Page 13 | GCSE exam finished early. What can I do?

CAMHShelp · 2025-05-14T14:15:51+00:00

DDs GCSE exam was 1 hour and 45 mins. The invigilator asked the kids if they had finished to which DD replied yes, as she had answered all the questions (ASD) but planned to use remain 20 mins to check answers. They immediately took the paper away and ended the exam early as she was the last one to stop writing. I have made a complaint to the school but they are being dismissive and fobbing me off. What can I do?

Tiswa · 15/05/2025 18:54

gcsesargh · 15/05/2025 18:50

Don’t know to be honest- I wasn’t there that day- just looking at the master timetable.

WJEC do - Wales

KarmaKameelion · 15/05/2025 18:59

Tiswa · 15/05/2025 18:40

which board? Most do the exact same number of papers (2 - designed to be spaced out so that it is unlikely anyone is ill for both) with combined being 1hr15 and Triple 1hr 45

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we do edexcel

gcsesargh · 15/05/2025 19:02

Actually it’s OCR and it’s definitely 1hr 45 minutes for both. Just checked the course code!

KarmaKameelion · 15/05/2025 19:07

edexcel _ double and triple take the same paper 1. Triple take an additional paper for each subject

GCSE exam finished early. What can I do?

gcsesargh · 15/05/2025 19:10

OCR

Tiswa · 15/05/2025 19:13

gcsesargh · 15/05/2025 19:02

Actually it’s OCR and it’s definitely 1hr 45 minutes for both. Just checked the course code!

Just checked combined science OCR on the timetable and it is 1hr 10 for A and 1hr 45 for B so they clearly do both!

@KarmaKameelion thar is not my experience of edexcel! 2 papers each

KarmaKameelion · 15/05/2025 19:22

Tiswa · 15/05/2025 19:13

Just checked combined science OCR on the timetable and it is 1hr 10 for A and 1hr 45 for B so they clearly do both!

@KarmaKameelion thar is not my experience of edexcel! 2 papers each

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Don’t know what to tell you but I did the seating plans myself! It’s igcse

TheZingyFish · 15/05/2025 19:23

I would be contacting the exam board for guidance. Your daughters’ list of exam entries should have details of which board it is for and she will know her centre number and candidate number as she will write this on the front of every exam paper. All schools have strict rules for administering exams and they have to follow them, and if they can’t follow them, the repercussions are very serious. If you have emails from the school and they have admitted your daughter did not get the full time and the school are trying to cover their tracks, be prepared to provide the evidence to the exam board if they ask for it.
The school should not get away with this, I am quite frankly disgusted with this attitude from the school.

CaptainMyCaptain · 15/05/2025 20:21

celticprincess · 15/05/2025 17:05

Most schools don’t timetable multiple exams on the same hall. This would have been an exam where they were all doing the biology paper. Don’t think any others are timetabled for that time. Often those with extra time or additional requirements are put in smaller spaces anyway. But this would have been the main exam hall as the OP has stated their child didn’t have any additional access requirements. Children are allowed to leave. Some schools might insist they stay but according to the exam board rules they are allowed to leave when finished so can and will. In fact my friend told me this morning that in her DD’s exam this week where they were in a separate space where they had the extra time, some did leave and did so quite noisily and were then told off by the invigilators. And not the noise and the telling off distracted those still working. Not all who are allowed extra time actually use it. It’s there should they need it. My DD is allowed extra time but doesn’t always take it depending on how it’s going. She also uses a laptop for longer written work like English and history rather than handwriting as she has issues. In mock exams she’s has both used and not used the extra time so it has been offered always.

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The school where I worked did exams in the sports hall and the assembly hall with several different exams going on at the same time. Students were told to leave quietly at the end of their own particular exam. All timings and details of the papers were displayed on the boards.

MrsHamlet · 15/05/2025 21:09

I suspect it will come under special consideration if your daughter is close to a grade boundary

This is absolutely not how special consideration works.

B1indEye · 15/05/2025 21:21

gcsesargh · 15/05/2025 18:07

@B1indEye- what do you mean? The timetable is set by the boards but there are usually 1 or more GCSEs at the same time as well as A levels. Hence why there are sometimes clashes as well. The school aren’t ’getting away’ with anything!

So you mean they use the same hall for more than one exam? If so that's not what timetabling means

I guess most schools do that unless they have multiple large halls don't they?

Mushypeasandchipstogo · 15/05/2025 21:35

I didn’t teach in a state school, wow you have really opened up a can of worms here, better not say any more…..

Mushypeasandchipstogo · 15/05/2025 21:38

Sorry that was in reply to GrammarTeacher.

Banannanana · 15/05/2025 22:05

But she said she’d finished when she was asked, right? It’s not like she wasn’t asked. It’s a shame, but she needs to take this as the lesson it is to say she’s not finished with the exam if she isn’t.

And yes, if you still want to check your answers, you are not finished. It should have been drummed into her prior to exams (including by her teachers) that she’s not finished until she’s checked through her work.

