Do you have a Year 11 doing GCSE this summer?

[BertrandRussell]

There have been lots of threads, some quite heated, about the new grading. I thought it might be interesting for those of us with current year 11s to say what their predictions for English and maths, what they need and what sort of school they are at.

My ds is at a secondary modern. He is predicted 8 for English and 7 for maths. He needs a 7 for English and a 4 for maths.

DS1 is predicted 7 for English and 6 for Maths. He's done two sets of mocks - got a 7 and a 7 in first lot, hasn't had English back yet for second and got a 6 for Maths. Ofsted rated good comp in rural town. He has really struggled with new maths curriculum and was getting 3s and 4s at the start of year 11 - has worked his socks off to get his marks up.

got a U in maths

Is this expected? What did he get in his KS2 SATs? What does his tutor think?

Noble
he did ok in his SATs and got 4's in maths and english. The maths and science teaching has been awful the whole time he's been there (he had one year where he had a decent teacher). The new acting head (who's been in post since the notice to improve) has been having meetings with all parents whose children are not at the level they should be and admitted to me that the school has failed them and they don't have the basics. Luckily the sixth form college he'll go to is fantastic so he'll be able to do an extra year and re-sit his maths, but he shouldn't be in this position.

Violet, if he got a 4 in his maths SATs and is now getting a U, that would mean not only has he made no progress since primary school, but has actually gone backwards. Does his maths tutor think he is a U too, or have the school used weird grade boundaries or entered him for higher instead of foundation?
If he's a U, then he most likely won't be resitting maths GCSE but will be entered for Functional maths instead.

Noble
Tell me about it, the school has been absolutely shocking. So many kids are in the same position, one of his best friends from primary school who for a 6 in his sats is now going to struggle to get a level 4. I'm so pissed off as I've been in touch with the school so many times over the years and have been fobbed off every time.

I do wonder whether I should have moved him, but it's very difficult to know whether this is the right thing to do when a child's happy and settled. Plus the other school close to us is also in special measures and I'm a single parent and work long hours, so needed a school in walking distance. When he started there the ofsted was good.

He's not academic at all, but he should be getting C's. I'm hoping the tutoring will get him up from a U to at least a level 3, that way he should be able to do gcse next year rather than foundation maths.

How can it be that bad, violet that a 6 might not pass?!

Any chance you could post mock scores just so I can check that it's not just incompetence at interpreting results?

If your lad is on board there's still a chance to make significant improvements at home - have you looked at online resources like hegartymaths or corbettmaths?

I've not got copies of the scores, we were just told them verbally.

He does have access to various online resources, but is so disengaged now that he doesn't want to look at them. I am of course telling him he needs to and trying to get him to revise but it always ends in a row.

DD at comp predicted 8,8,8 Maths, Eng lang, Eng lit.

Needs whatever she can get - looking to go to super selective grammar 6th form - they said she did not make the cut at top80 - but was in top 100 on predicted grades - so call back on results day if results are above predicted.

Realistically - needs 5 As overall from 9 subjects for her second choice grammar 6th form in addition to a min of 6 for English and Maths.

DD Comp
Maths predicted 7
English predicted 6

English has always been her weakest subject but she feels she's doing much better lately so hopefully she will at least get a 6.

Say she needs at least level 6 in both to do A levels at her school.

Dd is predicted A-B in all her other subjects and may be able to get A* in a couple if she pushes herself.

Average comp estimated:
Maths 8
English Lit 7
Eng Lang 6

Mocks were 8, 6, 6 respectively.
Targets are 8, 7, 7 respectively.

DD at a comp, dyspraxia and dyslexic tendencies.

Predicted 6 maths and 6 both English

Got 5 maths in the latest mock, 5/6 in English

Wants 7 maths, 6 English

Needs 6 in both to do biology,
chemistry and RE at a level

She's feeling v despondent about the mocks. She does fulfil criteria for laptop but missed the (very stringent) extra time criteria by a thin margin and really struggles with processing speed so getting it all down in the exam

for maths stand alone a 6 for entry (tech college and comp) a 7 (grammar) and 8 (superselective). Kind of suggests a 7 will be considered ok for "doing well" at A level.

our local sixth forms are saying that for further maths an 8 is a must have - for entry let alone for doing well,

DD, comprehensive.
I think they are saying 8s but hoping 9s might be possible, but since they don't really know what a 9 will take, it's all a little tricky.

DS2s mocks were all graded in letters and they haven't given any predictions other than "if he bothers to do some work he should get a whole set of top grades"

My gdd in year 10 predicted level 9 in eng lit, math, geography, biology and chemistry. 8s in physics, r.e , english , Spanish and French. She was at same level last year so think teachers may be playing safe with predictions. Everybody waiting to see what happens with year 11. All my gdd exams will be the new GCSEs. She goes to Catholic comprehensive.

Doing iGCSE maths so still letter grades, predicted A*
English is the one he struggles with, predicted 6s for both lang and lit, could go down to a 5 or up to a 7 on a good day 😳🤞

Draylon, yes i do. A seven should be ok for A level Maths

We're in Wales, so don't have the new grades, still the letters.

DD is predicted As and As across the board. Great, you think.
Until she breaks her heart at a B in eng lit (after having a not great teacher standing in for the usual one and some messing around with the timing/staging of assessments).
And then is more annoyed at the A she got in numeracy rather than being happy she got an A in Maths.

She's still predicted As and A*s for the rest.

But I hate the pressure they put on the children with their targetted and predicted grades.

Listening to your child sob in the middle of the night due to stress and watch her spend every spare minute doing homework or revising is not a happy place to be.

DS secondary comp (has repuation of being a 'shit school' think its quite good really

English Lang -6
English Lit - 5
Maths- 6

Needs 6 in all to do what he wants for uni, needs 4's to get into a leve (not doing english and maths)

I find it strange that pass rate this year is 4 but next couple of years is a 5. But the thing im dislking most about the new systmn is our kids when asked what results they got will have to say something like 'oh yea i got a 7,6, 5 2 A*, B and 3 C's" how confussing!

DD superselective grammar.
Predicted maths 7, literature 8, language 7.
They only need 5 to stay at 6th form - but 7 if doing that subject.
No 9s predicted for anyone as far as she knows.

Forgot to add in mocks

English lit - 3
English lang - 6
Maths- 5 (Although the whole year apparently struggled so those predicted 8's got like 6's, higest was a 7!) The maths paper is apprently REALLY diffcuilt.

My undestanding of 9's is they go to top 5% in country.

I find it strange that pass rate this year is 4 but next couple of years is a 5.

begging this has changed. The government slipped out the night before the Article 50 notification so most people missed it that from now on a 4 will always be the grade which won't require resits for maths and English.

The 4 has now been named the 'standard pass' and the 5 a 'strong pass'.

Ahhh okay. I don't know if that makes it better or worse so basically you now need the 'equivalent' of a d/e to hit re sit... I'm confused!