Thread 32 - Corona Cohort 'May' the Mumsnet force be with them for their venture to exams

[OrangeCinnamonCroissant]

This is a thread for supporting all young people post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting. It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, please don't within this thread. Please also be sensitive when responding to threads about grades.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue.

Our DS/DD may go down various paths (such as employment, apprenticeships, higher ed) We have decided for anyone interested they will most likely find us within the Further Ed board.

Previous Thread 31

CONGRATULATIONS ZEBRACAT !

Following everyone's fortunes. Seems like exams are becoming more of a mixed bag which I guess is the reversion to 'normal times'. Still think the DC are disadvantaged by not having done GCSEs, as well as the specific challenges some of your DC cope with.

Good luck to all for tomorrow. First exam for DS and it's physics which is his worst subject.

That’s a brilliant idea, Chewbecca and one I absolutely hadn’t thought of! Thank you!
His handwriting is almost illegible at the best of times, so I pity the poor examiner who has to decipher it after 2 hours of writing…

Going through GCSEs now with DS, I definitely agree that year 13s have been hugely disadvantaged by not sitting them.
So many elements to master, like how to sustain revision over a long period, how to tackle timings in each paper, what to stress about, what NOT to stress about, how to regroup after a difficult paper, how to balance work and rest etc.
They really are going in cold, with no experience to draw upon, and for those with access arrangements, it may be the first time they’ve had to manage the various adjustments put in place.

Really tough.

Completely agree, Also, and unlike GCSEs, for most people doing A levels every paper counts.

How did everyone find todays Gov & Politics? Ds thought it was an ok paper, as did all his friends. Ever the pessimist, I am now worried that the grade boundaries will be v.high.

For those with teenage football fans and able to get to London, I am taking DS to this exhibition at the Design Museum next week, my friend has been and said it is really good

designmuseum.org/exhibitions/football-designing-the-beautiful-game

Oh, it sounds like there have been some really challenging papers across the subjects today. Well done to all for getting through it!

Reading through the last few pages and all of the challenges faced by the DC on this thread really just highlights to me how shit our education system is for the individuals. Inconsistent support, lack of resources, completely inappropriate comments from teachers, the difficulties faced by well-behaved and/or high achieving children being ignored, and then the whole farcical exam system. Why do we even have different exam boards, with slightly different content, different levels of difficulty in exams, different grade boundaries etc, but once you get your grade no one is bothered about which exam board awarded it? It's crazy that you can come out of an exam with no idea of how well you've done, because even though you feel like you've done well in answering the questions you have no idea how many marks you need to achieve each grade - it's like some sort of mental torture. It's all brutal. They all deserve A*s for survival by the end of it.

What I will say though, is the DC on this thread are so lucky to have the support they do from their parents. The poor kids who have parents who don't care, or more likely who do care but are just poorly equipped, of which there are many (through no fault of their own), dealing with all this. It is no wonder social mobility is so poor.

DD found her English Language paper this morning difficult. She said the child language acquisition question was boring and there was a whole 20 mark question she didn't attempt (comparing the language in two texts) because there was nothing to say. 😬 Further Maths (Edexcel) was lovely! She answered all of the questions, knows where she will have dropped a few marks, and didn't expect the content of the last question to be included but overall is very happy. The other students in her class (all two of them) agreed. She's had a relaxed evening and will get back on with the revision tomorrow but has no more exams until after half term.

DS thought the questions were nice but ran out of time. I think he does AQA 🤔 I'm trying not to think about grade boundaries/results day. There's nothing I can do to influence it and I'm stressed enough just getting him through each day. But he needs an A 😱

Just walking home from Top Gun Maverick.
Oh my lord it was fantastic.

@crazycrofter @Alsoplayspiccolo
DS had Eng Lit today but his was Macbeth and Journey’s End so another variation!

@mummyinbeds, Ds is Edexcel. He needs an A too.
He came home at lunch time after the exam and has done no work since, even though he has Geography on Friday. Said he was exhausted so I haven’t pushed it. You are right re grade boundaries/results day, but everything makes me anxious these days!

@scabby1 DS came home after school with his girlfriend and has just taken her home. I'm pretty sure no revision was happening. Good luck with geography.

@22Newnames I have just noticed on the list that your DS has firmed Bath too. Has he been able to select accommodation ? DS tried but couldn’t get inti the system.

Good luck to everyone with exams today. DS has exam today then leavers things tomorrow and hoping he can catch slightly earlier train.

Sm sad to see a thread with a lad the age of ours in ITU. The pressure they are all under is immense.

That thread is so sad Volterra and the mum has a DD doing GCSEs at the moment too.

Good luck to everyone doing history, PE and physics today. Hope they all come home happy.

I just want to give my DS a hug, can’t wait till he is home tomorrow. It’s a bit weird when they board as you feel a bit detached. Really wasn’t what I expected for sixth form but I think after a hideous start he has benefited from it and I guess it hopefully smooths the way for September.

I e just seen that thread too - so heartbreaking. Thinking very much of that family this morning.

What an absolutely heartbreaking thread. It all feels so close to home with her darling boy being the same age as lovely lot.
Dd very wobbly going in for Russian History this morning, I don’t think she got much sleep last night, I know I didn’t!
I hope today goes smoothly for everyone x

@Volterra He’s not tried logging into the accommodation portal yet. While I want it ticked off the list he’s got a while and it’s not first come first served at least so I’m not hassling him.

Good luck to all sitting exams today! 🍀

@22Newnames I’m not worried because as you say, not first come first serve. He was happy to try and get it done though so a bit frustrating it didn’t work.

I've also just seen that thread about ICU, just heart breaking.

Good luck to everyone today, DS has Russia History today, I feel slightly sick.

Dd is also panicking about history today (America - civil war to 1975 I think). Added to which, we discovered this morning that the train times have changed 😬 She was going to get the 7.33 which gets her in to school at about 8.25 (40 min journey then a walk) but they’ve shifted it to 7.43. That would in theory be fine but no leeway for delays and she was already stressed so I drove her in (1.5 hour round trip - never done it before!). She’ll have to get the new 7.23 in future. Great timing!

Hope the exams go well for everyone today. Threads like that other one help to put all this in perspective don’t they 😢

Last night DS asked me to wake him at 7 and he planned to be at school at 8:30. Roll on the morning, I woke him at 7 then got on with printing the things he wanted in his isolating time. He came down at 8:00 wanting scrambled eggs, I told him he had sent me some questions without corresponding mark scheme, so he wandered upstairs to find the mark scheme to send me. Phoned me because he couldn't remember which one he was getting, down again for eggs at 8:20, leisurely chat with DH whilst printer sensed my stress and jammed. 8:35 he decides to go to the toilet, 8:40 I am standing with car keys, stressed!!!! I dropped him 12 min walk from school at 8:45 (walking quicker than car as city centre). 9:05 call from school attendance officer saying he wasn't there. Even more stressed! Call at 9:10 saying he had got there and was in his exam.

I feel a need for a nice calm dog walk! I think his terrible sense of time is an ADHD thing after hearing about signs from you lot. Also, as we have said before, one of the many things which missing GCSEs didn't help.

Sigh.......

I’ve just come on to see if anyone else had a DC taking Russia history-I feel sick as well!

There seems so much to learn, despite working much harder for this than any other subject, it feels like she’s barely scratched the surface!!