As levels June 2014

[herbgarden4]

Daughter has just received AS levels- all good apart from one shocker! Does anyone know if resits are still available for AS exams now that the rules have changed?

Next summer I am afraid,

If it is a real surprise ask for the papers back, it costs around 25-50 ish. Or you could see about a remark.

You used to be able to re-sit in January, but this option was axed for the current Y13s and onward. Now it's only June. Ds re-sat one module for Maths as it would up his overall score and help secure the A he wanted.

It's only between £12 and £15 to see the paper. Obviously more fees if you decide to go for a remark but you do have to request it pretty promptly.

The reason I am up now is because I am remarking papers! It really is that quick, we want to help students who have failed to get their place. Remember we do mark positively.

And if you are asking for a paper back, ask the a photocopy, not the original. If, when the teacher has looked at it, they think it is meanly marked, you can then go apply for a remark, but only if you have not had the original script back.
At AS it is not so urgent, so this is a good option, especially as a remark can result in marks and grades dropping, as well as rising. By getting a copy of the script, the teacher can advise if a remark is worth the risk of being marked down. Also, even if it turns out the mark was fair and does not warrant a remark, the candidate and teacher can see where the marks have been lost, which is useful for resits or future exams.
We don't allow anyone to put in for a resit,without having first asked for their script back and having sat down with the teacher to discuss where the weaknesses in that script were.

As a school, we request a wide variety of photocopies of scripts back each year, ranging from the best to the not-so-good, as they are a useful resource for future students to use, to help them understand what is and isn't rewarded highly.

My DD was predicted an A or B in Geography and got a U, as did many of her classmates. She's absolutely devastated, as that was the subject she hopes to pursue at uni, and her college has said she can't do Geography next year at A2 as she needed at least a D to continue. Now I'm confused reading above about resits in June. Her college hasn't suggested this as an option and said the new funding arrangements meant she couldn't re-take.

Now we're looking at the upheaval of changing colleges so she can do a BTEC in Environmental Sustainability, which some unis will accept as an alternative entry qualification. Does anyone know anything about this please (I mean the re-take/re-sit situation and whether BTEC is a good alternative.) DD has lost all faith in exams, as she studied hard for this and feels it was all for nothing.

Re sits in June next year are possible but you probably would have to pay.
More to the point, is the fact that with a U it probably isn't worth re sitting or continuing to A2 with that subject.
The reason a D is set as a minimum grade, is that there is no point allowing pupils to continue to the next, more difficult stage if they do not have a realistic chance of success. A U does not suggest that success. Child would have to sit their A2 modules next summer, and the resits would take time away from the preparation for those, leading to too many modules all being taken at once, resulting in an even slimmer chance of success. Fine to re take 1 module, but sounds like it would be the whole course.

If lots of students had much higher predictions and under performed spectularly, it suggests either poor teaching, or an unrealistic assessment of the pupils abilities or a rogue exam marker.

I'm sorry I don't know about BTECs, apart from the fact that they will not be accepted by more prestigious Unis, but then neither are very low A level grades, so it could well be that this course is more suited to your child.
I would be ringing the college and insisting on an appointment in the next week to discuss all of this before the start of term.

Thanks Chocolate. What's strange is that she got A* GCSE and is really passionate and works hard at the subject. Since writing the above, my DD has spoken to 8 of her classmates. 6 got U (so 7 including her) and 2 passed (a B and a C I think). She hasn't had contact with the other people in her class (there are 14 in total) so not sure how the rest did. I'm going to have to buy a copy of her paper I think because neither of us understand what's gone wrong. I'm quite a realist and think her other results reflect the effort she put in (variable, depending on subject), but this particular result is baffling.

It's really highlighted the short space of time between receiving results and enrolment - not much time to consider options/alternatives.

I will definitely be in contact with the college again, but unfortunately the subject teacher is away until the end of this month. All very frustrating.

I would definitely get a photocopied script for your dd twofingers, but at my school she would not be allowed to resit either. Yes resits exist and can be done next summer, but a student who has scored a U is generally so poor at the subject it would be unfair to let them continue to A2 as it gets harder not easier. It is possible there has been an error with her script, but unlikely that it is so catastrophic that it will move her up to more than a U. What were her grades for the individual units?

Sorry move her up to more than an E

'...so poor at the subject...'

Despite getting A* at GCSE and being predicted A or B and studying hard and attending all the revision sessions and having a passion for the subject?
I'm not PFB about her, believe me. She got a bad grade in another subject and deserved it, but this one is just baffling me. Guess I'll be stumping up to see the marked paper.

Did she do Edexcel Geography twofingers? I know DS said his first geography paper was very weird - and there was a mistake in the resource booklet relating to the first question which threw him and no doubt a few others. Strangely though he did very well in that paper, but not so well in the second paper which he thought was really good. Sometimes if a paper is unlike previous papers which they've practiced that can really unsettle students. I remember ds was quite down about that paper when he came home as he said he'd revised loads of stuff which just didn't come up, he didn't know if he'd answered the questions properly and it was quite time-pressured.

All academic now of course but I just wondered if your dd had done the same exam.

Quite a few students totally fail to make the transition from GCSE to A level twofingers, and an A or an A* at GCSE is not necessarily an indicator
of success, although it helps of course.
I wasn't being rude about your dd personally, just generalising about U grade students at AS, based on a vast amount of experience. They don't make the grade at A2 and it is unreasonable to expect them to waste another year of their life and end up with no qualification at all.
I would be delighted for you if it all turns out to be a massive exam board error and she actually got a good grade but it would be very very unusual.
Can I ask again, what grades did she get in each of the modules, ( and how did she feel each exam went) ?

It never hurts to get a paper back, or even a remark if a candidate has a U, but expected much more, with realistic rather than deluded expectations. The only danger with remarks is that the mark goes down, but if there is already a U that is not going to matter.
In my experience, teachers usually know when a grade is likely to be an anomaly. When this is the case, we have seen a large percentage of remarks result in higher marks and grades. Occasionally there is a HUGE error and makes can go from a U to a B or A, but this level of error is very unusual. The remarks we usually get are for candidates who should have got a* or a and got the grade below.

Bearing in mind you say lots got Us, it could be a rogue marker or it could be poor teaching. Or of course,the candidates may not be as strong as they were led to believe. And yes, quite a few who were good at GCSE don't make the jump to A level well, although to get a U from a GCSE of A* seems unusual, so worth pursuing.
In my school, on results day,mew have people to advise from each subject and pupils apply for remarks or scripts back there and then, so that we often have them back by the start of term. We look at the individual marks received and advise on whether there is a real risk of a remark causing a grade to drop (most likely if the candidate is near a grade boundary) and also advise, based on the Uni they wish to apply to, the grades needed there and the overall profile of their results. I think that this kind of immediate advice is very valuable.....far too many people seem to receive no advice about what to do next. in Sept, we will be advising about resits which might need to be put in for, ensuring candidates don't do too many, as this is to the detriment of A2 and again, looking at the whole picture of their university of choice and how likely a higher grade is given their abilities. Anyone resisting will be required to have their script back, and to go through it with their teacher so they understand their weaknesses.
Incidentally, we only allow people to progress to A2 if they have a C or above at AS. Few don't have this, but can drop the subject as they usually go down to 3 AS. If they have several grades below a C, there is an option to reduce to 2 subjects, to retake the year or to leave. Pupils do not begin an AS unless they have an A at GCSE in that subject,mor a related subject if it is a new subject, so most are capable of getting Bs or above at A Level.