Surely they can't cancel GCSEs and A levels again

[Marcellemouse]

Heard there are calls for it. After what happened with this years cohorts surely it can't happen and it's a terrible idea.

My DD is in year 11 and sits her first GCSE next week.
She works hard and is normally an A grade student. She is stressed to the point of being ill, her school leadership is hopeless and is just forcing them through the exams, without any extra help. In some subjects she is having to sit through all the work she did in lockdown, because many students did nothing. In other subjects teachers set very little work in lockdown and took weeks to answer emails.
I can't see how she will achieve her expected grades. I'm just so furious with the whole thing. How can they possibly sit GCSEs next week after missing 4mths out of the year. She has had to drop one GCSE which was a predicted A grade, due to the stress and the teacher just piling so much work on them.

Do they do quizzes, assignments and tests across the year? Surely they could get an average grade from those if they do

Probably. But they're not standardised or externally moderated

But they need to snap off a decision so it can be organised whatever the solution is

Yes. It is a huge change that is contemplated, for pupils who are already over half way through their courses.

If this government were competent, they would also be considering exams for 2022 (current years 10 and 12) who may or may not be as badly affected, but who may well need a proper contingency plan

Scotland have cancelled their GCSE equivalents. England and Wales will follow, it’s the only fair way, if you’ve seen the state of schools recently, it’s obvious.

This year's cohort have have far more disruption than last year's.

I don't think last year's exams should have been cancelled, children sitting exams should have continued in school and sat exams.

No idea what's fair.

I hope exams go ahead. Teacher grading is no fairer than exams. At my school we were very ‘realistic’ with the cags submitted - to avoid the risk of children being down graded by the algorithm, we were scrupulous. Other schools were much more generous and took an ‘aspirational’ approach - these kids have now got higher grades than they should have. Look at the physics Alevel results for this year - 18% A this year, 8% last year. How is that fairer than allowing the children who have worked through lockdown to sit their exams? Shortening the exams is the only fair option. It damages the pupil - teacher relationship - we are there to prepare not ‘judge’ them. The pressure from parents and kids will be intense - how will a caring teacher resist the pleas of ‘but I need a B to get into xx uni’? Our kids are stressed about their mocks now as they may be used as evidence, they are stressed about each piece of work too - keeping the exams would be less stressful for many of them.
My solution is shortened papers - choice of questions. Lots of children do actually want to ‘prove themselves’ at the exams. If needed all other year groups remote learning for a couple of weeks during the exams to allow exams to be sat at I n small groups (rather than big halls).
I also don’t understand why so many exam year kids didn’t do any work in lockdown- even if the school was shit (as my daughter’s was) there are ways of keeping busy in a very boring time.

As I said earlier there is no fair answer. My son needs 2A* 1A to go to study economics at the first 22 uni's. How can middle rated ex polytechnics be asking for such high grades- especially for this years co-hort? His comp are doing the best they can but theres no way state schools can deliver what a lot of private schools did and are doing . They can't teach on zoom due to the amount of children who don't have access to their own computer, safeguarding etc. He worked hard over lockdown and has been predicted those grades however they haven't spent much time in the science labs, half of his year group has been sent home, theres been no work experience or extra curricular experiences to bulk out personal statements. I think the government need to decide now what they are doing with our kids futures to give them a chance. Sitting on the fence is harmful to everyone.

@nancypineapple

I totally agree with you. My DS is doing different subjects but he has also worked very hard during lockdown. His sixth form have decided to continue with blended learning but it really isn't working very well. We have gone through the syllabuses for his subjects and we are trying to fill in the gaps. It is very stressful and worrying.

Teacher grading cannot be fair. There’s the aspirational aspect, as mentioned, but also the skew of the school or college. A star pupil at one school may be mediocre at another.

@SusannaSpiderHands

I feel the same as you, expect my DS is doing A Levels. Have you contacted your local MP? I have sent a couple of emails to mine explaining the situation. I have also copied in the Education Select Committee. GW and BJ continually saying everything is normal and exams can go ahead without any recognition that nothing is normal is totally unacceptable and extremely stressful.

except

IrmaFayLear

It is also not fair that high achieving and very hard working students might not get their grades due to this government sitting on the fence and not planning properly.

