A level results day 2021 support thread

[Mrs08]

Hi 👋
I thought it might be nice to have a support thread for us parents? (Can't see one in further Ed yet??)
It's been such a difficult time for our kids - and for us! - but the end is in sight!
Ds will get an e mail at 8.30am (apparently) and can go into college in person if he needs help/advice.
Good luck everyone!
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@EmbarrassingMama

Sounds like they were giving away the grades this year!

Sounds like someone has swallowed a lemon

@EmbarrassingMama

Sounds like they were giving away the grades this year!

Yeah?

Well they werent

@EmbarrassingMama

Sounds like they were giving away the grades this year!

How can you read this thread and say that? Not everyone got the grades they were predicted or wanted, not everyone got their firm choice uni, some are going through clearing.

@EmbarrassingMama

Most students were actually tested more than usual between Jan- June, not less. And their grades based on a standard of work produced from most of their courses over the two years (in DS case certainly) being taught remotely. Even this only began with any regularity from year 13.
One wonders how even much better the worst affected students would have done under 'normal' circumstances.

@EmbarrassingMama

Sounds like they were giving away the grades this year!

‘They’ most definitely didn’t give anything away.

@OnTheBenchOfDoom oh, and usually they do..?

I take it back. It was clearly harder to succeed this year.

Are you seriously on a support thread having a pop at childrens exams results

What is actually wrong with you

I have no clue. Her courses required auditions and I suppose as she didn't attend she wouldn't have had an offer. She is refusing to get her results from school and is apparently not opening them when they arrive.

Some performing arts courses have a later deadline or are not through UCAS. However it sounds as of there might be more going pn. Is there a member of staff for Wellbeing available or a favourite drama/music teacher who could support her?

Fuck off @EmbarrassingMama - you are truly embarrassing yourself.

Kids this year had a fucking brutal testing regime compared to normal years and your post is plain nasty- especially when there are upset kids scrambling for places in clearing.

@EmbarrassingMama

Sounds like they were giving away the grades this year!

What a stupid and heartless comment on a thread which includes parents of DC who didn't make their offers.

Oh dear :-(.

While the figures of A/A* are unsustainably high compared to usual years, I can well believe that with little else to socially (during the lockdown months) and subject to internal exams probably almost on repeat at many schools, it's entirely possible that so many young people worked their socks off and triumphed over adversity. Well done to them and indeed all of this year's A Level cohort.

My dd has got into Edinburgh today but we haven't had a confirmation email from the uni. It is definite on UCAS track. From reading various threads on here and FB it seems that students have had this confirmation. I'm wondering if Edinburgh is just slow or we've done something wrong. Any suggestions anyone?

Edinburgh are painfully slow, and I'm afraid it is an indication of what is to come.

Same here @AdditionalCharacter

DS got AAB, having worked at level AAA all year (including mocks), and then you get all that media shit about inflated grades to put up with

But hey, they got there 💪 … and nothing else matters right now

Definitely @MarleneDietrichsSmile. Still very proud of him given the year they've had.

@LIZS do you have a dd or ds there then? Thought Edinburgh were slow, they were the last offer my DD got - and not til late April. Worried me when you sai dits an indication of what's to come. Care to enlighten me further? Thanks

What on earth motivates someone like @EmbarrassingMama to come on to a support thread and behave like this.

I'm sorry for those whose DC have had to have yet another difficult year in their school lives but you should be rightly proud of how they have come through unprecedented disruption and are ready to take their next steps into the world - am genuinely thrilled for all they've achieved.. I should have been on this thread but unfortunately my DD developed anorexia and had to drop out of year 13 back in October so will be re-starting sixth form again in September. Perhaps mama will pop up with her nuanced ability to read a room on the teen eating disorders thread with some warm words of encouragement

@EmbarrassingMama you do realise I wasn't the only one calling you out on this?

Firstly, can I ask if you have a child who has gone through remote learning during a pandemic? Not primary school but where it actually matters ie GCSE year or A level? Or is your child a lot, lot younger?

Secondly, my son achieved 4 x A and achieved more 9s than 8s at GCSE (A and As in old money). His A levels were broken down into each basket of evidence and he scored 98% for maths and 96% for further maths. I chose the maths ones because either you are right or wrong, no opinion needed on marking.

Also the teachers have abided by the rules set out on awarding grades this year. Last year, for example, if 15 students were all A grade only 10 could be an A so those ranked lower in the A scale were pushed down to an A and so on. The curve works to force some candidates to fail exams. This year they put no such cap on those grades, I believe. It has been a very long and stressful year so my memory might be a bit rusty. But those achieving A or A grades have not been pushed down, same with those with C grades being pushed down to a D.

Every college just compared their own students, they have not been compared across the country and their whole cohort.

My DD got her grades today.
The fact that she had nothing else to do last year and most of this year during lockdown meant that she spent her time studying.
She did very little else. A boring life but her grades reflected her hard work.

Every college just compared their own students, they have not been compared across the country and their whole cohort.

Every subject was ‘moderated.’
Not extensively and only two subjects per school but there was a token attempt to standardise across schools.

@myrtleWilson I am so sorry to hear about your daughter. I truly hope she has a much better sixth form experience next year. It has been the weirdest time with home learning, isolations, constant LST testing, no celebrating 18ths due to lockdown, Christmas practically cancelled. I think our children have been through a lot. Hopefully we are coming out the worst of it.

@SunShinesBrightly sorry I forgot that bit, honestly, my brain is frazzled with it all. I am just hoping that students feel happy with their results and move on to their next steps.

I agree, anecdotal evidence from ds's mates is that people mostly got what they needed but nothing ridiculous. His AAB was as predicted...yes he could have got A* in PE but didn't, nothing inflated there.

His very smart and hardworking pal got 4 x A*, very well deserved.

Some have had to go for insurance or clearing ...people should look beyond the headlines. Well done to everyone's DC, they should be proud, they worked hard and did well.

Congratulations to all those who even managed to survive and keep looking forward during a year of such uncertainty and stress.