To think some GCSE exam timetables should be more spread out??

[ChocolateAddictAlways]

My 16 year old has 2 exams on Friday, 2 on Monday, 2 on Tuesday and 2 on Wednesday. After the half term it slows down. The last exam and penultimate exam have a 6 day gap. The penultimate and the one before that have a 4 day gap. All his friends seem to be in a similar boat. A huge flurry of exams this week and next and then things go very quiet!

I understand the logistics of planning these exams must be insane given the number of exam boards and modules and other variables and I am not actually suggesting the system be overhauled (because I suspect it can't be) rather that it seems a shame to have 2 exams a day for so many consecutive days. I can imagine some teenagers feeling really bamboozled the night before such a day. And then that feeling repeats for several days!

He did joke that probably he would be most prepared for those last 3! 😁

My DS has one a day over the whole exam period. I’m surprised there are no data when he has two. OP I’m surprised your DC has gaps like that towards h end as we have some core ones almost daily over that last 10 days?

He has an exam June 3rd then the next one is June 8th. Then the final paper is June 15th.

Another user further up understandably asked if I made a mistake...and I did in the sense that I forgot to mention he already sat one science last year. So I imagine his friends have some additional papers in those much longer gaps. It wasn't an intentional omission or an attempt at a cheeky drip feed, we haven't spoken about that science for a year so it hasn't been on our radar, but apologies for leaving that info out!

Spreading out the exam season over an even longer period would also be extremely disruptive for the school
All the big venues, assembly halls, gyms and sports halls are out of action for the whole period on many sites. It would also probably be more difficult/ expensive to get in invigilators for partial days or weeks

I think my choice of wording in the title wasn't great. My question/concern was about having so many consecutive days with 2 (or more) exams squished into a short period. The reference to the long gaps towards the end was more to point out the contrast.

I absolutely don't think the wider exam period should be spread out over a longer stretch of time rather that it's just unfortunate to have multiple exams a day for so many consecutive days.

DS hasn't got a long gap between exams. There is maths on 10th June then chemistry 12th June and physics on 15the June. Surely your DS is doing these op? If so he won't have a long gap at the end?

DS has exams spread out well over the whole period, only 2 days with 2 exams and a handful of free days spread throughout. I thought this was pretty lucky, but his opinion is the opposite - he would much rather a shorter more intense period and get them over and done with!

He is also fairly fortunate to have some subjects with submitted work already - Music is 60% done, Engineering NEA submitted, French oral done. So he has fewer written papers than his sister did.

I did first year of GCSEs and we had loads of coursework. I much preferred that. Especially for English language, which surely needs drafting and rewriting to craft a piece. That is the exam DS is struggling with most - hard to revise for, and he just isn't used to sustained writing, or being creative in the spot. I think timed exams are a poor test of those skills.

I did my GCSES 20 years ago. I only had 2 days when there were 2 exams. However there were only 2 maths papers. Yes the maths papers were slightly longer but i think that this was better. I did have enough time to read through my answers at the end. There was only 1 paper for english lit.

We’ve got biology 8th, maths 10th, chemistry 12th and physics 15th (a Monday). Is your DC not doing those, OP?

My son did one of those sciences last year.
So that would explain his longer gaps at the end.

But my quibble isn't about those exams being spread out, more that there are so many consecutive days with 2 exams, this week and next. It's more the squish of 9 exams over 5 days (he has 1 today but 2 tomorrow) which seems intense.

It is what it is, I accept that. It just seems a shame!