Handwriting in GCSE

[KLdragon]

Just had a phone call from my DS's geography teacher telling me she is concerned about my sons handwriting and wether the examiners will be able to read it . I have to admit his writing is very messy. He is yesr 10 at the moment so we have a year to turn this around . Has anyone else had this problem can yo recommend any resources we can use?

You can have him assessed and if deemed completely illegible he can have extra time that can help as he might write clearer if he had more time, use or lap top or even a scribe. Its well worth doing it I lost marks in my finals at uni and thus missed a 1st by 1 mark becasue no one could read my hand writing (even me).

No experience here, but would say that my teachers always lauded the benefits of clear presentation and diagrams to be a 'leven in the lump' for markers. Obviously the content has to be sound, but I think if I was marking loads of papers and I got to one that did not take a massive effort on my part to analyse, it may lead to me throwing a few more marks at it on a subconscious level.

For geography I always used LOADS of diagrams - I drew them in fountain pen and used the back of the nib for delicate bits or subnotes (?). He could perhaps work on that a bit, for that subject at least.

I suppose in terms of improving you could go back to basics and buy a wipe-clean book for pre-schoolers, that has all the eeeeee looping and stuff in it.

Thanks for your replies happy gardening and eugeneaxe. Messy DS is now back from school and sad that I am I made him write some example texts he is definately capable of legible work if he makes the effort but easier said than done in exam situations. He is dyslexic so I have an ed psych coming up so I will definately raise my concerns and see if we can get a scribe or computer (although DS wasn't receptive to this suggestion). Hopefully we will already be on extra time with his dyslexia.
I will also try gong back to basics over the summer holidays and see if we can get some better letter formation.

I'm dyslexic although was diagnosed late in life becasue I can read well but I cannot spell at all. On a day to day basis my hand writing is very unusual and attracts lots of admiring comments but on a day to day situation I have time to try and spell things properly or come up with an alternative word. But in a stressful time limited situation like an exam I don't have time to try and work out how to spell words with more than one syllable so I have developed this illegible hand writing where all vowels look the same and S T and C look the same in fact all letters look the same so that I can't be accused of spelling a word wrong.

KL The problem with a scribe or computer is that they have to get used to a new way of getting their thoughts out. DDs writing speed is at the 10th percentile, her typing speed is a little better but the problem is that doing essay subjects she is used to producing essays in word but in the exam has to use a programme that has no word processing features and so she gets herself in a mess trying to work in the same way as if she has.

I am also dyslexic and I have to say that for both DD and I it has really helped having had to go through a phase of actually practising letter formation endlessly. I would ask the Ed Psych for advice.

Also big beware, the regulations have changed on extra time in exams. Now they will only give extra time if processing and/or working memory skills are in the below average range, regardless of how much higher they would be predicted to be given ability, or speed. We had a panic with a few weeks to go as in DD's last assessment they were in the low part of the average range and it looked as though they might take her extra time away for AS. We brought forward her assessment for UCAS and her processing skills were in the low average range but if they had not been we were hurriedly assembling all the evidence (since first assessed age 9) to try and get them to accept she was a special case. Again something you might want to discuss with the Ed Psych.

Happy Gardening Also just missed a first, though had viva because on borderline, so can't really blame dyslexia, but possibly being able to spell Emperor five different ways didn't help......

Copthall I understand that as you get older you writing speed is meant to increase and thus some who weren't eligible for extra time/scribe/dragon can now become eligible.
I cant spell Emperor so would have to have written king!!!

In my recent MA exams when I really wanted to use the word connoisseurship, which my lovely ipad just helped me with! I tried five spellings that didn't even look close, crossed them all out and wrote good taste and expertise!!

Just to clarify, if you are dyslexic then your speed may not increase with the average so you may start to qualify? That is certainly the case with DD. However the new regulations mean that speed is not one of the scores taken into account, only processing and working memory..... In fact at the last assessment her Ed psych was pretty sure she is further to the dyspraxic end of spectrum, hence her extreme slowness.

I mark GCSE papers and yes, poor handwriting does make it difficult to see if they have achieved the answer and you can often miss vital aspects of an answer because you can't read it.

You also need to think that most papers are now scanned in and marked online, so clear writing is a must. I have found with some of my own students that sometimes a change of pen like these can sometimes help. I would also encourage him to slow down when he is writing

Pens certainly make a difference I never write with a biro usually an ink pen Lamy are cheap and write smoothly but in exams the ink pen is too slow so I write with a hand writing felt tip. I also avoid rollar ball pens although they are preferable to biros.

You have the right to request a laptop usage in exams. If you request a scribe the SPaG marks will be deducted unless he dictates every letter and punctuation which is time consuming. He will not get the extra time award unless he has poor processing skills.

My DS is in Yr8 and already uses a laptop. As it is his "normal mode of working" then it is my understanding that he will qualify to use it in exams without necessarily having to be tested.

I think my DS has dreadful handwriting, but the teachers have never complained about it, I think they can read it, it just looks awful! He has nearly finished his GCSEs, so I hope the markers can read it too!

Thanks for everyone's advise I will definatley be working on his handwriting over the summer as I agree if you are not used to using a scribe or computer it might be more detrimental than beneficial . Will also be trying out new pens thanks for the link cricket balls and recommendation happy gardening. Thanks again everyone for taking time out to reply to my problem

Holly / Copthall : Would working memory skills at 18%, processing skills at 34% be considered poor enough to qualify for extra time?

teen I'm not certain of where the upper border of below average is but I am almost certain 18% would do it. My DDs issue was that in her previous assessment they were at 47% though reasoning was in the high nineties. However with the different tests that are used for the assessment used to apply for university she has come out with some very low scores that indicate dyspraxia. Part of the problem is that they have to use particular tests so you will need to check that out.