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Original poster

To doubt my DP over exam claims?

72 replies

Wonderrwall · 12/10/2020 22:12

Ok, not a major issue but I'd love some help resolving a dispute. My DP took GCSEs in early 1990s. Says he had to write between 30 and 70 essays to submit for English coursework (100 percent coursework). Mine were half coursework and we submitted 5 essays per English GCSE. I think he probably did 10 per GCSE but did any of you do 100 percent coursework exams in the 1990s and do you remember how many essays/pieces of coursework you submitted?

OP posts:
OlegBurov · 12/10/2020 22:19

I did!

It was fewer than ten pieces of work per GCSE. My sister is a bit younger and did a slightly different 100% coursework GCSE and handed in about the same amount.

AdoptAdaptImprove · 12/10/2020 22:20

The last ‘O’ levels were generally taken in 1987 (my year!) and the GCSEs which arrived in the following year did have 100% coursework for English Language, so I can believe that bit (it was later changed after pass rates rocketed). But I can’t imagine that there would be anywhere near the time for examiners to mark so many essays for each candidate!

I had a small coursework component in my O level (just a small percentage, I can’t recall how much but it wouldn’t have been more than 20%) and I think we chose 5 essays from a number we’d done over two years. (This is a very long time ago so I could be a bit out.) That might give 25 for a 100% coursework GCSE. Soooo... 30 could be feasible. I could certainly see having to write 70 in total over the course of two years, and submitting 30 for assessment. Maybe that’s what he means?

TitoTipples · 12/10/2020 22:22

I can't help with the number of essays (70 seems an awful lot though!): but a number of GCSE English courses were 100% coursework in the early 1990s.

I copied the following from some guy's blog:

"The end of coursework
NOVEMBER 3, 2013 / CHRISHILDREW
or…What’s assessment for anyway?

When I took my GCSEs in English and English Literature (in 1991) they were 100% coursework. I wasn’t alone; according to the 2006 Review of GCSE Coursework from QCA about two-thirds of 16 year olds in the early 1990s were taking GCSE English through syllabuses that had no examinations".

Not sure this helps - sorry!

MitziK · 12/10/2020 22:23
  1. Both language and literature were 100% coursework.
JaJaDingDong · 12/10/2020 22:25

a) It might depend on the exam board
And
b) is he including work marked by the teacher as well as work submitted to an external examiner?

MitziK · 12/10/2020 22:26

Sorry, ten pieces were submitted for marking/moderation, only one had to be an essay (result for me, 9 pieces of creative work).

A level literature was 50% coursework and possibly 25 was five pieces, again could be creative, one extended essay, but we wrote more than five in two years.

Original poster
Wonderrwall · 12/10/2020 22:26

Thanks! Yes, I do believe it was probably 100 percent coursework (I can't decide if that's better or worse than 100 percent exam!!) but I'm thinking they probably submitted about 10 essays for Lang and 10 for Lit.

OP posts:
Savemyusername01 · 12/10/2020 22:26

Yes it was 100% coursework. Maybe he wrote a lot of essays but didn’t submit them all. It was a lot of work and the best would have been selected.

Doyoumind · 12/10/2020 22:28

Early 90s and part coursework part exam. Where I was I know the first year of GCSEs weren't all coursework.

Mum198000 · 12/10/2020 22:28

I did and I had lots and lots of essays. Felt like many, many not 70 but certainly at least 30.

Mum198000 · 12/10/2020 22:29

Mine was 100% coursework

NoWordForFluffy · 12/10/2020 22:29

I think it was 10 per subject. But you'd do more than that to pick the best ones for your folder (92-93).

Same for A Level Lit. in 94-95.

emptyplinth · 12/10/2020 22:29

I did GCSEs about the same time, English was 100% coursework.
We did separate GCSEs in English Literature and English Language, probably about 12 essays each in Y10 and 8 or 9 in Y11.
70 sounds like a lot but 40 or so in total is believable, based on my experience.

timeforanewstart · 12/10/2020 22:29

Yes 100 percent coursework for english language , lit and food studies

ElizabethinherGermanGarden · 12/10/2020 22:30

I did 40 essays for 100% coursework in '93

sadeyedladyofthelowlands63 · 12/10/2020 22:32

When I started teaching (back in the dark ages) it was 100% coursework. 2 papers for language, 5 pieces of coursework each; 2 papers for literature, 5 pieces of coursework each. 20 pieces in total.

CeramicGuineaPig · 12/10/2020 22:33

Yes, both Lang and Lit were 100 per cent coursework in early 90s. We wrote more essays than we submitted - you chose your best ones at the end of the course. Certainly not 30, let alone 70! They were not all essays as such, I remember the teacher arranging it so most bits of coursework could be submitted for either Lang or lit - a story about what happens next to Abigail from The Crucible for example.

timeforanewstart · 12/10/2020 22:34

I took mine in 91 , teacher mostly marked and i think selection marked externally to be checked
We also had one controlled condition piece - sort of like an exam
Even maths had something like a 15 % coursework element
No ideas how many essays but prob leas than it felt like
Also we didn't call it year 10/11 was 4th and 5th years
I think 50/50 would be better way going forward

nickelbabe · 12/10/2020 22:34

I did 100% coursework english in 1992 (so 90-92).
There definitely weren't that many essays, but each book or topic had an essay or assignment to complete.
I remember doing poetry, so analysis and our own poem - maybe 5 pieces of work? Shakespeare, another couple, a modern play, a couple of books (the Outsiders).
I remember we had a folder that we kept our work in, and the best pieces were submitted for our marks.
We also had a timed assessment - essay writing open book assessment in exam conditions - that took place over 3 sessions.

feliciabirthgiver · 12/10/2020 22:35

Yep class of 93 here and 100% coursework - lots of essays and other types of work (anyone else do an autobiography?), I think only the best examples were selected as other poster suggested but in summary lots of essays (although maybe 70 is just your DH flexing his creative writing!)

timeforanewstart · 12/10/2020 22:35

Only ones i passed were coursework based i massively underachieved in my exams as i went to pieces

altiara · 12/10/2020 22:35

Mine was 100% coursework in ‘92.
I’ve no idea how many essays were submitted but expect it to be about 10 rather than 30-70.
70 would be over 1 per week. Common sense says you’d submit your best work, not all of your work and who would have time to mark it!!

SandlakeRd · 12/10/2020 22:38

I took mine in the very early 90s and it was dual award language and literature with 100% coursework. There were around 10-15 pieces that had to be submitted and they each had to cover a specific thing eg a Shakespeare play, a book, poetry etc. We also had to do a spoken word piece - I remember mine being on feminism!
We obviously wrote a lot more during the two year course though!

MyShinyWhiteTeeth · 12/10/2020 22:42

I had to do 15 pieces of course work and they used the higher marks from the top 10 pieces.

This was for language and lit combined.

artisticpiles · 12/10/2020 22:54

Maybe the teacher kept on making him re-do them for some reason?

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