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

[OrangeCinnamonCroissant]

...water

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

Dd college are online now. I think the moved to the system during the pandemic. She apparently has plan B to E with regard to clearing, results etc.

Ds's school has been quite lackadaisical about A level results day. We haven't received details of their arrangments yet

I had a dream about Ds getting his grades last night - ridiculous, I am far too invested! Meanwhile he hasn't a care in the world.

We haven’t actually been told what’s happening about results, I am assuming they will be emailed in the morning as the GCSEs were. He has already said he doesn’t want to go in to school to get them, think he’s worried if they’re not good.

We haven’t been told anything either, just that we will get an email closer to the time with details

We’ve had details from college, they are encouraging them to come in and have a list of staff who are available to help plus details of the appeal system in case needed.

And finally CAO have confirmed (Ireland), offers due out on 8 Sept so exactly 2 weeks for DD to hold her nerve further. Irish Government have announced that Irish Leaving Certificate grades will remain generous, not dropping below last year’s levels (students could get TAGs, sit exams, or do both). Applications have gone up in languages and other humanity subjects, as well as EU apps so it is not guaranteed DD will get an offer, even if she does well.

DS’s sixth form requires them to go in which is new for me. I’ve only had emails before. I prefer to be at home for easier dispensing of tea and sympathy and hitting the clearing phones if necessary… if everything is ok they find out from UCAS early so going into school all seems a bit unnecessary for those who know they have a difficult day ahead…

Aurgh Ealing that’s tough!

No idea what arrangements are for either school here. I think dd would want to go in and see friends etc, whilst ds would wait for an email and probably not wake till 2pm!

I dreamed last night that I accompanied dd to uni and stayed in her hall of residence for a few days to help her settle! I had to go to meals and everything! It was quite stressful and I don’t think my presence helped at all 😂

We haven't been told exact arrangements yet, but I am assuming DD will go to collect her results from school. If I remember correctly from two years ago, UCAS updated 7am but their website crashed and DS was able to see if he had his place around 8.30am before heading to school to collect his results. They didn't email them even two years ago! Nor did DD's school for GCSE results.

DS has to log onto the student portal for his - because its a special school students come from far and wide, so going in isn't always easy. I rhink DS would probably like to go in though

DD goes in for her GCSEs.

Our school has them in, although you can also nominate someone. They have a full complement of staff to help with next steps too. I do have a horrible feeling that we may be miles off her predictions and offers.
I am so enjoying the end of exams, vey glad I don’t have a year 11 or year 12 to do it all again. Although this was the 5th kid we got thru Alevels, more than enough!

I assume DD will have to go into school as she did for GCSEs. Tbh I feel sick even thinking about it! At least if UCAS updates first thing we might have some inkling of what's in the envelope.

Those with older DC: do the universities just confirm places automatically if they get the grades or will DD have to accept again formally? I can't remember what I did but it was obviously long before the Internet so assume it must have been confirmed by post!

@272Newnames dh and I will be away results day, so Ds will be getting his results on his own. He will make me wait a lot longer than his drive home even with mobiles! I'm not sure whether they go in for them or not though.

Our school is doing both - available on Edulink (student log in only, not parents!) from 8:30. Or they can go to school from 8:30 and collect them. School asked them to fill in a survey saying which they wanted to do. DS wants to go in person. There will be a team available to support re appealing, clearing, next steps.

Our school hasn’t given out details of arrangements for results day yet either.
DD had said that she couldn’t face going in, in case she didn’t get the results she needs, but I reassured her that she’d know beforehand from track whether she’d got either of her uni choices, and there’ll be staff at school to advise on next steps if she had to/wanted to go through clearing.

I think DS will be happy to go in, but I’ll be dragging him in, if not - having missed DD’s GCSE results day due to COVID, I’d like to experience it once, at least!

I can say in all honesty that I haven’t got a clue what either of them might get, which sort of makes it more exciting/ stressful!!

No information from sixth form yet about A level results, which is odd because DS in year 11 at same school had the information weeks ago that they pick them up in person from 11am (seems a bit late to me). I’m assuming as DS is collecting in person DD will do the same. I still vividly remember DD picking up her GCSE results and me waiting in the car, then a smiling DD coming back and me with happy tears. Last time it was 5 months of worry between schools closing in March and collecting results in August.

Last day of going in to school for ds2 today. He's got RS lesson this morn. then staying with a few others to do some revision. So I'm making his final school packed lunch. He will come home after lunch. Final exam tomorrow morn.

Universities confirm places automatically @HarrietDVane - either because offer grades have been reached or because they haven’t but the uni has decided to take them anyway.
so UCAS track will show that either firm or, if not, insurance uni has confirmed the offer, or that neither have confirmed and clearing is open.
quite often the confirmed uni will send a “welcome to Birmingham” or whatever email as well.

so by looking at track you can get an idea of how you have done in your a levels…

I'm under strict instructions not to wake DD today. She had an 18th party Saturday night and still seems totally exhausted.

My treat for the day is driving to Bristol and back to clear all DSs stuff from his student house. He is staying there as still a few more days on his contract and he has to work at the weekend. I'm taking his sleeping bag with me and hoping he can camp out at a mates until he comes home on Sunday 😆

I got both my O levels and A level results through the postal back in the 80s, an DS got his GCSEs by email and his EPQ results (sent on A level day) so the idea of going in to collect is a bit foreign to me. I do wonder though, if he doesn’t get the grades, whether being in school and getting their help is better than trying to do it home - I haven’t got a clue what who we should be calling or what we would be looking for.

Postal? Post obvs.

I think I’m programmed by seeing the annual photos in the media of students opening envelopes and jumping in the air, so getting them by email seems like an anti-climax!

Dd is shattered too. She was out celebrating end of exams on Friday night and came in about 4am, then Sat night was prom and a similar bedtime with not much sleep either night. She seems to struggle to sleep in these days, whereas ds could sleep in indefinitely if allowed!

Yes me too @crazycrofter where is the opportunity for celebration with your mates? Do wonder if it is perhaps kinder for the kids though? I remember from my results day the annoying one that goes around asking what everyone got and refusing to tell their own results. Or the one that is upset with their perfectly fine results that get them in to the Uni anyway.
For GCSE they had specific times due to covid, no hanging around and Dd said she took herself to a quiet corner anyway. None of her friends were there when she was.
At least I can still be in my pj's possible celebratory brekkie on hand??

In 2017 DS1 got a call from school the night before to go in early to open GCSE results in front of a journalist, the school did it really early so they were one of the first out and he was in newspapers all over the country, including the Daily Mail! For A levels he didn't get the call so we knew he was going to be disappointed - he did very well, but didn't get the 3xA*s he wanted.

DS2 feels confident that he did well in Physics and Maths, but says that PE could be anything from B to A star (needs AAA for medicine).