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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

GCSEs 2018

998 replies

DoNotBringLulu · 12/08/2017 16:19

Hi all, I am sure many of us with dc going into year 11 this year are trepidatious about teachers and pupils thrown in at the deep end due to the new GCSEs.

There is one thing I can do which I hope will help my ds (even though he thinks I'm mad!), which is to get hold of this year's GCSE English Language and English Literature papers, read the books and work through the paper myself - I studied English Lit at university over 20 years ago. I will know for myself after I've done this how difficult the exam papers are at least - I'm not sure who I can ask to mark it for me though!

Can anybody tell me how challenging the Maths and English papers were for their dc? I understand these were the two subjects introduced with the new format.

OP posts:
TheDonald · 15/10/2017 20:19

I need to stop reading this thread. Worrying about them being overworked is so far from a problem here.

Dd just got back from her dad's and announced she's got a physics exam tomorrow. She doesn't understand any of it but apparently it's not her fault because it's all stuff they covered last year when they had a supply teacher.

She presented me with her revision guide 10 minutes ago and asked me to test her. She knows none of it so it's pointless and I've just lost my rag with her. She just can't be bothered to sit and work so she's trying to shift the effort onto me.

Now she's sulking and no revision will be happening.

It's going to be a loooong year Sad

Sadik · 15/10/2017 20:22

Definitely not any where near that much work happening here I have to say.

BlueBelle123 · 15/10/2017 20:27

mmzz even if he did get 7's in his year 10 mocks (although who knows where the grade boundaries will actually fall!) surely he expects to make some progress in a year. DS has been told that on average DC improve by about 1 grade from yr 11 mocks .

In relation to half term, I would certainly encourage some rest away from the books, as its really important to pace yourself as the time to peak is May/June.

DS has mocks straight after half term but he will only be doing a couple of hours a day, as he says he's working towards the final exams next summer........it will be interesting to see how he doesHmm

mmzz · 15/10/2017 20:36

@Bluebelle I don't understand DS's logic at all! I keep reminding myself that he has no past experience to bring to the situation, but he has his Dad's stubbornness (couldn't be from me!).
The teachers wrote 7s last year and their words are what counts as far as DS is concerned. For obvious reasons, I'm reluctant to prove to DS that teachers are not infallible about exam things and they have no idea about the grades boundaries either.

mmzz · 15/10/2017 20:42

@TheDonald it's annoying when they say it's not their fault, isn't it? The fact though is that it's whose problem it is to sort out that counts, not who caused the problem. Your DD will be the only one whose name will be on the certificate this time next year and there isn't a place for a footnote about your DD only having supply teachers. So it's up to your DD to study extra if the school let her down.

(That's me talking to my nephew btw, not you or your DD)

LooseAtTheSeams · 17/10/2017 10:40

DS was actually too shattered to go to a music lesson last night and that's not normal!
I'm hoping the massive geography test yesterday was the actual mock as he thinks it went OK. I boggled at the computer science coding exam/assessment letter I got today. I'm going to just print it out, pass it to DS and not think any more of it. I prefer not to get involved and yet the school will insist on communicating with me!

mmzz · 17/10/2017 11:07

One of DS's teachers is threatening students with punishing them by telling the parents how much work the student s doing unless they do a specified amount. He must be desperate...!

BlueBelle123 · 17/10/2017 11:15

That is soo wrong, no wonder MH issues in teenagers is on the rise again this year! Sad

notsomanky · 18/10/2017 08:16

We went to another 6th Form college last night.

He still says he wants to go to his school 6th form, but these visits are making him think about the subjects he wants to do.

Having to choose only 3 subjects at most of the colleges is really limiting his options for the future, especially as he is unsure about what he wants to do.

It would help if he was weaker in certain subjects or really disliked some, but he is an even performer and likes all his GCSE subjects.

confused.com

WhatHaveIFound · 18/10/2017 08:42

confusedheretoo.com

DD was dead set on doing Music A level until we went on a school visit yesterday. Now she's thinking she might just keep it as a fun thing she does on the side.

Another two visits today so maybe things could change again Confused

LooseAtTheSeams · 18/10/2017 09:04

It’s a headache, all right. Our shortlist sixth forms allow 4 (at least to start with) depending on gcse results and subject choice.
I do understand doing three if they are all essay intensive and in some cases maths with further maths counts as one option for timetabling. But it’s tricky if you like a range of subjects.

LooseAtTheSeams · 18/10/2017 09:06

Oh, and things definitely change on these visits - DS has developed an interest in psychology and seems a bit lukewarm on computing, whereas before it was all about the computers!

mmzz · 18/10/2017 09:22

We attended a sixth form open evening last night too. It was a fabulous school. DS would be extent lucky to get a place there. However, the sixth formed in charge of the displays etc were all so clever that DS was intimidated and now he doesn't want to leave the comfort zone of his current school.

noblegiraffe · 18/10/2017 12:12

DD got results for her science mocks that are the real deal as much as any mock can be ... they came with definite grade boundaries, I mean.

