End of year exams - DS won't revise!

[mjnh12]

DS (year 7) has got his very first end of year exams at the end of the week and he is completely not bothered!

What can/should I do?

His grade card is good mostly As and Bs (some A*s) but his effort mark is not so high. If he only put some effort into his studies he would get so much more out of school.

Have tried talking to him and he storms off to room and sits and looks at a book (I mean just looks!) Not taking anything in. Feel like I'm nagging him.

Just don't know how to best approach him. Forcing him to revise is not an option and neither is withdrawing rewards. Half of me thinks just let him get on with it and take the consequence from the school/teachers. He's got to learn to take some responsibility for his learning, right?

He goes to a fabulous school, is in a small class, with great teachers and it's such an opportunity that I don't want him to waste. I know exams shouldn't matter but unfortunately they do in our education system.

Any help/advice greatly received.

It's year 7. I'd say " you really should do some revision at least so I'm going to be suggesting we turn the TV off in the evening" or what ever till exams are over.

Then I'd let him sink or swim ! Year 7 isn't a " disaster" if he gets C/D marks. They can be pulled up. He needs to know if the setting /streaming makes a difference and what he is risking - but other wise leave him to it.

Yes its Year 7 boys. DS1 has a scholarship but gets that A*, A, B spread of marks and lots of comments he is not showing what he is capable of from teachers. Calls other children swots and teachers pet. Would prefer to come mid way down the class and be popular rather than do well in his exams.

He now admits that he just didn't bother in Yr 7, 8, 9. He swears blind he has done more for his Yr 10 exams he is sitting right now but admitted to DW the other day he was aiming to 'just wing' his Spanish exam. FGS! He is planning to do Spanish at AS level!

I want him to fail now so he gets a shock before his GCSEs.

I think it's time to leave him to it. If he fails now he might buck his ideas up.

That's what i've done with my Y8 DD. I've spent the last few weeks encouraging her to revise and she did the smallest amount half-heartedly.

Yesterday was the first day back after half term and she had 3 exams. Cue an evening of last minute revision when she realised that she should have done more!

Next week for us.

Have suggested that much less screen time this week and next weekend so that the work covered since last September can be revised is a small price to pay, just 7 days for heavens sake, but it appears to be falling on deaf ears here too.

At stake is the currently held places in top sets for everything and I know there would be tears if put down to middle set for anything......

I have one more ace up my sleeve tonight, a reminder of how it felt once before when more work could have been done but wasn't and after that I wash my hands of the situation.

Are you helping them with a revision timetable? Not doing it for them, but explaining why and how to make one, so they can tick off the topics? Just telling them to turn off screens and revise may not work, if they don't know where it start. Without a plan it just seems overwhelming, and unlikely to be much use unless done systematically.
Although Y7 may not seem to matter, getting used to the idea of study skills and revision plans will be good training for later...

Thank you everyone. Reassuring he's part of a group!

Yes, I've made a revision timetable and set aside chunks of work to revise and how to tackle it (school helpfully sent home revision tips eg mind mapping, spacing it out etc).

I think I'm hand holding too much. He was like this in primary but it didn't seem to matter much then.

I know there will be children who will be studying hard for these exams and he will fare badly compared to them. Shame as I know he could do so much better if he actually tried!

DS is in Yr8 and is the same.

He has tests at the end of the month, but he says no teachers at school have mentioned them.

The most he has agreed to is 30 minutes revision a day, broken down to 2 blocks of 15 minutes in 2 different subjects. I've suggested he concentrates on the things they studied at the start of the school year, and also on Geography specifically as they have had 6 different teachers this year and they have lacked direction.

He has refused to look at Maths since he has said they are doing lots of old test papers at the moment.

He is bright but I think is a bit cocky with it. I am trying not to nag as it's counter productive and I don't think it's a battle I will win.

For both DS1 and DS2 I did help set out a revision time table with them.

DS1 I went through the topics with him and then he devised a timetable which I didn't look at but he assured me he had done it and has been doing some revision.

DS2 I did more hand holding. Actually setting out the time of day he had to do the revision in 45 minute blocks per topic.

It is too daunting for them and DS2 (Yr 8) definitely had no idea where to start or how much work he had to get through.

DS2 has come home today with what for him is a very good set of results after putting in some real effort and I cant complain.

DS1 now has something to live up to and he says he is doing well in the exams he has done so far. We will see.

I've removed DS1's 3DS (with his agreement) to help him 'focus' on revision. He is 17 and sitting AS levels! DS2 seems to be somewhat better.

Ditto op , DS is yr 7 weekly boarder , so I'm unable to micro manage him so if he fails he fails, it's just the total lack of effort maybe it's a y7 thing , so on his own head be it .... Oh and if they fail badly they have to re sit so I think that's more of a deterrent IMO.

Like the idea of resits!
DS says exams have been going "fine".
We shall see in a few weeks time!
Thanks everyone. Nice to know I'm not alone.

Maybe Bitesize or some YouTube revision videos would appeal? They're the only way I could get my DSs to 'revise' at that age. Eventually they realised the importance of doing well for themselves, getting into sets they preferred or actually doing well in exams, for their own benefit. Takes time, though. An unexpected drop in science sets at the start of Y8 motivated my DS1 no end.

Similar situation here. DD claimed she didn't know how to revise but huffed and puffed when DH and I tried to work with her to do mindmaps (DH) or flashcards (me). Even DS tried to help her but it all clearly sounded like too much work. She 'read through her notes' a few times but that's it.

We decided to let her sink or swim. No exam results yet but she's used to being towards the top of her class so will get a shock if she's not this year. We'll fight the battle properly next year with our own evidence as to whether her 'method' works!

Yeah 'fine ' seems to be the standard answer for everything these days .....