Nat 5/Highers etc - Anyone getting ready with their S4 - S6 dc?

[weegiemum]

My dd1 is in s4 and about to sit 8 Nat5s. I don't know who is more wound up about it - her or me! (and I'm a teacher!!).

Wondered if there's anyone else out there to hold hands with?

DD is sitting English, Maths, Ghaidlig (Gaelic native speaker), French, History, Art & Design, Physics and Design & Manufacture. First is English on 5th May.

My DD also found paper 1 hard, said paper 2 was better. She didn't text me between papers as promised, I was stressing! So glad that's over.

Ds still on the bus home so I'll update when I can :)

My DDs report on H maths is that it wasn't what's she expected as there were very few questions with context . Some Q were very easy and she found that confusing , as she thought she'd missed something obvious ( she's prone to making silly mistakes ) . A few Q were quite hard , she knows she used the wrong figures for some of them but her method was correct so overall she thought she had done ok

Until she discovered that all her maths teachers were complaining it was too easy compared to last years , so now she is worried that they will put the marks down :-( .

Not a lengthy report from DS - he says the first paper was trickier than expected but was still fine for him and the 2nd paper was fairly straightforward.

I'm a primary teacher not secondary but was at a meeting in a local high school today. Head of maths said it was the easiest Higher paper in years. DS hasn't even got N5 maths yet so I have no idea!

There's a petition on Twitter because it was so hard.

Just had a look at that Groovee - DS1 is neither up nor down - he is either a great bluffer, is deluded or he's done well - I guess we'll find out on 9th August

Dd does tend to say she's failed when she hasn't. Roll on August.

Apparently a maths teacher has been putting the answers on Twitter. The answers for both higher papers is up and the nat 5 paper 1. DD says she has 14/40 so 35% unless paper 2 pulls her up (or the pass mark is really lowered) she'll be doing it again next year!

DD says it was hard but not THAT hard as people on Facebook/Twitter are making out! She managed to answer every question!

Ds has checked one answer he wasn't sure about (only because one of his friends, who is even more of a Maths geek not counting the one who was sitting Maths Higher today had had a different answer) and ds was right and his friend was wrong

He's quite adamant that those that complain it was "different" to the previous two Nat 5s are missing the point: it was just applyingthe full range of the National 5 curriculum and that after only two diets not the word he used you can't expect the questions to repeat.

I hope his confidence will be reflected in his result.

Fwiw I'm 35 and sat the Nat 5 paper today. Paper 2 was really really good. Paper 1 was awful. Everything just asked in such a way that it was difficult to work out and you didn't had time to spend ages on each question.

How do you feel you've done Haud?

We've had tears tonight after all the answers were put online. DD thinks she has 40% at the very most. I wish she never knew the answers, she totally beating herself up now.

She's another exam first thing in the morning but has done nothing for it as she's been so fixated on maths!!!

DS says his FB page full of petitions and complaints and someone posted the answers too. He's still a bit meh and says he's not bothered about checking his answers - can't work him out, he's either scared to look or the cockiest boy alive.

Most seem to agree that it was tough, lots of posts about people crying etc, regardless of the petitions, it must mean that the pass marks etc will be lowered.

Poor dd YoScience. I hope tomorrow's exam goes ok and that she's not been too distracted.

At least she then gets a weekend to re-focus.

It's easy for ds to be confident when he finds Maths easy. I also seem to recall that his brilliant Maths teacher was involved in the original creation of the CfE Maths curriculum.

Thank you Prettybird.

I wish she hadn't looked so might be a good thing your ds hasn't. I've tried to say that she doesn't know the marking scheme and that she might have picked up some marks along the way even tho she had wrong answers

She'll be fine for tomorrow, she is good at music and has already had her 2 practical instrument exams so that should boost her a bit. Then a week before history. (The final one, yippee!! )

Hopefully tomorrow will give her a bit of a boost for the final stretch. DS now doesn't have any exams until Tuesday 24th - keeping him motivated is going to be the issue.

I looked. I wish I hadn't!

I need a B and was predicted an A, got an A in the prelim. Suspect I will be exceptionally lucky to get a C overall.

Don't despair , haud, they will lower the marks for each band if the results are down overall .

Maybe if paper two was much easier it will all even out? fingers crossed haud and everyone else who is relying on getting a pass/decent mark.

Ds did say that Paper 2 was much easier - so you might have made up marks there.

And as Magnum says, if the marks generally really are lower, reflecting a more difficult exam, they'll adjust the grade boundaries.

I hope the pass mark is lowered. Dd's estimated 40% is paper 1 and 2 combined, assuming they are both weighted equally.

Good luck to anyone with exams today. Dd is just getting ready for her 9am music exam. Glad she has a wee break after this she seems exhausted. After today that's 6 done!

Dd is still grumping about maths.

She's off til 25th for Drama. So she arranged a week's work experience at a school for next week. Am impressed with her doing that!

That's great Groovee, well done her!

yoscience paper 2 is worth a bit more - 50 marks as opposed to 40 for paper 1.