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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

Original poster

A Level Anxiety

895 replies

Toffee22 · 14/08/2011 22:42

Only 4 more "sleeps" until the A level results come out - not that I will be doing much sleeping...

Eldest son wants to study medicine. 3 "A's" required no slip ups allowed. Have just checked and most medical schools don't accept re-sits. How can I face looking at the cold hard facts at some point on Thursday. I'm sure it will be difficult for my son too! When I tried to talk to him about it today instead of a response he said he would do an "impression of a tree". It wasn't even a very good impression. What does this mean?

OP posts:
Ponders · 20/08/2011 16:09

oh - \link{http://www.silcoates.co.uk/sites/default/files/alevel2010.pdf\here}

Geog in 2010 - 2 A, 1 B, 2 C, 1 D, 1 E, 1 U

can't tell if that's an improvement or not but it's one of the worst sets of results Hmm

ImperialBlether · 20/08/2011 16:09

I imagine the Geography teacher is now teaching a non-examinable course. That would be interesting, actually, for the student who lost out to know whether the teacher remained in the same job role.

chubsasaurus · 20/08/2011 16:13

Everyone's DCs off to Exeter - amazing choice, I graduated from there in 2009 and it was the best 3 years of my life. Congratulations everyone :)

RustyBear · 20/08/2011 16:36

Did you get hugged by Floella, chubasaurus?

adamschic · 20/08/2011 16:58

Ponders, those results don't look great for a private school, not sure if they are normal.

We are waiting for DD's school A level results to be published, they should make interesting reading.

Ponders · 20/08/2011 17:04

Rusty Grin

They don't, do they, adamschic - not all private schools are highly academic though, esp the smaller ones.

\link{http://www.wgsf.org.uk/qegs-senior-academic-table.php\QEGS} will be the academic one in Wakefield

'53.9% of all grades were at Grade A or A and 78% at Grade A- B'

& the linked girls' high school did even better

duchesse · 20/08/2011 17:26

I remember when I was little people saying that I couldn't possibly know how to read as I didn't know my alphabet by heart Hmm.

The exam system is on the whole a stupid test of conformity rather than any attempt at encouraging creativity and lateral thinking, or even thinking of any description. In the headlong rush for accountability and balance in marking, the ability or requirement of markers to assess candidates' work has been removed. Scripts are marked against an approved mark scheme that leaves no room for deviation from the permitted/desired answer.

adamschic · 20/08/2011 18:24

Ponders, that's more like it.

adamschic · 20/08/2011 18:32

Gawd, just looked on the telegraph site giving the % of A* to B. Our school is terrible and I fear that it would be worse in the subjects DD is studying.

What's the best way to go before she takes the A2 exams?

Ponders · 20/08/2011 18:41

are the terrible results down to the teaching or the intake, adamschic? what's the last Ofsted like? what about value added?

Ponders · 20/08/2011 18:41

& what alternatives are there in your area?

ImperialBlether · 20/08/2011 18:44

The people expected to get As in their A levels will be people with a dozen As in their GCSEs. It's a hell of a lot to expect students without those grades to get the highest grade in a much more difficult exam.

adamschic · 20/08/2011 19:02

Ponders, there is another school 6th form 10 miles away who have average scores, better but not brilliant. We will have to compare their results in DD's subjects when they are published. I'm not sure where to find them if they are out.

Ofstead is good as they seem to be fine for GCSE's. DD got a string of A and A* at GCSE so this year has come as a shock. It's a state comp but in a mixed area, most of her classmates are from wealthy/professional parents. It also has it's fair share of media/business studiers though. Some students have joined sixth form from the indie and other comps that don't have a sixth form. It was selective in that pupils needed 5 A-C's.

I'm really worried as her AS grades are well below what she was predicted. I am thinking its the teaching. They are just saying it's a huge jump so that's why pupils are stuggling. I know some of the students getting top grades are being privately tutored. Oh dear!

