Thread 33 - Lovely Jubbly Jubilee Break, then back 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. Possibly a move to Parent of Adult Children Board in future?
previous thread

@mummyinbeds havent heard anything yet re core maths., your DD’s update is worrying though, these poor kids.

@Wheresthebeach i think you tagged me by accident? Not sure what it’s in reference to.

Ds just got home. Psychology was ok. the 16 marker on localisation we revised last night. And the psycho sexual stages - OAPLG. (Oral, anal, phalic, latency, genital) old-aged-pensioners love-Guinness, as a mnemonic.

So I was well pleased. With my revision assistance!

Completely agree Also - how hard can it be to set a paper that only contains the content it's supposed to, and where a high mark = a good grade?

I'm glad to see them getting a hard time - lowering the grade boundaries to make up for their ineptitude is not good enough.

@Heifer - Re DSA that's kind of what I thought but DS was convinced they said they were going to email him the 'real test' in addition to the report from their interview🙄

Just got text from from DS @mummyinbeds . Core Maths was a bit wobbly but Geography went well and he didn't run out of time. I'm relieved!

Re Core Maths - 2 questions didn't go smoothly apparently (took too long to work out what to do although did do it). But ok otherwise. She thinks everything covered was on AI (AQA), although she didn't know everything she gave it a good go. She can't ask anyone else how it went as she is the only one in her school taking Core Maths.

Onwards to Biology tomorrow. She seems to be ok but has mentioned she is way behind for paper 2 next week, Lets worry about P1 first..

@Heifer DS is the only one in his school doing Core Maths as well. Infact, they don't offer it at his school at all. Didn't know there was an AI for it. Sounds like it was okay..ish. DS wants to get a to least a B, if he does Bath his insurance will lower their offer by a grade.

Wish her well with Biology tomorrow and good luck to all those doing Politics which ds is doing.

@shimy I'm glad Geography went well, that will be DD next year and she will desperately want an A. I'm picturing wobbly maths - that's a perfect description of maths for me 😂

@Heifer it's interesting that your DD thinks everything was on the AI. DD's two teachers couldn't agree between themselves what was on it and started talking about new stuff in a revision class this morning.

@shimy politics for DS tomorrow. Every time I've taken him good or drink today he's been asleep or on the XBox. My bad timing according to him. Good luck for tomorrow

@mummyinbeds Which board is he sitting? DS is Edexcel

@Shimy I think it's AQA

@mummyinbeds ah! just asking incase we can discuss some specifics of the exam but it doesn't matter. I'm just so glad the end is in sight.

That maths sounds bad. I'm assuming this is all normal though, happens most years? Some drama / some papers being universally considered too tough? All this normal, I assume?

@Shimy DS isn't even half way there yet 😭 Five to go after tomorrow!

@Alsoplayspiccolo that sounds ridiculous. Poor kids are freaked out enough without ridiculous questions.
my DS has biology tomorrow and PE on Friday. He’s only had one exam so far and is feeling so stressed. DS2 has only got 3 exams left, he is knackered.

With the WJEC pure paper, part of the problem was that they included content that wasn't supposed to be included. Plus questions on the correct topics that were nothing like anything they had ever seen before in the board's own past papers. It's so unnecessary to set a paper so difficult that the most able students can't even attempt ~40% of the questions, which seems to be the consensus amongst DS's lot (all of whom had to have distinction at GCSE add maths to be allowed to do A level, many doing FM, several got 100% in the mock, they are no slouches but all in the same boat. One with an offer from MIT in tears afterwards etc etc.)

It's especially tough on this cohort who are inexperienced in exams, may well have had patchy teaching and many have mental health worries as it is. I am hearing lots of stories about kids who are completely demoralised and feel that all their hard work was for nothing.

And goodness knows what's happening with the poor A level English students whose paper had 4 pages missing, including the Shakespeare extract they were supposed to be answering questions on! 🤯

WJEC not having a good exams season, that's for sure.

Omg - hadn’t heard that eng lit story @singingstones - that’s appalling! Ds had a good morning in psychology (expected to be his easiest paper as it focuses on things he finds easy and sounds like it pretty much was!) he’s now worrying about comp sci which is probably his hardest in as much as their teacher had pretty much had them teach themselves the syllabus…!

@mummyinbeds I'm just being optimistic 😅Your ds should be almost done by end of next week. I hope there are no more missing papers, or rogue questions and the everything is just smooth sailing. Thank God for this thread that's keeping us all sane. I have no one to commiserate with in rl..except dh who is more . I don't think men get it sometimes.

@singingstones at the dc with an offer from MIT! i do hope for his sake that he gets the grades he needs, offers like that don't come everyday.

Yes, that’s what doesn’t make sense to me; the claims that all papers have questions designed to confound all but the top students, and yet all students will have done past papers, so know how comfortable they are with those. It’s disingenuous to imply that those students who have been caught out by challenging question formats should have been prepared for that.

WJEC have said that they’re going to carry out an official investigation AFTER results day - what good is that?

DD had geography today, which she was very nervous for, but actually feels it went ok (except for a group of boys coming into the room shouting…)

Are some people in Wales or is this actually Eduqas?

Sorry @shimy I meant to tag @singingstones . It was the English Lit paper chaps I was referring to.

I'm in Wales piggy, so WJEC. I haven't heard anything about Eduqas

I guess you'll have all seen this

We've had a lovely evening with friends. I'm quite impressed with DD's energy levels, she's obviously pacing herself well. I'm so glad their exams are in the summer.

DD's feedback on today's exams:
Psychology (AQA), pleased with it. Surprised by the structure again, this time fewer high mark questions than expected. Feels she answered most of the questions well apart from the second part of one about 'self'. She's another one who enjoys research methods @Seeline and was also pleased with that part.

Further Maths (edexcel), not so good. Felt she struggled with time to answer the questions how she would have liked and like she's dropped quite a lot of marks. She doesn't seem to be dwelling on it though. FM is going to be the main focus of her revision for the next two weeks.

She was pleased to see from her teacher's completed maths paper from yesterday that she doesn't seem to have dropped many marks at all, I think this is probably cushioning the blow of the difficult FM today.

I'm glad the consensus seems to be that psychology was pretty good. @Cantonet I hope your DS has been able to put his worries into perspective, I agree with you that it doesn't sound as bad as he's thinking.

Did anyone else's DC do further maths?

The train strikes situation sounds very stressful for all affected! @Wheresthebeach I hope your DD's day got better after that?

That WJEC English situation is awful @singingstones, poor kids.

Hope those not feeling well today are okay? @Oblomov22 @crazycrofter

DD is over halfway there now. 7 out of 12 exams are done. I'm off work tomorrow and her next exam isn't until Tuesday so we're planning a fairly relaxed day with a bit of holiday shopping, and then no doubt she'll be back to revision by the evening.

Good luck for tomorrow's exams everyone!