gcse science exam

[iwanttoscream]

My son came home on Thursday with his result from his exam , exam board EDEXL/GCSE says gsce/b element code 5BI1F title science/biology B1 mark 39 equiv e. He is in year 10 doing either double/triple science this year. Can someone explain his result, ie under level it says B but under equiv it says e.

Is it a module?

If so the module grade might be B but overall Grade E (if he were not to take any more modules)

What result do the school think he has got? His teacher should have explained it!

From the code it's a foundation paper so it is unlikely that the B actually means a grade B. Perhaps it stands for Biology?

It's a module. Most of his class got a f. Have parents evening later this month.

39% (30 - 39%) is an E in Edexcel.

He has done a foundation paper, so the maximum mark is C.

To be fair to the teacher, noblegiraffe, he probably doesn't understand the grading yet as this is the first exam in a new specification.

maybe it means if that was the only module he entered he'd get an F.
but if he were to perform at the same level for all modules he'd a get a B

honsoit, I know the pain of new specifications, but the teacher shouldn't have kids going home not knowing if they've got a B or an E on the Foundation paper.

That's not what it means, oneof.

Where does it say level on the results sheet, OP?

He can't get a B in the foundation tier.

It is a module score and he has gained a grade E on that module. The exam is out of 60 marks and is a foundation paper.

I agree, Noble, but the reality is that not all teachers understand the intracacies of the UMS system, even though they should. Hopefully, they have a better grasp of subject knowledge :)

The student should have been told in November that the maximum mark for this module was a C.

If he wants higher than this, he will have to do really well on his Chemistry and Physics modules, taking the higher papers, and in his Controlled Assessment.

I think he can resit this paper, which he will need to do if he wants to do triple science, in reality. I think the resit will have to happen in the June of Y11 in order to satisfy the 60% rule, but just thinking about how this all works makes my eyes glaze over.

You guys sound like science teachery types, may I hi-jack your thread iwanttoscream to ask:

DD is doing Btec Science this year, based on her results the school decides whether she does science, double or triple.
They seem to be on a "the more GCSEs the better kick" so I need a realistic idea of which one she should aim for based on her grade
Could any of you help me work it all out? or is there not a direct correlation?

If he got an E, he scored between 19 and 24 marks out of 60

www.edexcel.com/iwantto/I%20want%20to%20%20Tasks/1111%20GCSE%20Units%20Grade%20Boundaries.pdf

Why don't you create a new thread, Katymac?

Well I can but as you were all in one place I thought I'd hi-jack as it's sort of connected

Not really connected at all, and any experts can see all the posts in the various education forums.

No problem

New thread made

Sorry iwanttoscream hope your DS sorts it all out

The B1 stands for Biology module 1. It's the module number not the grade!

Yes, B1 is the biology module they take in Year 10, B2 in Year 11, and B3 if they are doing separate sciences.

According to the Edexcel Grade boundaries it would be an e grade www.edexcel.com/iwantto/I%20want%20to%20%20Tasks/1111%20GCSE%20Unit%20UMS%20Boundaries.pdf.

Tom left yr6 on level 5 science. Teacher said last year he should get a B. He has two more modules to do, they all add up to 75% of the course marks, and the last 25% is through internal assessments. The edexcel site says E is scored between 19 and 24 as honisoit has messaged, but the statement of results says mark 39, next to Equiv e.

In year 11 he is supposed to go on to complete Edexcel 360 additional science.

The course code you gave was for the new GCSE which is being examined for the first time Nov 2011 (to Year 10s).

Edexcel 360 is wrapping up this year and it should really only be sat by Year 11s (or Year 10s who started a 2 year course at the beginning of Year 9).

The grade boundaries for raw marks changes for each exam. They apply a bell curve once all the marks are in, and nudge the marks so that the exams have equal difficulty each session. When they convert raw marks to UMS, the grade boundaries are 90% A*, 80% A, 70% B etc. A UMS in the 30s translates to an E grade.