Year 11 GCSE support thread 5 - finishing off the exams

[HSMMaCM]

Only another week to go for DD, but I know some of you have two weeks.

I absolutely agree about how ridiculous is the number of exams our poor DC are having to put up with - and the way it's being stretched out as a result.

I suspect its being done this way so schools (some schools) can put on revision classes and bring kids up to higher grades than if they did exams ocvering alrger part of the sylabus as we used to. As a result, the powers that be can, genuinely, claim that kids are getting higher marks.

But I doubt it's actually led to better-educated kids - possibly worse, because they are spending so much time revising stuff, just for a series of short exams when they could be - learning. And it's such a haul for them - it can't be good for mental health.

DS said History went OK, no no clue about it really

This afternoon we started chucking out his notes/papers - he's kept everything since Yr7 !!! OMG, what a lot of paper; staggering to think how much paper/electricity for photocopying etc is used. We have almost filled a wheelie bin and nowhere near done yet.
Then, he brought out his elder brother's GCSE notes which he'd kept also !!

I am so glad his exams are done, just got another week of A levels and then I might start sleeping better!

Well so much for a free day, DS has been at chemistry revision all day covering things they haven't covered yet!!!!!! OMG the exam is tomorrow and they still haven't covered everything. He said it went oK and doing it today will keep it fresh in his mind, fingers crossed. He's shattered and is flumped in garden listening to music and flipping through his revision notes. I agree with everyone else the kids are knackered just like their poor mums.

Oh well day of horror tomorrow for DS 2 papers and graphics is a 2 hr paper. Think he can have chippy tea tomorrow. Nearly at the end

Bloody hell auntp, that's cutting it a bit fine!

I'm emotionally wrung out, feel shattered now. DS is glued to his Xbox

I got a text this am about physics revision this afternoon. Didn't pick it up till lunch time when it was too late to get DS to school. He didn't know about it, so he says.

Oh dear lynette. Never mind.

DD missed some revision information which was given out in the main hall, at end of exams, because she was in another room for her exams.

DD also has chemistry tomorrow and physics on Friday. She is on her knees :(

Makes me wonder if ds's school arranged last minute chemistry revision to cover missing stuff, hence the call asking where he was this morning.

Crikey, sounds like some poor DC are really looking forward to the end now! What a slog! I hope that they will be able to forget about it all very quickly.

I think it is likely they will forget quickly spud , DD finished last Friday and already it seems like a distant memory.

I'm wrung out.

It was 25 separate exam sessions, but 32 separate papers if you include the '2&3' ones. Urban state school, recently academised.

Further Maths left, on Friday morning.

Thanks Errol, yes he did AQA

Are we going to finish the exams before starting a prom/ holiday thread? while pretending we're not worried about results nearly at 1,000 already!

Don't mind HSM, they can merge I suppose. I'll go with whatever everyone else wants.

Does anyone know if they are given the formulas in the chemistry exam tomorrow, or do they have to remember them all? May be a daft question but in the last paper they had the formulas and just had to work out the answers.

Chemistry and physics to go here too and I don't want to sound smug if anything but ds seems to have grasped the importance of revision and been revising really hard today. Just today. Not for the weeks and weeks that I have been gently mentioning it to him.

On a non- sarcy note, I am really impressed by the fact that despite his anxiety due to his ASD, he hasn't had any significant issues with the anxiety in the build up to and during the exams themselves. I am genuinely very proud of how well he has handled it all. just wish he had revised properly from the start

Probably roll over from one to t'other - some have already finished, a few people still have some next week poor sods.

How about 'Year 11 GCSE support - going, going, gone ... to proms and beyond' ? something like that anyway.

Sounds good, Errol.

nydj - that's good, when so many kids who don't have any underlying problems have been getting stressed out. It may be that if he'd revised more earlier it would have got on top of him?

Ah, ignore me I'm being daft. I was getting formulas mixed up with chemical symbols which are provided. Don't know why I get involved really, I know next to nothing about chemistry

Thanks Errol, I'll let myself believe that.

Woke up at 3.57am. I think even when it's over on Friday I'll just worry about the results.

Can I ask you all, what do you plan to do on results day? Is it low key, a big deal, or something else?

On results day, he has to go and enroll at VIth form then we will probably have a meal out somewhere. We are generally very low key; he doesn't deal well with lots of fuss.

I can't actually bring myself to think about that at the moment. It's very hard to gauge how he's actually done. Apart from the odd comment (apparently Biology 3 was easier than he expected) every exam has been 'fine'. He has to get very high results in Maths and Physics to get into the VIth form he wants to go to so results day could easily not bring the results he needs.

Chemistry 3 today and then only Friday to go. He went all the way to school yesterday for a revision session to find it was cancelled so he wasn't best pleased. He's not going to the Prom; it is his idea of torture. He is going to stay with his grandparents instead for some rest and recuperation.

Good luck to them all today.

Good luck for today to everyone.

Linerunner I made it through to about 6am today which is an improvement. I still feel in worry mode at the moment due to other things and I think my body is still a bit in flight or flight mode.

Results day I was basically planning to throw myself at the feet of the Head of 6th form amd beg him to let her onto the L3 courses ! I'm going to take her, stay in car then come in to help sort if needed as have the issue of has she pulled off what she needs to get onto L3 and which subject will maths resit clash with and she won't be able to take. Fairly low key I think in case of disaster but if everything ok will celebrate at the weekend as suspect I will be emotionally wrung out night of results.

Linerunner and SugarPlum, I think I am also still in worry/ fight or flight mode too - certainly was after DD's last exam/day at school yesterday and DH woke me again at 4am with his tossing and turning, but at least I went back to sleep for a bit.

I am not thinking about results day for at least 2 months And then (like last night?) we won't be able to make any plans as DD will not want to because the results could be not what she's hoping for or she will want to see what her friends are doing...

Good Luck to anyone with exams today.

I slept badly last night too.

I kept worrying about DD's results. Which is something I've definitely been putting to one side while she actually had exams.

I don't know why I'm so anxious. If she doesn't do as well as she hoped, she can stay at sixth form in her lovely school. All good.

DS last day of revision today (Latin poetry), then last exam tomorrow.