DD thinks she wrote wrong candidate number

[nachohousekeeper]

Does anyone know what will happen? DD is in Y10 but sat her English Lit GCSE this year (2 papers).

She was just checking her candidate number for an exam she has this week and she has convinced herself that she wrote it down incorrectly on her English papers.

I have emailed the school but I am assuming that the papers will be long gone for marking. Does anyone know what the best and worst case scenarios are in this kind of situation?

Bumping for a very tearful DD

did she have to write her name on the exam too or just candidate number?

I invigilate school exams. In our case we have a list with the candidate numbers and names on and when the exam is over we put the papers in order and check them off against the list. If she had put the wrong number it would have been spotted and corrected.

If her name/school/centre number is on it they'll figure it out.

(I'm an exam marker for the Scottish Qualification Authority).

I'd call the board and the school, her paper will have been packed in order and they should be able to find it and check.

Hope it works out, give her a hug and let her know its a simple error, easily sorted!

I honestly cannot believe that every single one of the thousands of students I have put through exams would have got their number right. Some didn't even know how to spell their own names, I'm not joking. I have never heard of one single instance in 20 years teaching where it has caused a problem. Obviously it is there for a reason, but mostly as an insurance policy, to help identify the paper if needed. mostly not needed, and even if the identity is unclear, there are other ways of working it out. As long as most people have got the right number, the exam system can cope with a few glitches.

As Miranda West has already said after the exam papers are handed in the school has to complete an attendance register, which has both the students names and numbers to confirm that candidates have taken the exam. Usually any errors would be corrected at this stage.
For papers that are not marked on-line the examiners have to check the scripts on arrival to make sure the papers received match the register. Once the papers are marked enter the mark on a mark-sheet which has both the candidates name and number. Any errors not picked up by the school would therefore be picked up by the examiner who would if needed contact the school (via the exam board).
The candidate numbers are more important when scripts are marked on-line as examiners do not know the names of candidates (only the numbers). However there would be error messages generated by the computer system if there was a number that didn't match in a centre.

Sorry! Been out for tea.

This is all so helpful and reassuring and I am going to read the replies to her.

She is such a hard worker. I'm so glad I can give her more reassurance and will follow up with the school tomorrow.

Thank you all so much

At my school the exams officer checks every candidate number before sending the papers away and corrects any mistakes. She could ask tomorrow - if the answer is yes, she can rest easy and if the answer is no, the exams officer will be able to help. It's not something to worry about, though: eminently fixable.

I've been a reader and scribe for lots of children who can't even remember anything resembling their candidate number. Fear not as the Exams Officer makes sure all paperwork is correct before sending it off.

I'm in the middle of marking Eng Lit for AQA.

I upload the marks using e-marker software & obviously check the names as I do so; the scripts all arrive bundled in alphabetical order, so it's just a question of keeping an eye out for the occasional missing script if a child missed the exam but is still listed on the software as entered.

I've never so much as looked at the numbers unless the name was wrong (eg. candidate calling themselves Joe Bloggs-Smith but listed as Joseph Smith - sometimes kids use diminutives for first names, or surname is different, maybe if a student's family have all adopted a new surname, eg. if mum has re-married, but not changed it officially). Then I check the candidate number so I can confirm that Joe is Joseph.

There's a tab to indicate that there's an apparent error with the name &/or number, but the paper is still marked & the mark entered against the candidate's name.

Seriously, don't worry! If the Exams Officer hasn't spotted a discrepancy & corrected it, the examiner probably won't notice either.

If he/she does notice, it'll just be noted on the tab & the exam board will decide if they need to contact the school & check that they do have a Daughter Nacho on roll who sat the paper - the only time I can think they would bother is if your dd has accidentally used someone else's number, or shares her full name with a fellow student, just to check they're matching the right paper to the right kid.

Relax & tell dd to stop panicking!