To be confused at GCSE reactions?

[Emily3325]

I’ve seen a few videos online over the last couple of days of teenagers getting their GCSE results, and I’ve been genuinely surprised by some of them.

What has surprised me is seeing teenagers who appear to have failed every GCSE they took, opening their results while both they and their parents seem completely unconcerned about it, laughing, joking and, in some cases, blaming school for being boring.

Maybe I’m just from a different generation, but if I’d come home having failed all of my GCSEs, I can’t imagine my parents being completely unbothered, nor would I be if it were my own children. For reference, two of my three are through their GCSEs.

I’m not saying parents should shame their children or make them feel like their lives are over because of exam results, but surely there is a middle ground between making a child feel like a failure and treating the fact they’ve failed every qualification as if it doesn’t matter at all? Is this just where we're at as a country now?

AIBU?

So am I, but apparently Bobby with no GCSEs can magically just start up a business with no qualifications and experience and become a multi millionaire

Everyone is magically just gonna suck at school and immediately after start their own business

I also feel there’s a huge difference between expressing disappointment to a older teen about exams that they have worked towards for at least 2 years and failed to apply themselves to compared to a younger child who did badly in a spelling test.

I don’t agree, I’ve had my business for 27 years, my dad’s had his for almost 50 years. We’re doing very well without the education or the grades

Years ago young people were not entered if they had fully disengaged.
Sleeping can be an emotional defence mechanism as well as (obviously) something tired people do. Something has clearly gone wrong if a young person is completely disengaged.

Do you imagine a small percentage of students being disengaged is a new thing?

The only new thing is you are viewing it on SM these days.

My sibling taught a Y11 class this past year. It was set 3 and only one kid in the class gave any kind of shits about the (very important) subject. Sibling was appalled, said this kind of attitude has worsened massively over the past 20 years.

It's easier to joke about sleeping through an exam, not attending lessons, blaming the teacher than to admit you are not able to reach that level 4 that is drummed in to you from Year 9. I see it year in year out (English). I had a bottom set this year and whilst all of them got a grade (1-4 in the class) they didn't have the support from home, ability, ambition or work ethic to get any higher.
Highest attendance in the class was 91%, the rest went from 4% to 83%.
Most have part time jobs in shops and cafes which became priority to have money to pay for electric bikes, scooters, booze and drugs.
There were 12/16 with SEN, 2 who had English as a second language and a lot of behaviour issues. This is all typical of inner city areas/areas of deprivation
A couple of these kids made the videos with parents laughing along - so back to point one, it's easier to laugh than cry.

Comments like this always annoy me - that was 27/50 years ago. It's very different now, especially for kids born in to poverty and low educated families. Some of these kids are in families where life has been like this for generations and there is very little aspiration to get out of the benefits cycle.

Don’t understand the social media part but…

”GCSEs are designed so that a third of teenagers fail. A GCSE is not a test of competence, it is a comparison. If everyone does particularly well one year, then they’ll move the grade boundaries so that some people still fail. Not all exams are like this - the driving test is an example of a competency test. It doesn’t matter how everyone else does, if you’re a capable driver you can pass your driving test.”

From Naomi Fisher.

if you are a kid who is in that bottom third but you are forced to take exams anyway then I imagine you have to develop ways to get through it.

Pressure in schools has worsened massively over the last twenty years.

Given kids know they are going to fail (because a proportion of kids always will, and they've already had ten years of being told they themselves are going to fail), and they get told every day that failing will really harm their future life chances, what's the expected psychological response?

I wasn’t bothered with my son because he had a place at college for what he wanted to do regardless. If you have plans other than university it really isn’t that much of a big deal. mind your own business.

Edited to add: School was a traumatic nightmare for 2 of my children, and the other three didn’t thrive their either. school for neurodivergent children who don’t fit the mold is a thing to endure until you can strike out in the world in your own way. All 5 of my children are doing well as adults in their own way. 2 or them are minimally verbal autistic but employed and happy, 2 went to college and then have worked their way up in their respective fields as self employed creative types, one went to uni becuase it was needed for her career choice and she has graduated and is working. None of them passed GCSE maths in school. They are all doing fine.

Well done to your son and you!

I am a teacher. Students aren't really allowed to drop any subjects (no matter how badly they are going nor if they're 'options') as schools haven't the capacity to supervise year 11s with "free periods".

So it's not unusual for some students to quiet quit (or loudly).

I do find making a video a bit of an odd response but it is the modern way.

My dd dropped a subject maybe it depends on the situation but she definitely dropped one.

Employed okay?

But well paid and scope to progress and earn more? I know a poster on MN who DP is in his 50s and is earning £30k because he "simply cannot progress".

My 18 year old makes more on their degree apprenticeship

They can if the school can find something for them to do in the 2-3 hours a week. But it's strongly discouraged because what would that be?

Oh dd did extra maths

I got B’s and C’s and was told I’d failed.

i was diagnosed with ADHD shortly after. Still got told I was a lazy failure.

Im on the fence. I don’t think they’re the be all and end all but also I want my children to try their best, both are in schools that will support them to succeed, how ever that looks.