AIBU to expect the current GCSE / Y11 cohort to get concessions too?

[andyetanotherschoolyear]

Due to the (negative) impact of the pandemic on learning, each cohort so far have been given concessions to try to make up for this (e.g. not sitting exams - 2 years; being provided with advance info - last year) and I don't think it's unreasonable to expect the current Y11s should be provided with some sort of adjustment too. They did, after all, lose out on class room learning for a significant part of their GCSE courses too.

Thoughts?

Each age group has missed 2 years of 'proper' schooling.

It has had a negative impact on every child. Some more than others.

Some more fortunate children will have been okay during lockdown, children who had every advantage and parents able to facilitate as much learning as possible with children who were able to engage.

Then there are the ones who were hugely disadvantaged, ones already struggling, limited space, Wi-Fi, ability to engage etc.

Two years is a significant time in learning terms.

I think the majority of kids will be behind where they would have been in some way.

The 2 v 3 year GCSE argument is irrelevant to this really.

What do we do going forward and how long do we give concessions for will be a topic for study in decades to come.

The reality will probably be grading on a slightly more weighted curve than normal rather than actually obvious concessions.

Yes, let's hope so.

Our school start GCSE courses in Year 9 too, so for those saying that it doesn't happen - it honestly does! It was a new one on me, I didn't start GCSE courses until I was in Year 10 and DH was a teacher until a few years ago and had never taught GCSE courses until Year 10, but schools in this area (at least 3 local High Schools) do start them in Year 9.

I'd like to see some concessions for this Year 11 cohort, but I have a DD in that year, so may be biased!

How long do you keep giving concessions for though? My dd starts y7 this week and missed lots of schooling in primary so won’t be starting at same stage your child did y7.. we need to stop making excuses and just get on with things!

@BetsyBigNose it doesn't happen in most schools though.

GCSEs are graded on a curve. So to some extent if standards go up or down the same % are meant to get 7s or 4s. It is inbuilt into the system. The 2023 cohort are meant I think to get the same grades as the 2019 regardless of their standard. That is a concession if you think the overall standard will be lower due to disruption.

@Catch21 - agreed, but it does mean that some pupils have been unfairly disadvantaged, so it would seem that they should be entitled to some sort of concession, but I understand that others might feel it was unfair. As I said, I am biased as I have a DD who will be taking her GCSEs this year, whose GCSE courses were partly taught over remote learning during the Covid disruption. I can't see that there's an answer that will make everyone happy here!

The concessions this year caused more harm than good in some subjects/ exam boards due to confusion and misinterpretation. Also the information was provided quite late so it meant some students and teachers delayed learning things or had covered things unnecessarily while waiting for confirmation of this. It's just not always as good as it seems.

The easiest would be to let this year have some concessions. Not as much as last (2022) year's cohort but some.

The whole point of the concessions was to level the playing field within the cohort, not between cohorts. To recognise that some schools had been more adversely affected than others in terms of lockdowns and their ability to provide online adequate online teaching.

Last year's cohort were told around February, with around 6-8 weeks of teaching left, which topics should and should not have questions (for info, a very tiny proportion of topics were dropped completely). They were still, in some cases, examined on those topics anyway. They had to sit two full rounds of mock exams between November and early March.

And you want concessions that aren't as good as that for this year's Y11s?

But on what basis?

They will have been in school for the whole 2-year course.

Yes, some will have missed excessive amounts of school due to covid or other illnesses. Yes, some will have had teachers miss excessive amounts of school due to covid or other illnesses. Consideration should be given to individual mitigating circumstances as in any other year.

Concessions for the whole year group are not necessary as they will have had 2 full years in school which is what most schools have to cover the whole gcse course. And yes, they have missed out on prior learning but so have the 9 or 10 cohorts below them. You have to draw the line somewhere.

The fact that some schools start the gcse course earlier than they're supposed to isn't relevant.

It's actually much better for the dc to do exams as usual. Nobody wants to feel that they have only done as well as they have because special concessions have been made.

I have a Y11 and a Y13. The Y13 has bore much more of the brunt than the Y11.

With GCSEs its just about getting into your next stage of education, however, my Y13 missed so much in his GCSE years it has meant a huge jump to A Levels. Not sure if they will do well enough for university but I'm sure without covid they would have.

The 'advance information' for the most recent A level cohort was a waste of paper. They have been shafted royally by Covid AND the exam boards for the last 3 years.

How come some do? How do they allow this?

There is the possibility that if you have yet another year of some form of concession the value and recognition of GCSEs will be devalued yet more. It will also increase the jump to A levels.

So I think that whilst not nice, it should not continue.

At one point more than half of schools were doing 3 year GCSE and this year 11 are part of that. Lots of schools are moving away from it because it was hard to prove a broad and balanced curriculum (eg arts and music) in years 7, 8 and 9. I dont know if its spefically banned - it might be, but there are a lot of current year 11s who had started their gcses in year 9.

That may well be the case, but the fact is, many schools have always covered the course in 2 years, so it is possible to do so. The ones who started in their disrupted Year 9 just have slightly less of a head start than they would have done.

Key stage 3 is years 7-9. Ofsted have a (legitimate, I think) dislike of that being reduced to two years in favour of a three year GCSE course.

Schools are not supposed to do 3yr courses - so no

This year's 'concessions' were a bit of a shit show in my opinion.
I think this year group are going to have real problems if they went on to A levels - they have huge gaps in learning.
I feel really sorry for the cohort who have just done A Levels, the whole thing has just been a nightmare for a huge group of kids.

They are getting concessions- their grades will be higher but not as high as last year.
Last year’s cohort had both of their GCSE years badly affected by COVID.
This year’s cohort will have had last academic year affected but hopefully this year will be ok.

YABU, most kids don’t start GCSE courses in year 9 - my dd is in year 9 and only starting one of her GCSE courses this year (German).

Theyve got to stop giving concessions at some point.

But also, haven’t the kids who were in yr 9 in Mar 2020 just done their GCSEs? Everyone is three years up from where they were at that time.

No. I think it is OK now.

A GCSE is a two year course. If schools chose to start it earlier that's their decision. So the exam boards will say this cohort have not lost learning time due to lockdowns. I don't think concessions will be needed or appropriate.

There are plenty of schools still following a 3 year GCSE programme - those where "exam results" are a real focus - as I understand it though they mostly cover the curriculum in years 9 & 10 and year 11 is all repeat and revision and drill.

Surely 3 year v 2 year GCSE course just means the kids get to drop their most hated subject a year earlier? They are still going to spend Y9 learning whatever maths is on the Y9 national curriculum. Its not like they do Y8, then skip Y9 and start GCSE, because GCSEs have to build on KS3 knowledge.