2018 Scottish Exam Support Thread

[Groovee]

Practicals have already started for many, folios are being worked on... here's the 2028 thread to get us through.

I have Dd sitting 3 highers and D's sitting 6 Nat 5's. Oh the stress.

Yes, I think most Glasgow schools (along with others) start in S3 pb but I'm not convinced it's necessarily fair......but we wont go into that :)

One chap in DCs school passed his AH Maths two years early with a perfect score!!

I think for individuals there does need to be a little flexibility.

Dss school have already moved into their new year (when exam leave started) just to give the S4s an extra month so they can squeeze in 7 Nat 5s over the year.

Our school used to do early presentation for SG's and then 2 year highers sitting them in S5.

They really turned their results round in this way. I've seen people slate my teens school on Mumsnet but it's a different school now from what they knew.

Well Ds is up amd muttering something about hating Norman McCaig, so I think that means he is ready for his exam today...

Dd already left in a whirlwind of neurosis!

Hope the exams today go well

I hate Norman McCaig too, but that may just be because I had the same English teacher for 3 years and she managed to turn everything into turgid depressing gobbledygook. In contrast DD1 admits to having a fab English teacher she really likes and still hates English.

The pitfall of early presentation can be if you do your best subject early then it no longer counts as one of your core 5 in 5th year. This problem goes away if you also do the AH early but then that negates the benefit of giving yourself an easier 5th year. Also some Unis count some subjects as "soft" so you have to be careful what you replace it with.

wiggly my DD3 is only 6 so I'll be around a while but there is such a big gap and she is so spoilt I suspect I may have "adapted" my views by the time I get to her.

DS is in S4 and DD is in S1 so I’ll be here for years.

Ha, glad there are plenty about to keep the tradition going. Might even pop in from time to time to see how everyone is doing :)

I may or may not start another Uni apps thread for next year depending on what DS2 decides (or his results decide for him). he still doesn't know if further study is for him but I suspect he thinks that getting a job probably isn't!

He will only have 3 Highers this year even if he passes them all, so he will need to rely on 6th year results regardless. I'm not how that (or if that?) works or whether he just needs to wait. No sense thinking too much about it until after August 7th anyway.

The Higher will be in it's last legs by now. I hope the paper has been kind and same for anyone doing AH. Think the Nat 5 is Monday?

Sorry, meant to say so don't wait for me if someone else wants to do the Uni Apps one :) Or maybe we just want a finishing school one so we can chat about what everyone is planning/gets up to.

I would like an empty nest thread come September

Not been on this thread much as DD's exams still not started! Biology on Tuesday is the first one.

Hi First time post on this thread but my DS is now 1/2 way through his highers. Unfortunately his last is PE and then he is back at school the next day!
Hope English went well for everyone.

English seemed to go fine and that's DS2 all done so now has 3 weeks off!

DS1 has one more AH to go on the 22nd.

It's a shame when they have exams on till the end.

Dd thought English went really badly, but she always thinks that after exams.

Biology and French next week.

DD1 reckons she gave it her best shot. DD2 has Nat 5 English on Monday so trying not to dwell on it. Both counting down the days till freedom.

DD managed to get the bus to school and sit both papers. It's been a rocky week but she did it 🎉. Higher human biology and history back to back next week which she isn't as confident in but I'm hoping to get through them without too much drama. I must say her guidance teacher has been ace. I owe that woman a huge bottle of gin!

DS has English `nat5 on Monday - he had a bit of a meltdown yesterday but we went for lunch today and he's pulled himself together. His last exam is not till 4th June, but everyone in his year is sitting it (native speakers Gaelic) so at least no-one will be finished and dossing about!

Dd1 thought Graphics higher was tricky but fair, she's fairly confident of an A.

I'll be here for the next 3 years as I have dd2 in S3! Feel like I've been doing it forever!!

Guidance teachers are great. DDs friend had a melt down at the prelims and her guidance teacher picked her up each morning and she sat her prelims in the support office with a box of tissues. Since then she's been given lots of help and she managed to sit her national 5 maths in the main exam hall.

DD had only one exam so far but has English on Monday, Biology on Tuesday, History on Wednesday and French on Thursday. Friday off and Chemistry on Monday.

I will be here for another 2 years as my DD will do a S6 - as she's undecided about what she wants to do. Although I think she'd like to leave home to escape her brothers.

@ttlshiwwya my DD also has chemistry the following Monday but ditched Higher French after the prelims despite getting a B to try and relieve some of her stress didn't work

@yogafailure: will she pick up H French again in S6? Getting a B at prelim is great. Maybe once your DD gets thru Biology she will start to relax a bit.

I'm not sure....she's decided to pick up art again after getting excellent marks in S2 but telling me it was "boring". She's finding that drawing is helping her anxiety hugely, which is good. She's picking up higher psychology, higher music and advanced higher English. We dissuaded her from higher maths as although she got an A in N5 she went into a flat spin with maths right from the start of S5. She has a vague plan to do maths and French at college but I'm putting no pressure on her whatsoever.

DD did national 5 art this year and has found it relaxing and a good break from her other subjects. Quite a bit of work though especially the portfolio.

DS found Higher English ok and reckons he's passed. Well that's good seeing as he is down for advanced higher next year!

that sounds good then demented Ds2 is too hard to read so I have no idea, but he has also put down for AH next year. Given even if he passes the 3 he is doing this year, he will effectively be cancelling out one of his highers by doing the AH next year. This means he will be very tight if he ends up doing ok and if he then wants to go to Uni. Lots of courses would be looking at at least 5 over the two years so if he gets 3 this year and does an AH in one of them and 2 more Hs in S6 and miraculously passes them all it still means he will only have 5 subjects to count leaving no room for maneuver at all. I think he'd be better doing 3 highers next year but then what do I know?

I think lots of unis double count AHs and Hs in the same subject plus the AHs seem much better preparation for university work so your son might be better off with his one AH and 2 new highers. DS2s BF got 3 highers last year and has conditionals for both Glasgow and Strathclyde for engineering with 2 additional highers although they need to be As. Two of DS2s friends have also had unconditional offers from StA and Edinburgh with only 4 highers - both failed maths however I think their others highers were As.