Ponders · 20/08/2011 19:07

ah - that does sound a bit oh dear Sad Did Ofsted not look at 6th form separately?

It's true that it is a big jump from GCSE in terms of writing essays & being self-motivated. What were her parents' evening reports like? What did you think of the teachers? (Are they the same teachers she had for GCSE?)

adamschic · 20/08/2011 19:13

They didn't say much about the sixth form. A couple of the teachers are the same. I've spoken off record to one of the teachers and they told me that the sixth form teaching isn't good.

She is going to have to self study I think and also keep retaking to get good grades for a RG uni.

funnyperson · 20/08/2011 21:26

logging in after a long day shopping so please forgive me if I answer a post some way behind

Fellatio- nothing can be lost by asking for a remark at this stage but perhaps your DS will need to give permission perhaps by email- and you could ring the schools exams officer on Monday morning to request the remark as the exams officer can then process the request it online, pending you hearing from DS and sending in the cheque.
However, in theory, remarks (like shares) can go down as well as up so only ask if that module is comfortably in the middle of a B grade and not if it is close to the C boundary as otherwise after the remark DS could end up with a C instead of a B or an A which would not be good.
The point of the remark would be to try and get DS into his firm I presume. If so, then DS should perhaps write an urgent polite email to his firm university choice explaining that he is going for a remark as his history was very close to the required grade and asking politely if they would therefore keep his place open till the remark was back.
Then you/DS have to ask the school exams officer for a priority remark and say the university place is being held subject to the remark as then it gets done much more quickly.
Hope this helps- I know all this because at DS school 2 years ago one poor/silly sod missed his firm and his insurance (Oxford and LSE: both AAA offers) and we heard all about it from him/the exams officer. Sadly in that case neither Oxford nor LSE were prepared to keep his place till the remark came back so he had a gap year.

Its really tough if DC go away on results day as then parents can't celebrate/commiserate with them. I feel for you.

funnyperson · 20/08/2011 22:41

This page is interesting: 'missed my grades but still got in' stories on TSR

www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1684656&page=57

The freshers pack just come through for DD! Its like Christmas! Reading lists, special clothes to take exams in, accom forms, medical forms etc etc. we've been off diagonally to diagon alley and have been debating cauldrons/kettles etc. DS got a kettle from tesco costing £2.00 last year. DD may get our old Russell Hobs which I got when I went to Uni.

adamschic · 20/08/2011 22:47

Funny, it all sound very exciting and I got a bit of a lump in my throat, reading your post and thinking about empty nest syndrome that might be me next year.

Ponders · 20/08/2011 22:52

special clothes to take exams in

what???

adamschic · 20/08/2011 23:01

I wondered about special clothes too but didn't like to say. Could they be white coats for experiments, is she going to be a medic/scientist?

Ponders · 20/08/2011 23:15

she's going to do psychology I think! (trying, & failing, to imagine what special clothing psychology students need for exams Grin)

at Oxford, which is very definitely not self-catering, I think they need to provide themselves with loads of stuff like kettles, toasters etc because they don't get a proper kitchen (that put my DS right off; lucky he didn't get an offer Grin)

adamschic · 20/08/2011 23:22

The mind boggles, perhaps Funny will come back and fill us in.

Ponders · 20/08/2011 23:23

maybe it's a pipe, a beard & horn-rimmed specs?

Lilymaid · 20/08/2011 23:26

The clothing is called subfusc and involves a gown and black/dark formal clothes and white shirts. Men have to wear a white bow tie (DH made one from paper, once). Must be somewhat hot if you do exams in a heat wave.

Changebagsandgladrags · 20/08/2011 23:28

Well then, there's my reason for a bad grade. I didn't have my special clothes on. They could have bloody told me the fuckers.

I have to have a special pen for my exams. It all started when I sat my first accountancy exams and used a specific pen. Since then I have always passed and in some cases won a prize. Took that exam in 1998 and have been buying the pens ever since (but only for exams). If they stop making them I am doomed.