Thread 34 Covid Cohort - Heat 'Waving' DC to final exams and drinking more

[OrangeCinnamonCroissant]

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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. It's all relative!

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 continue down various pathways ( employment, apprenticeships, higher ed) We have decided for anyone interested they will find a thread within the Further Ed board.

Possibly a move to Parent of Adult Children Board in future? Post Results?

Previous Thread

Seems like the leak is real - somebody on the other thread has had it confirmed by school.
Wheresthebeach, hopefully your DD is doing AQA? In which case, she may not have lost out by not being able to sit today’s exam. 🤞🏻

AQA certainly haven't denied it.

AQA have messed up one of today’s English lit papers too, apparently - something about asking a question about the wrong text??
And a paper having the wrong timings printed on it, so candidates were cut short.

What a bloody shambles!

I just heard it on the news so sounds like it is true. It said something like “no students would be disadvantaged” and that the police would be involved if necessary and that any students with unusual results or something like that might be investigated.

AQA are really not doing well this sitting

I read that about lit but can't really find anything on Twitter.

DH is an exams officer. You will be amazed how often this happens, even with the brightest children (Oxbridge candidates).

Anyone know anything about Silverstone? DS1 has tickets. I asked him today how he is getting there. His mate is picking him up. Great, says I. After negotiating enormous traffic jam to get there, where are you parking? I ask. Off he toddles to check stuff out. Three minutes later he tells me all the car parks are booked...

Well done to all that sat papers today! ⭐️
DD reports that Latin literature paper 2 was good, not a belta, but overall she’s happy.
Also that it was Ovid not Virgil 😳😂
that’s two A levels done n dusted - last Greek paper on Thursday.

@Wheresthebeach So sorry to read that your DD couldn’t sit today. 💐
Hoping she isn’t too poorly and keeping everything crossed that she can complete her final paper(s) later this week!

@Fiddlersgreen I think DD did same paper - she said it was ok. I don’t have much faith in the correlation between how students think they did v how they actually did though. We are limping towards the finish line - history and dance tomorrow then physics on Thursday.

Hi All, DD finally negative and feeling better! 4 exams impacted .....- just has Maths left tomorrow and Biology on Friday. Then we are finished after 8 years of GCSEs, AS levels or A levels. (except COVID 2020)

Chemistry for DDs friends is OCR so not affected by the mess - how this can happen and the contingency paper not get used is unbelievable AQA seem to be all over the place !! The kids don't need this .....

Have Prom next week and the holidays .....still have a hideous cough and fatigue but otherwise not bad ....working today from home.

@Wheresthebeach was where you were last week and it was soul destroying - has hobbled on but it will have impacted 2 Biology 1 economics and 1 maths. I hope she is better soon - it was not mild for my daughter and the fatigue meant no revision cramming

Crikey I can’t keep up!
@Wheresthebeach thats horrible, my DS did chem today I think Edexcel and he said it was ok. I hope they find a fair way to moderate her.
DS2 did chem gcse his final exam, he is so happy. DS1 still has 2 more to go.

DD showed me the WhatsApp messages with photos on social media and other things - the paper is the one and it was posted before the exam. Papers can be leaked by people working at the board, the Quality assurance assessors for the board, the post man or couriers, the teaching staff and administrators. It takes one person who thinks they will get away with it or poor security. It happens every few years but normally the contingency paper is used and the other one is pulled. Why this has not been done is very concerning. If your child is predicted A/B and gets an A or A* no one would ever know unless they got 100%. Getting the questions beforehand doesn't just give you an advantage in that subject but also means you can spend more time revising over subjects so its a massive advantage.

@Piggywaspushed I hope he finds somewhere to park.

So many dc's are finished. Is my Ds the last with an exam? 28th. He said most of his mates not doing RS are finished. He's been doing a lot of shouting to his mates on Xbox. I hope the fact the others have finished doesn't mean revision will stop.

There is no advantage from missing a paper if unless you knew the marks from your others and with the exception of maths its very difficult to work out a raw score.

If you are too sick there is no choice ...

My sons finished today, is having a guilt free Xbox sesh now!

Hes not an A* student at all, more a C-B if he’s lucky but he’s worked hard and I’m really proud of him ☺️

he still has no idea what he’s doing next - think he’ll probably take a year out and get a job and see where life takes him

Sorry to hear of another one with covid @Wheresthebeach , I hope she's feeling a bit better now.

I think it's absolutely shocking that AQA are not doing the contingency chemistry paper on contingency day, is that not what it's for? Or am I missing something?

DS did OCR chemistry today and found it fine, apart from the last 6 marker which he didn't have a clue about. It is probably the paper he has put most work into though as he got a shocking mock result in organic chemistry so really needed to put the extra work in there.

Maths tomorrow and last Chemistry on Thursday. Many of his friends finish tomorrow so he is out at a friends tomorrow night and staying over. He is adamant he has done enough work for Thursday's chemistry...

Contingency papers are for the day of the exam. If a leak is found out about they should issue the contingency paper that day.

Contingency Day is a different thing.

....but AQA didn't do that @Piggywaspushed which is a worry

AQA are in a mess aren’t they! All DD’s subjects are AQA though and hers have been fine.

She had a great time at Harry Styles last night but not much sleep at her friends so I don’t think today has been very productive! Last exam tomorrow morning and then she’s done.

Hope those who have/have had covid get through ok and it doesn’t impact their results 🤞

DS has RE and Maths tomorrow - quite a few of his friends have either finished already or will have done after RE. He says there are plans to go out tomorrow although if he’s like he was last Tuesday he’ll need a nap first!

Yes fruity. It's most odd.

Today's law exam was not great for DS. His last minute cramming/learning for the first time was on the stuff that didn't come up and his mind went blank on the bits that did come up 😭 One more to go, so he's playing on the XBox (and not even in French)

@crazycrofter glad your DD enjoyed Harry Styles. DD (and I) had a great time on Saturday. I hate to admit it but he was pretty amazing ☺️ We spent 2.5 hours in the queue for the tube away from Wembley, just made the last train and arrived home just before 3am - DD didn't manage much revision for mocks yesterday 😴

Thank you for the clarification @Piggywaspushed