A word of caution about this. Any mocks for the new untested GCSEs will not come with definite grade boundaries. Grade boundaries may be given, but they should come with extreme health warnings and caveats.

From experience, the Edexcel maths mocks last November before the real thing sat by thousands of students didn't come with grade boundaries because Edexcel said any grade boundaries would be unreliable. PIXL, on the other hand did some national maths exams at the end of Y10 and issued grade boundaries that were so ridiculously low we didn't bother giving them to our students. Any school that used them would have been unpleasantly surprised in the real thing.

WishfulThanking · 18/10/2017 14:17

So many people, here and in RL are worried that DC are only allowed to pick three A levels now. I don't know why...I see this as a good thing! When we went to a talk at Cambridge university about A level choices they warned against picking too diverse a range of subjects. They said this could count against you. I don't know why somebody would want to do something like three sciences and a language anyway... what a workload! And if you're that passionate about the language why not learn it anyway...you don't have to do a A level in it. Chances are if you're picking sciences, then a language isn't really going to help you get onto your course. I know a hopeful medic who wants to do this. I just think 'why?'.

I am so glad we're leaving behind the days of 4 and 5 A levels!

WishfulThanking · 18/10/2017 14:22

At the talk they said that somebody with 4 As would probably be rejected in favour of somebody with AAA or A*AA, for example. Better to do really well in three subjects than all right in four. Stands to reason that the more you take on the harder it will be. They said Further Maths was an exception, as this seems to be a requirement of some of their physics/maths courses. Obviously not everybody aspires to Oxbridge, but if they are saying don't do four then i don't understand why anybody would choose to!

mmzz · 18/10/2017 14:23

I think the problem is that its hard to know what you want to specialise in at university and beyond when you are only 15. Some people do, and they don't change their minds later, but many don't. So, for less sure, keeping their options open seems like a good idea.

TBH at 15 I thought I wanted to be a teacher. At 16 I wanted to be a pharmacist. At 17 I wanted to work in drug research, and at 25 I knew I wanted to work in banking! Luckily I didn't set myself on the wrong path for too long.

noblegiraffe · 18/10/2017 14:38

Hardly anyone actually took 4 A-levels, the vast majority dropped one after AS, and for quite a few it wasn’t the one they originally thought they would drop.

Sometimes students find they have chosen a subject and don’t like it, or really struggle with it. The flexibility to be able to drop one at the end of Y12 was great. Now they’re stuck with the 3 they picked when they were 16 for two whole years and if any go wrong, it’s potentially very difficult.

I think the figures were that only two thirds of students who started AS maths continued with it to Y13. What would happen to that third who dropped it at AS now? There are a lot of concerns about these students.

WishfulThanking · 18/10/2017 14:42

noble I think schools should be stricter about who they let do A level maths, if that's the drop out rate. I think my school only allows you to do maths if you achieve a 6 or above, but maybe that should be a 7?

I've read on here that even students who have had A*s at GCSE struggle with it.

WishfulThanking · 18/10/2017 14:43

I also think most people know if they're more interested in sciences or the arts. You might be good at both and have an interest in both, but most likely not equally.

noblegiraffe · 18/10/2017 14:56

Turning even more people off A-level maths would be a disaster, we need more people taking it not fewer. Those that dropped it at AS will have most likely benefited from some maths post-16, even if they dropped it because they got better grades in their other subjects.
People don’t just drop subjects because they fail it, and who fails what isn’t always about entry requirements.

WishfulThanking · 18/10/2017 15:08

Ah, ok. Just thinking out loud.

noblegiraffe · 18/10/2017 15:23

It sounds fine in theory, but it assumes that kids pick perfectly and perform perfectly, which they don’t, a lot of the time.

mmzz · 18/10/2017 15:31

I'm not trying to be awkward here but why exactly do we need more people taking A level maths?
This is my logic - tell me where it is flawed, if you have the inclination:

  1. The people who are really good at it already take it.
  1. So its the people who are ok, but not great at it who'd be the "more".
  2. We, as a country, need more wealth creators, and the STEM subjects are a big part of that. But those who can contribute there are already doing A level maths.
  3. What would the others use it for? They have basic numeracy and a pocket calculator. If they are good enough to start a maths A level course then they have enough numeracy to check their gas bill or compare mortgages / loans.
  4. What additional skills or knowledge will they gain from doing A level maths that will help them in their daily lives? Or help others if they have some trigonometry and calculus knowledge?
noblegiraffe · 18/10/2017 15:31

I should say, on this thread, that it’s really important that your DC make the most of sixth form open evenings, ‘taster’ lessons and opportunities to talk to sixth formers. They need to find out exactly what their chosen/potential subjects will involve and whether it’s for them, especially if it’s something they’ve not studied before.
There will be opportunities to switch subjects in the first weeks of Y12 but after that it will be very difficult.