hospital when they were born, both being oxygen dependent. Quite a few problems in the early months and years so actually when I look back, they have done amazingly well!!

Im in Wales and we have the old A-G result system. It was a huge relief when my ds opened his envelope to find 5 C's. He has no SN but has always struggled academically and was beside himself the week running up to results day.

He had worked hard in the hope of getting 5 C's to go to college. He attended revision sessions after school, lunchtimes, weekends and holidays. His teachers seemed to spend very little time with the pupils whose targets were D/E. He was made to feel that the only place for him was the scrap heap.

So we were delighted and very proud of his efforts and achievements when he got the grades over and above his target and he can attend college. He had given up hope.

5 C's or D's may not be brilliant but they are the difference between going on to further education increasing job options or struggling to find work as even supermarket shelf stackers need qualifications now.

Congratulations to every pupil who tried their best and gained a grade higher than expected, whether it be an A or a D. If they have done their best that's all anyone can ask.
I feel for those that didn't get the grades required for the next step in their lives when all social media posts seem to be parents posting their children's brilliant exam results. I have no objection to parents feeling the need to tell the world about their dc's exam successes. A simple congratulations message would be more appropriate for everyone, rather than "OMG! I'm so very proud of my dd. She has got 14A* and 6 A's. OMG We are so proud! What a clever clogs"- and then go on to list the subjects. Nobody needs to know that and nobody really cares.
Parents should be proud of their children every day, not just on results day.

I should imagine it's extremely upsetting for those who tried their best but came out with nothing. Poor kids must feel like failures without parents of the clever kids rubbing it in.

Bravo OP

My 3rd born DC got 4 in English , at college . He said himself though he did not revise and he did not try much so , just his own fault

He DID , somehow, get a pass in spoken English (amazing as he mumbles half the time) and he passed his practical and has his Level 1 Diploma and starting Level 2 in September . Oh, and to retake English again.

He is more practical than academic though I must add.

Well done to all those kids who did the best they could do!

Didn't teach GCSE this year but my year 11 last year were 'bottom set' don't think I could have been prouder of them if they'd been 'top sets' and got 9s. Highest grade was a 6 in English lit and they fought so hard for their grades, including the ones who got 2s.

Congratulations to your son OP, My friend’s son also got all 5’s and the son showed me his results which allows him to go on and study what he really wants to do.

Must be tough when all the focus is on the highest achievers and why i’ve avoided posting on my sm accounts about my own kids results. I’ve niticed a lot of parents just saying they’re proud without listing all the grades.

Congratulations and well done to your ds, be proud!

I’ve niticed a lot of parents just saying they’re proud without listing all the grades

Yes sorry... I didn't mean everybody has listed subjects and grades. It seems all those who gained A's and A*'s have either listed the lot or posted a screenshot of the results.

Those who gained a mix of grades have just posted "Congratulations S/he has passed!" I know 3 who got C's, Ds and Es. Apparently their parents won't post as they are embarrassed 😪

I think C's are nothing to be embarrassed about especially when their targets were D/E. We can't all be A* pupils

Brilliant post! Well done everyone.

congratulations and well done to your son

we are just starting out on GCSEs. My son is predicted 3s and 4s. Five years ago he was in special school working below national curriculum levels. I will be very proud of whatever he achieves because I know how far he has come to even attempt GCSEs

Just to give you all an insight into how results are received in school, (well in my school at least!) be aware that we celebrate all levels of success. On our training day when we do the results scrutiny, our head addresses the staff and, yes of course there is mentions of students that got a string of high grades - as there should be, it's a fantastic achievement.

However, she also spends at least as long (sometimes longer) mentioning our students who achieved success despite adversity - be that SEN, medical issues or other hardships that are similar to some posted above. As teachers we are not just all about the Grade 9s - we see the triumph in every grade that was hard earned.

It's great reading everyone's threads - keep em coming please.

Congratulations!
Last year I was thrilled with my son’s 1 C in Welsh (funnily enough as I’ve never heard him speak a word of it!) and his D & E’s, he’s Autistic, had 100% attendance 3 years in a row and tried his best which is all I’ve ever asked for. He’s now at college, much happier (no more bullies) and completed level 1 going onto level 2 this term, he also completely a level 2 in communication skills which I was told on Thursday is an equivalent of an English pass.😁
My dsd got 4 B, 5 C & 1 D, has successfully enrolled onto the 6th form courses she wanted and we’re thrilled for her!😀
Ds2 is starting year 11 this September, he also has ASD, dislexic and dispraxic, whatever grades he gets I’ll be over the moon with 😊