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Secondary education

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Original poster

Maths GCSE papers being re-marked.....

28 replies

BaconAndAvocado · 16/01/2014 22:26

DS was 1 mark off an A* and his school advised us to get his paper re-marked to try and "find" that extra point.

I wasn't sure how they would find it but DS was adamant he wanted to have a try.

We paid in the cheque yesterday but haven't been told how long it will take to get result.

Has anyone had any experience, positive or otherwise, of this process?

OP posts:
lljkk · 17/01/2014 05:48

Friend's son went from D to B iirc. I haven't heard any horror stories.
I think it's not quick, more than a few weeks anyway.

GiraffesAndButterflies · 17/01/2014 05:56

It's basically just a remark. Contrary to popular belief they are no more or less lenient, they're not 'hunting' for an extra mark, just checking that the mark scheme was correctly applied the first time. So the end mark could go up or down. For 1 mark off an A* it's worth a shot!

MadIsTheNewNormal · 17/01/2014 06:01

What giraffes said. To be honest, if you can afford it it would always help to get anything that was remotely borderline remarked, as the mark can only go up, not down. I have a grudging suspicion that this is what happens all the time with many pupils at private/public schools. Many parents of bog standard secondary kids don't even realise they can be remarked, never mind be able to pay for it, just on the off chance.

But surely in maths there is only a right or a wrong answer and nothing is open to interpretation, so would there be much point?

cricketballs · 17/01/2014 06:20

Madis - the mark can go down and this warning is made very clear to students/parents.

Oh, and bog standard comps do know about remarking and do make use of it when appropriate

cricketballs · 17/01/2014 06:20

Madis - the mark can go down and this warning is made very clear to students/parents.

Oh, and bog standard comps do know about remarking and do make use of it when appropriate

cricketballs · 17/01/2014 06:20

Madis - the mark can go down and this warning is made very clear to students/parents.

Oh, and bog standard comps do know about remarking and do make use of it when appropriate

MadIsTheNewNormal · 17/01/2014 08:55

Really? I did not know that. Although only someone with a borderline grade would bother, and if it isn't going up then I suppose it makes no difference either way - it's hardly likely to go down by enough to change the grade.

MadIsTheNewNormal · 17/01/2014 08:56

Yes the schools may, but I am not sure many of the parents necessarily do, and unless the school has a very vested interest in pushing one or two people's grades up a notch then they are hardly likely to be pushing parents to pay for it.

MirandaWest · 17/01/2014 08:58

Maths marks could go up or down - my mum and dad mark maths (AS and A2) but the principle is the same as there are sometimes points open to interpretation. Also there is the possibility that an error was made - markers are only human.

If you're one mark off an A* then it is unlikely your grade would go down as it would need quite a few marks to go down. Hopefully it will be successful for your DS :)

LeapingOverTheWall · 17/01/2014 09:04

DD1s Further Maths A level was one mark off an A - she was advised by the school that it wasn't worth paying for a remark as borderline results like that are always additionally checked before the results are released. We didn't push it at the time, as she didn't need the A, but maybe we should have done?

At GSCE I probably would though as an A* might make the difference between getting onto an A level course or not.

reddidi · 17/01/2014 09:50

That was bad advice LeapingOverTheWall - there is more than one paper to an exam and the final result is only known when the individual marks have been converted to UMS points and aggregated. They don't then go back and remark each paper for every candidate that is borderline overall.

If you are 1 UMS point below a grade overall it is always worth considering remarking one or more papers, but for an A* borderline make sure you don't look for remarking on a paper where you are already getting 100% of the UMS mark as you can only lose marks (e.g. separate sciences students can get 100% UMS marks in module 1 with only 80% raw mark). You need someone that really understands the way the system works to advise you - top performing schools have examination officers who are expert in this.

The fees and timescales are on the web site for the exam board e.g. Edexcel.

LeapingOverTheWall · 17/01/2014 10:03

we did actually know what paper it was (because she'd already done most of the papers which were being used for FM) so it did all hinge on just the one paper. It's well in the past now, she got into her first choice uni and so far has never felt the lack of the * Wink.

Original poster
BaconAndAvocado · 17/01/2014 12:04

Thanks all.

The school didnt tell me that the grade could go down! But hopefully that won't be the case as he's so close to the A*.

We paid £47 for the 2 papers to be re-marked. I do know that DS was the only student to be that close to an A. One girl was 2 marks off and no one else got an A.

DS's school, probably like many others, does seem to be becoming a bit of an exam factory! But if he gets an A* we will be very pleased as he's worked so hard.

To digress a little. DS recently got a B for his English Language GCSE- a very good grade IMO. We thought that he would then study for an English Literature GCSE , which he loves. But the Englsih teacher instead wants him, and many other students, to re-sit the Eng Lang to try and get an A.

Is this the norm? Surely it's better to have, say, 2 English GCSEs at B grade than one at A.

Thoughts?

OP posts:
mummytime · 17/01/2014 12:14

If the grade goes up you should get your money back. My DS's mark increased by 8 marks in Geography (from very high D to a comfortable C).

But it can go down, and examiners may have added too many as two few marks too they don't have much time per paper. DS was at a Comp too.

Cerisier · 17/01/2014 12:22

It is definitely worth getting a remark when you are so close to the A*. I hope the examiners find that extra mark for him.

It seems strange that DS isn't studying for both Eng lang and Eng lit simultaneously. However there is no reason why he can't continue to work on his Eng lit but have a few extra language lessons before the exams (or just re-read his notes) and resit Eng lang to try to get the grade up.

For uni entrance the more A and A* grades you have, the better.

reddidi · 17/01/2014 12:58

"Is this the norm? Surely it's better to have, say, 2 English GCSEs at B grade than one at A."

No, as long as you have at least 8 overall it is better to have Language at A than 2 x Bs in Lang and in Lit.

Creamycoolerwithcream · 17/01/2014 15:43

My son's school paid for my son's science GCSE to be remarked. He got a B and was mark of an A, it came back as two marks of an A and he was so upset.

Original poster
BaconAndAvocado · 17/01/2014 16:01

So it seems the As are all-important!

Thanks, we've all got our fingers crossed here too!

To do,double Maths at the local grammar 6th form he would have needed an A* but he thinks he will stay at his high school where he said he'll "get more support". He has AS btw.

OP posts:
ATruthUniversallyAcknowledged · 18/01/2014 13:11

It sounds very odd for the school not to want him to do lit. The language mark will only count in league tables if he also gets a grade (any grade) for lit too. Also, only the first grade (the b) counts in league tables so it's not in the school's interests to reenter lang.

Dontletthemgetyoudown · 18/01/2014 13:16

Ds1's English was sent for remarking. It went from 2 marks off the next grade up to one off!! Slightly frustrating.

tiggytape · 19/01/2014 22:28

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
BaconAndAvocado · 20/01/2014 10:26

tiggy scary stuff and something worth bearing in mind for any future re-markings.

OP posts:
CouthyMow · 21/01/2014 08:11

Can you do this if you are sitting GCSE's as a mature student too? I'm concerned that I might end up a mark away from an A in Maths, or a mark away from an A* in Science.

Abra1d · 21/01/2014 08:14

Actually, at my son's independent school he was discouraged from having two IGCSEs at A remarked to see if they could be A*s.

The teachers think you're better just getting on with the next stage.

Original poster
BaconAndAvocado · 24/01/2014 17:18

Hi all.

DS for,his results of the re-mark today and he's still got an A.

Oh well, am A is still really good.Smile

OP posts: