Is there a hand holding thread for Y11 parents and GCSE results yet?

[fatowl]

DD is waiting on GCSE results next Thursday.

She is bouncing around being a teen on Summer holidays (she is off in Ireland for a week with her friend's family)

I am beginning to feel a bit sick.

She is hoping to stay at school and do A-levels, but now the results are getting closer I'm a bit concerned we don't have a back up plan.

How are the rest of you doing?

Does anyone who knows about these sort of things know if the grade boundaries have indeed changed significantly this year?

Also expect it is because your son has done extremely well, Bacon. If it was something bad, they wouldn't leave you on tenterhooks. Good Luck to him!

Leeds2 I've looked at the grade boundaries for ds's subjects and they are generally only 1 or 2 points away from last years though one subject and I can't remember which, was about 4 marks out meaning he had to score 4 extra raw marks to get over the threshold

will go back and look at them again later and report back as to which board/subject it was

Bacon - it definitely sounds like one of those opening live on TV sort of things - good luck to your ds and to all the dc

Isn't it weird to think people who know our children well already know how they have done? I wish I could find out early!

Thanks, eatyourveg. I had been imagining worse than that!

Yes Dumbledoresgirl. All the SMT and the numbercrunchers will know the results today. Teachers can log onto the exam websites from 6 am tomorrow to see how their school have done. We have anxious GCSE days every year as DH is HOD of Geography and is always on early checking the results before he goes in to see the students to find out how they have done. Extra anxious though this year as DT's get their results tomorrow! He will know some of their exam results before they do but is sworn to secrecy.

Bacon suggest you call back so we you know the reason. If he to appear on TV he probably wants to wear his coolest gear

Ohh let us know bacon!

My DD is a bundle of nerves, Im trying to play it cool but my stomach is in knots.

DD has OCD, anxiety and Asperger's, she revivsed so very hard I hope she gets the grades she wants. She's worried about people being disappointed in her. No matter how much we tell her that we won't be, it doesn't seem to go in.

She is being dropped down at 8, but I have to stay in the car . She is going to open them away from everyone and then come to tell me.

We're in NI and her school doesn't have a 6th form so we have to try to get her an interview and place tomorrow . Why in earth they do it this way is beyond me.

She has applied to 2 grammar schools and tech is her standby in case she hasn't enough points for A levels.

How we are going to be in 3 places at once I haven't a clue.

I think DD is getting hers by text/email. Not sure at what time though.

Joining in and marking my place!!! Tomorrow is a big headache away!!

The grade boundaries are only half of it. There's sometimes strange marking to factor in as well, with whole subjects being affected, as with English and History in 2012. Sometimes it's just a particular exam board, but certain subjects are notoriously volatile.

I'm anticipating poorer than expected results for DS and reduced stats nationally. In the vague hope that I might have a pleasant surprise!

I am not looking forward to tomorrow and nor is Ds. He keeps telling me that as of tomorrow his 'life is over!' B's and C's, B's and C's...that will keep him going Ok.

Oooh another one thinking your ds is going to have a nice morning tomorrow Bacon. Fingers crossed for him and you.

I had a massive meltdown this morning. Ds very upset with me now
He was supposed to catch the train to meet dd and I in a nearby city after a sleepover with his friends. He didn't turn up. His phone was on voicemail only, no replies to texts. I called the friend and found he had left there 2 hours previously. Dd's suggestion was that the train was delayed because someone had thrown themselves in front of it (which happened to a train we were on once). Well you can imagine what I started thinking - with his GCSE results out tomorrow! In the end he managed to email his friend from the public library and ask him to let us know where he was as his phone wasn't working. But he hasn't forgiven me for thinking he might have done something like that.

What happened with English and History in 2012? I keep seeing reference to it, but don't know what it is.

And dare I ask what subjects are known for being volatile? I can only imagine they are the ones DD chose!!

I think I would've been hysterical, Dunlurking. Glad everything turned out fine! Glass of wine tonight?!

Thanks Leeds2. Think I'll save it for tomorrow night. I don't think I could stop at one and I need to drive in him 8am tomorrow!

Leeds2 I think it was the year they changed the boundaries/grades and children who would previously have had an A were getting Bs etc. The teachers and students all thought they would get their predicted grades but most students got a grade lower if not 2 grades lower.
Hundreds of students got papers remarked but it didn't make any difference. If I remember correctly I think the Welsh Gov had all their English papers re-marked.

Thanks. I do vaguely remember that about the Welsh pupils' papers all being remarked.

I hope there are no "scandals" tomorrow.

It was to do with CA boundaries. Pupils in the same year did identical pieces. Some of the kids took the exam in November and got their grades. The remaining kids who took the exam in June had the boundaries increased making it more difficult to get the C. So basically the kids with identical raw marks got different grades.

Marking my place. Double trouble here. Ds and dsd who both live here are getting their results tomorrow. Dsd predicted all A's and only needs c's to stay on in sixth form. Ds predicted all B's but needs b's to stay in his sixth form. All v nerve racking. I'm driving ds into school tomorrow morning and dp is driving dsd to her school.

Another one feeling sick here. Dd is a high achiever. All A* targets except for Art - which is an A. Anything less than that will be a failure to her though NOT to us. She should be fine for a-levels as she is staying on at her school. So the only pressure on her is her expectations of herself - and that's tough because the hardest person to live with is always yourself. We are on holiday too so results coming sometime tomorrow by e-mail......dd has been fairly calm up to today but we are both feeling the stress now I think. I'm purposely not showing her the grade boundaries. We'll know in a few hours.
AAAAAAAAARGH!

DS's school not open until 10.30 a.m.!!!! What am I supposed to do with myself until then, given that I will probably be awake from about 5 a.m.?!

Don't they send anything by text/email, Unexpected? 10:30 does seem late. DD's school opens at 10, but I have just checked and they promise to have sent an email before 9.

I think they might send results by email/post if you had requested them Leeds. Of course, DS didn't get his act together, although to be fair, at the beginning of the holidays, he thought he was going to collect himself. Instead, he is away and I have had to take a half-day from work to go in and collect them!

Joining in to wait with everyone else. Everything crossed for straightforward results that are what we expected. And only nice surprises!

Must admit, I have wondered if DD has registered an email address!

Joining in too.

Hope everyone's DC get the results they need.