I think it’s wrong to agitate about exams not going ahead. Clearly a good few pupils will give up if they think exams will be cancelled.

I think the govt should stress that it’s business as usual unless the situation changes much nearer the time . Axing exams at this stage would help no one; the grade inflation of 2020 won’t be allowed to happen again so a teacher-assessed grade is not going to be the boon (to some) it was if people are hopeful of that.

But why would students give up if exams were cancelled and assessment was used? Instead they'd have to be working consistently at their best if they want to achieve the grades?

A decision needs to be made sooner rather than later, these poor kids are already stressed to the hilt. Removing exams gives them an extra term to actually learn any content missed, which stands them in good stead for the next part of their education.

I think it's shocking that the devolved nations are making these decisions separately - each leader should be coming together and making the decisions as a whole, and announced together. We are still a United Kingdon and our leaders should be presenting as such.

My daughter, year 11, worked so hard in lockdown and completed everything to a high standard. Got an outstanding reward from the Head. She’s been predicted 7/8/9 for all subjects since testing started in yr10. But she hasn’t been taught 3/4 topics of the 9 topics for geography gcse. She has had one piano lesson since March for her music gcse so can’t achieve grade 5 now.

How can she compete with a child who has been taught all these topics? We are in an outstanding state school. How can a child in poorer school that has missed even more learning compete with her?

It can't be business as usual. The class of 2021 have had significant disruption to their 2 year courses. Spring term finished early, Summer term was online with varying degrees of provision. Autumn term has been disrupted for a lot of students and students at standalone sixth form colleges/FE colleges have largely returned to blended learning.

The government overhauled gcses and A levels a few years ago, increased their content and made them more rigorous. They are 2 year courses. You cannot expect the class of 2021 to sit "normal exams".

@emmastone@

Totally agree

But, EmmaStone, what you mean by a “decision” is that exams will be cancelled. Because at the moment the decision has been taken , ie exams will go ahead.

@IpanemaFlowers

Totally agree

I've got a 2021 A level student.

I'd love exams to be cancelled and replaced with assessments and coursework.

Entry grades have already been increased by the universities, so the course she needed ABB for is now AAB.

She is permanently stressed that the school is going to go into lockdown. Lack of exams would be a relief.

All this uncertainty just adds so much stress for these kids. My DS is Y11, they're being given mixed message everyday as the teachers are trying to be open and honest with the kids. He worked super hard during lock down, and kept going through the summer holidays, as schoolwork doesn't come easy to him.

My DS is desperate for the exams to be cancelled as he crumbles in a test situation. They've already had one round of tests for every subject, mocks after half term and then mocks again in January. How can they cover new content to complete the syllabus if they're continually revising for exams?

Like previous posters, we are just continually emphasising that every piece of work needs to be done well, and every test revised for throroughly, to cover all bases.

My heart just breaks for DS, he is so stressed and doesn't really know what he wants to do next, so is worrying about that too!

You can still learn the piano without lessons! A teacher is obviously of benefit, but practice makes perfect. You don’t just rely on one lesson a week to progress (2 x grade 8 dcs here).

Hopefully there will be another U turn on the exams going ahead. Our year 11s have missed 3/5 weeks since sept already- 85% of this year cohort are on free school meals, and from socially deprived backgrounds, they cannot sit their exams.

Ah, at least some posters are honest in that they want exams to be cancelled as they think that would be more beneficial for their dcs. Hmmmmm.

This "exams can go ahead" is causing a lot of stress. The point is most students cannot possibly now get through the content of the courses.

There should have been planning through the summer to adjust syllabuses to take all this into account but there wasn't.

My DS has been told that there are a number of things the college can't go ahead with as they are waiting for guidance from OCR who are waiting for guidance from Ofqual. Really!!! how can government and Ofqual still be making decisions about exams in the Autumn term. They are letting the students down.

Yep. That's me.

Actually, thinking more about it, I don't really mind either way. She's working hard and will be ok. But yes, it would be less stressful.