yr 12 Language paper about MUMSNET!

[Glittermud]

My yr 12s have just sat their mock paper and in it they had to analyse a screenshot taken from an AIBU thread on school proms and compare it to an article in the Mirror on the same topic.

Question

Sources

It amused me because they need to talk about how the writer (you lot) represent themselves...!

Any opinions?

Are there any other English lang teachers who have any ideas?

Thanks!

It must be really tricky to analyse a writer who is in fact 30 different people in with a sentence or two each!

Woah! Checked and i'm not on that posting - my DD would have probably burst out laughing in the middle of the exam if I was as she knows my name!

I know.... I had to check it very carefully myself

Hilarious! I bet they had to spend a while double checking that there was no swearing on the extracts they used!

Oh god, I know. I just scrolled down an AIBU to show them and it all got a bit sweary!

Good grief. I know that papers have said that A levels have got dumbed down, but that's hilerous.

Trust me, you lot are a complex bunch... there's nothing easy about analysing the multiple representations that mumsnet throws out. It's fascinating making it all explicit.

They have to talk about usernames and emoticons too!

Fascinating.

I have reported this thread to mumsnet, asking them to comment as I wondered whether they were aware and whether original posters had given permission ...

That's brilliant. That'll really throw a lot of kids whose parents are on here.

Pretty sure mn owns the content once you post on here so AQA wouldn't need to get posters' permission.

I don't think that posters have the rights to object to mumsnet giving permission for their posts to be included in an A-level exam. I assume the exam board would have got permission. I imagine that Mumsnet HQ would be as bemused as the rest of us.

I expect you are right that mumsnet owns the copyright. I was more wondering how the process went.

As you say though, it would be strange if your DC knew your username and then saw it on an exam!

Imagine if you had discussed details of your DC on the thread, and they ended up reading about themselves.

My DS would be mortified!

Actually, the one thing that we can establish is that the question setter is probably among us somewhere....

This specimen material usually used for staff training but could be used by a school for a mock. I am surprised the times and the dates of the posts were not obliterated. If a child recognised their parent as one of the posters would they have to declare an unfair interest? Or indeed if their parent had written the article? One of my DCs does know my username