GCSE Results thread and starting 6th form

[WitchofScots]

Follow on thread from the GCSE exams and proms thread. For hand holding and recommendations of wine/chocolate/biscuits to get through the post results stuff.

DS had two remarks. One was the whole school, so we didn't have to pay, and pretty much everyone went up a grade.
The other he was on the D/C borderline, so we felt he had nothing to lose.

DD wondered about asking for one, but when we pointed out grades can go down as well as up, she decided not to. (That was last years exam.)

Well the Standard article doesn't really fit for DD, she had in the words of her teacher "nailed" Shakespeare in the controlled assessment and it wasn't in the exam.

The Standard article sends shivers down my spine. English Lit is so important for DD. She needs an A to do English A'Level and Drama which are so important to her. At her school the half the English Department has left due to disenchantment with the Head who is also leaving. It doesn't bode well.

She is close to meltdown and talking about getting 11 U's. We had tears before we went out because I told her to hurry up when she took 45 minutes to brush her hair and tears on the train on the way back in case she fails everything.

I wish I wasn't working tomorrow but have given her £20 to take herself off round the shops to take her mind off things and she has asked if she can take a couple of my Nytols tomorrow because she knows she's going to be awake all night.

We have had a chat about realism in that if all her controlled assessments, etc., were A or A* then she can't possibly fail all her GCSEs.

Desperate now for it to be over. I said we'd got for a pizza or something tomorrow. Her response "I'll just feel guilty that you were nice to me and spent money on me before I failed everything" and "you do realise that my future career is "fucked" if I fail on Thursday".

sighs, cries, wails inwardly whilst trying to be uber cheerful and upbeat. --and I don't agree that War Horse was fab - I thought it was morbid, miserable and bloody depressing". I also wish we hadn't gone because it meant we had a ruck on the way and I am still up after midnight.

Grade boundaries are out and it's getting more tense......
Another 24 hours - assuming I can persuade DD to get up !

Ripening apples. Did school tell you the controlled assessment marks?
Wish ours had.

Oh Ripening, that sounds like very hard work It's tough when they know there are problems with the Head, we've got a new one coming. DD had two new English teachers at start of Year which threw her and English got slammed by Ofsted. That Standard article is pretty depressing as DD really needs a C in Lit, it's one of the 4 she had a chance of passing but slightly misread the title of a 16 mark question.

At least at this time tomorrow it will nearly all be over and we can get on with dealing with whatever we're dealing with, it's the not knwing that gets to me.

DD is actually not too bad as has a lot of other things to do, think distraction definitely helps. Had a talk with a friend whose DD has gone off the rails which did put things into context a bit.

We haven't made plans for tomorrow other than getting the results, one step at a time.

Hmm, was I wise to book the DC's hair cuts for this morning with some who also has a DD waiting for results tomorrow

She certainly got grades for them juggling. I think there were some comments like "I just scraped x" or I just missed x by one mark.

Thank you SugarPlum. I have a particularly anxious one with low self esteem following a particularly able older sibling who just sails through.

Mine is anxious too Ripening and was sick a lot during the exams. She's in front of a particularly able sibling which is easier I think. I am finding it quite challenging parenting both ends of the academic range but luckily she is having some success in her creative things which is helping a lot.

Have to say the whole GCSE experience has been much worse than I thought and so glad it is nearly over. We just need to keep our nerves now for the final bit, keep calm and (eat cake?) deal with whatever happens

Another one with a teen with anxiety issues here!

She had a terrible day yesterday, but cheered up when her BF came over for a sleepover - think they got 3mins sleep, which is 2mins more than me! And they are off all day for fun and frolicks at the seaside with the birthday BF, so that's good. I had several very vivid dreams involving me not getting GCSE results - jet-lag is probably playing a part, but it seems my sub-conscious is very active!

No plans for tomorrow yet.

Edexcel have reduced their boundaries for maths:
A* - 77.5% (155/200)
A - 62.5% (125/200)
B - 47.5% (95/200)
C - 32.5% (65/200)

W o W!

Gin, what is that reduced from?

I've googled grade boundaries and find them incomprehensible. Was edexcel maths the one with the question about the sweets?

Last year:

A* - 82% (164/200)
A - 66.5% (133/200)
B - 47.5 % (95/200)
C - 28.5% (57/200)

Yep - Hannah still haunts Edexcel ..!

Edexcel Maths higher paper

Nov 2014 - A* 166/200, A 132/200, B 94/200, C 57/200
June 2014 - A* 164/200, B 133/200, C 95/200, D 57/200

So the A* and A have lower boundaries but C has a higher boundary. I think it is just reflecting that the very hardest questions on the paper were harder than they usually were but the easier questions were easier than they usually were.

So they've lowered the A* and A, but put the C up

I know right? What's that about?

Odds - sorry, cross post: good point, in fact that makes perfect sense

SugarPlum - exam stress awful.
DD out today with 2 friends. Both likely to get straight A*s. Not sure that's going to help.
Made a huge effort to praise all the work done to try and take stress down but fallen on deaf ears I fear.
Wish we knew the controlled assessment marks. There were friends DCs in the past who were told by school they were good - but then they weren't! And pulled their grades down by at least 1.

Roll on tomorrow. At least the uncertainty will be over.

Knowing CA grades wouldn't help, I'm a governor of a secondary school (so I am looking at the boundaries with two different hats on) and in the past we have seen large changes in grades due to late stage moderation.

I think the best we can do now is keep distracted - we can change nothing.

morning everyone.. just popped in to give a little shoulder squeeze of support my ds1 is picking up a couple of yr 10 results tomorrow, but I can certainly imagine how I'll feel this time next year..
hope you all have a peaceful, panic free day today

Can't decided if it's still jet lag or nerves but DS is up and about at 8.30 ish or earlier each morning! ! He's still adamant thst he's going up to school on his own, so I'll just have to wait for a phone call. Distraction the last few days have been nieces here Monday so trip to local farm, yesterday he came shopping with me and helped in the garden, today he's volunteered to help me take mum to the hospital. Which is great as I can't manage her chair up the ramp into the clinic. Also he's really good with her, she's got dementia and thinks he's my dad, so she let's him tell her what to do. That should take all morning and then I think we might go out for lunch to extend the time away from the fb chat group of hysterical girls who reckon they are all gonna fail.

This time tomorrow.............