I don’t understand why you’re upset when she said she was finished before the time? Unfortunately, as annoying as it is, her misunderstanding the invigilators question and telling them that yes, she was done, isn’t the invigilators fault.

labradorservant · 15/05/2025 22:11

Mushypeasandchipstogo · 15/05/2025 21:35

I didn’t teach in a state school, wow you have really opened up a can of worms here, better not say any more…..

It’s surely not that hard to read the regulations you must abide by. I am surprised it’s not been picked up during an inspector visit. Unless that day the staff are mysteriously redeployed..

Tiswa · 15/05/2025 22:18

KarmaKameelion · 15/05/2025 19:22

Don’t know what to tell you but I did the seating plans myself! It’s igcse

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i am not sure how we got discussing different exam boards! I asked because often there are combined (which for many is shorter) and triple in the same room

here the OP says it was a smaller room and it was foundation biology

different exam boards/different centres/different things

the way this school did it is odd though if true

KarmaKameelion · 16/05/2025 06:25

yes agreed! Regardless of exam length - and my school usually has multiple exams anyway due to ib, btec, gcse and a level running in the exam hall so no excuse of the invigilator if they had clear instruction. I would never take an exam off someone until full time unless I have said before I have let native speakers leave language exams early although they have to stay for the first hour

Original poster

CAMHShelp · 16/05/2025 11:19

HarperStern · 15/05/2025 18:22

Was the single Biology paper the only one going on in the room? I can only think that the invigilators got mixed up with triple science candidates whose exam was 1 hour 15? But still a big mistake to make even so.

Yes the only exam and no they weren’t muddled. They wanted to go home!

OP posts:

Original poster

CAMHShelp · 16/05/2025 11:20

Sorry you might have missed my update yesterday. This was just one exam with all pupils taking the same exam. Small group of foundation biology, not in a hall.

OP posts:

Spanglemum02 · 16/05/2025 11:24

Contact the school's examination officer and the exam board. If she's on a grade border this could matter. If she said she wanted to check her answers then she should have been able to If there was time.

Someone2025 · 16/05/2025 12:20

CAMHShelp · 16/05/2025 11:19

Yes the only exam and no they weren’t muddled. They wanted to go home!

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What have you decided to do about it?

ThreePointOneFourOneFiveNine · 16/05/2025 12:39

Make a formal complaint by email, explicitly use the words “formal complaint” in your email. They will have a complaints procedure they have to follow, it should be published on their website. Schools will brush you off if you let them, you have to make it clear you are using the proper formal complaints procedure so that they can’t get out of it. Be very clear that you want what happened to be appropriately conveyed to the exam board so that they can make allowances when issuing grades. It is completely unacceptable that the invigilator did this.

Unfortunately I have had to have quite a lot of experience of holding schools to account when they have done something wrong. Don’t ever “kick off”, that makes your behaviour the problem they have to deal with rather than getting them to focus on the issue you actually need them to deal with. Always be aware that these are human beings with feelings you are dealing with. But don’t let them give you the run around, be polite but firm.

If it was me I would write something along the lines of that you are sure it was just an honest mistake and don’t want to blame anyone, but it has had a negative impact on your daughter’s exam performance and that needs to be addressed. Look up the relevant information from the exam board as to what to the correct procedure is and spell out to the school that this is what you are expecting them to do. Be nice, but stand your ground.

ThreePointOneFourOneFiveNine · 16/05/2025 12:43

Banannanana · 15/05/2025 22:05

But she said she’d finished when she was asked, right? It’s not like she wasn’t asked. It’s a shame, but she needs to take this as the lesson it is to say she’s not finished with the exam if she isn’t.

And yes, if you still want to check your answers, you are not finished. It should have been drummed into her prior to exams (including by her teachers) that she’s not finished until she’s checked through her work.

I don’t understand why you’re upset when she said she was finished before the time? Unfortunately, as annoying as it is, her misunderstanding the invigilators question and telling them that yes, she was done, isn’t the invigilators fault.

It should be drummed into anyone in a position of power over teenagers like this that a lot of them simply don’t have the ability to disagree with an adult in this situation, they will just nod and say yes and be compliant with whatever is expected of them. The invigilator should not be asking the students if they are finished. Especially not stressed students in exam conditions.

Annascaul · 16/05/2025 12:49

ThreePointOneFourOneFiveNine · 16/05/2025 12:43

It should be drummed into anyone in a position of power over teenagers like this that a lot of them simply don’t have the ability to disagree with an adult in this situation, they will just nod and say yes and be compliant with whatever is expected of them. The invigilator should not be asking the students if they are finished. Especially not stressed students in exam conditions.

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But she wasn’t in a position where she had to disagree with or challenge the adult?
She was asked a Yes or No question and said yes when she meant no.

TeenToTwenties · 16/05/2025 12:52

Annascaul · 16/05/2025 12:49

But she wasn’t in a position where she had to disagree with or challenge the adult?
She was asked a Yes or No question and said yes when she meant no.

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But some DC will give the 'expected answer', which is obviously Yes in this case.