Average (or lower) acheivers exam thread time?

[yolofish]

Is it time for this? I mean those of us with kids who will not get 11 As in their GCSEs, or 4 As at A level.

I know most mumsnetters will not be in this particular boat but quite frankly in this house we just have fingers crossed for a C at GCSE English language for DD2, so she can get into 6th form and dance to her heart's content, and for DD1 good enough results to get into Y14 to finish off her media studies A level (started too late in Y11 to finish this time round).

They are not knuckle draggers, or indeed thick as pig shit (both comments I have read on here). They work hard, are good kids - but a row of A*s will not be on the agenda.

Join me please if you feel the same!

It varies between 6th forms. Some specify bio/science and some just English.

Good to know the science breaks down the marks into individual subjects even if it isn't reflected in overall grade. You don't hear much about double science on this website

Dh and I are both sciencey but dd isn't really - apart from astronomy which she isn't studying.

Re the Core Science - I think that for Edexcel it's 25% Biology, 25% Chemistry, 25% Physics and 25% CA. With the CA they can pick and choose and take the best bits from each of the 3 separate CAs..... I think. DS however is doing AQA.

rotaryairer I would be very surprised (though it might be true) if they can mix up bits from CAs, though they can re-do CAs and take the best one.

DD only did one CA for each of Core and Additional.

I think DD's school is AQA and its a CA for Core and a CA for Additional. No idea how it actually pans out wrt percentages of each in the CA, but no doubt I will find out as I think DS is unlikely to be allowed to continue on the Triple route!

Just did a search and you can pick and choose from the various parts of the CA for Edexcel:

"One mark is required for Part A, Part B, and Part C. The marks can either be from the same controlled assessment (CA) or from different CAs."

Not sure how it works for AQA though?

Wow!

Gah! Just read DS's report. Terrible.

Cointreau .

you get reports now?? dont think we'll get another one, maybe we will at halfterm. have more cointreau and tilly

bit early, even for me!

The DC's school do short reports every half-term and a long one after the proper exam week and then Parents Evening - next week It is a good system, because at least then everyone can try to start working towards improvements before the year is out

Ok if no then . I'm hoping there are no more reports.

DS is Y10, not Y11, which is why we had a report. He is doing just the one GCSE this summer, but had mocks in all subjects at the end of last term.

The report was just so infuriating, peppered with all-too-familiar phrases like "capable of so much better" and "too easily distracted" and "did not revise sufficiently". Attainment in French and Computer Studies is currently Grade E. Yet in at least three subjects (Maths, History and Science) the teachers remain convinced that it's all to play for, and he can exceed his targets if he tries. Luckily, I managed to rein DH in (who normally goes ballistic at the sight of a poor report), and he, DS and I had a calm and constructive hour talking through it all.

Meanwhile, it's Day 3 of his Science revision timetable, and he's actually been putting the effort in. DH is putting money on this fizzling out by mid-week.

CV, we have had similar convos with DS (still only Y9!) and DH is all for bribing him to pull his socks up

G;ad to hear he has at least done 3 decent days!

What if my DD gets a D for English? Can she still do other 6th form courses at the same time while repeating her English course for a resit next year? Are there some schools that can accommodate this? - these are anxious times for DD as well as for parents!

I mean my DD is having GCSE exams now. We are all so worried that she would fail her English literature. When I read her essay, nothing seems to be seriously wrong, only that the grades she gets are horrible.

Baycrest, how is she with English Language? My understanding is that when people are talking about a pass in English it is English Language they are on about.

Our local sixth form college allows students to retake their maths or English GCSEs to bump up their grades whilst taking other standard sixth form courses including A'levels.

It's really useful to have at least a C in maths and English.

DD got one B for English mock and one D for another English mock, failed in her poem analysis. She is taking the real GCSE exams this week - and we are all crossing our fingers. Her math is not that worrying, A - B for several mocks - personally I think B in math is good enough for us.
DontBeAMeanie, can you name a few colleges that you say will allow students to retake English GCSE along with other sixth form courses? We are moving to Bromley area this summer and are looking/applying for some 6th form school for DD. She's got some rejection already from some schools, saying her latest English mock is D (a very marginal one in fact). I wonder this would happen again if we keep on applying NOW - can we wait till the final results come out? or will it be then too late?

Oh boy.
DS realised this morning that, as we've just had Bank Holiday Monday, today is Tuesday.

And therefore that he has an exam today, not tomorrow.

And that he was allowed to take pre-prepared notes in, but as he thought he had another day to do it, he hasn't done the notes yet.

Bummer.

Baycrest unfortunately the school I was thinking of is in another part of the country.

oh kittie I feel your pain.
DD2 has English GCSE today (not sure whether Lang or Lit). they are spending the morning doing what is called a 'walking talking' mock, where they sit in exam conditions and teacher takes them through a previous paper. then exam at 1pm. poor kid, she was dreading the whole day. then DD1 got her seriously wound up about whether they would be allowed any lunch or not, so she burst into tears in the car. Bloody DD1. gah.

Thank you for this thread. I am HE ing DD who is on the C/D border. She is taking biology, sociology and psychology this year and swings between not caring what her results are (and watching wall to wall Walking Dead) and being catatonic with fear and self loathing, neither of which are helping.
I should chill out, DS is not academic either and I was climbing the wall last year about him, but he's now at 6th form doing creative subjects and having a ball. I just need to breathe (and detach a bit).

Thanks for this thread as the other one (and the comments that I see on Facebook about how great everyone's kids are) increasingly make me feel that I have failed my son.
I've kept thinking that when the exams get close enough he'll get more motivated but it hasn't happened yet. Going out with friends or spending time on his phone are his preferred activities.
He is fine with maths (hoping for A or A*), the rest are looking likely to be C's - possibly failing ceramics.

He wants to leave school and go to college in September to do a BTEC diploma in IT - I hope that will suit him better than the school environment has.