GCSEs 2018 (2)

[Stickerrocks]

Pre-empting our 1000th post.

Drummers you could be setting a precedent on the breakfast front. It will be kedgeree and bucks fizz by the end of GCSEs!

I think DD was surprised at how much effort goes into sitting a mock exam then going back into class, concentrating on that subject, then having another mock in something else later. During the real exams she must continue to attend lessons until exams in that subject are over, then use the free periods for revision in school. I'm quite pleased, as at least the staff are available and she won't be wasting time traipsing backwards & forwards.

drummers I feel very remiss! I think I managed pain au chocolat but for the first 2 days DS1 was too full of cold to care what he was eating!
Our school insist they go to lessons if they don't have mocks. Probably for the best...
DS has an audition/interview tomorrow and a general interview a week on Saturday for the same sixth form. We're waiting to hear about a taster day at the sixth form he wants to go to.

Drummers I'm clearly failing at breakfast though i did offer beans on toast this morning. It was rejected in favour of cereal.

Main complaint this week is that i won't chauffeur her to/from school during mocks so she has to spend a lot of exam leave in school. Clearly IABU despite the fact that there's only 2 half days she could come home.

Tonight i'm out for a much needed mid-week drink. DH's turn to put up with the complaints.

Just a quick question - DD was taken out of exam today for her rest break (with a teacher), in previous exams she has just sat at her desk (obviously after putting her hand up and timer being started). What is the correct procedure - now confused?

You would need to check the exact terms of the exam board's rules, but usually students sit their exams in another room to avoid disturbing others. As you aren't allowed to do anything with the exam paper, the student could either leave the room under supervision or have the paper removed for the length of the rest break. (I don't teach in a school, so my knowledge is based on professional exams).

I invigilate , rest breaks can be either as long as she’s not got her paper and is supervised.

Complications!

DS1 has just told me he has to decide if he is doing Higher or Foundation French.

He apparently is a 5/6 on the reading/writing/speaking but the listening is a struggle and brought his marks in the mock down to a 4 overall.

Argh.

notso, do you have a Parents’ Evening before the decision deadline?

Eng Lang went wellish here, French and Biology tomorrow. He’s currently practising bass guitar - not really helpful for either, I would think...

Thank you for advice bluebell and sticker, much appreciated!

Kings, no we don't - we had one in November and the teacher was still talking about him doing higher but it sounds like he now thanks if he does the higher paper he may struggle. He told him if it was the old style papers he would have put him for higher for the other papers and foundation for this one. But DS1 says he really struggles o the listening g part so I don't know if it's safer to go for foundation.

Talking about languages funny but true story here.... My dgd is very quiet and shy and nervous. When she had her Spanish speaking during end if year 10 exams she could hardly get a word out due to nerves and she lisped terribly. She managed a 5 which was well down for her as she got 8,8,9 in the other sections. So, when she had to do the recent mocks I told her to just say she has a lisp which gets worse when she's nervous. The examiner turned round and said a lisp is 'great for a Spanish accent' . ....she was so took back, nerves forgotten and proceeded with exam! The examiner grinned at the end and said ' well done, your lisp didn't hinder you!'

notso I think I would consider what extra effort he would have to put in to the listening beyond what he is currently doing to help boost the grade, against the possible impact on his other subjects.

There's a bit of tension in our house at the moment.
DS sat an admission exam for a 6th form college before Christmas and he passed, getting through to the next round - the interview.
So, he has a really good chance of getting an offer, and the issue is that he doesn't want to leave his current school. He feels safe there now (he is very shy) and he's doing well there academically.
DH and I are convinced the 6th form college is a much better opportunity - better exam results for people like DS, better preparation for university, looks better on a CV and I suspect he'll be more happy there socially as there have been bullying issues at the current school.
DS doesn't even want to admit to the others in his class that he's applied to the new school for fear of being called a swot or something.
Its not looking good for family harmony. DH and I have failed to convince DS that the sixth form is a better option for him, and DH feels its far too important to let it go.
I've spoken to them both and DH will not budge. DS says he's afraid he'll be forced to go to the sixth form college against his will.
I'm watching DS - who is only 15 - stand up for himself. I think he's making a bad choice, but I think DH and I need to try to persuade DS, but also let DS choose and we get behind him whatever he chooses.

add to that the current school are not being that helpful - whenever they say anything, it is to say that they need students like DS and they'd like him to stay. Then they point out that every year they have at least one Oxbridge offer. (The sixth form college does a lot better than that.)
DS can't see that they are advising from the perspective of what's best for them, not what is best for DS.

sostenuto
mmzz wow it's a tough one. People say, if you're Oxbridge material, you can get there from anywhere. OTOH I know this not to be completely true because some schools prepare students very well re the interview etc and do better. Is your DS' desire to go to Oxbridge? Is that the expectation you have for him? If you force him to change and he hates it, that'll be horrible, won't it? He'll hold it against you and you'll feel gutted. Me, I would probably listen to my DS but I'm not saying that's necessarily the right thing to do. Does he have clear convincing arguments to stay, apart from looking like a swot or being influenced by the school? How about you all write pros and cons list together and make a rational decision?

MMZZ taster days could be the way forward here. Let him hold offers from the school and the college on condition that he has a trial run at college and makes his final decision after results day. At the moment he is probably erring on the side of caution and sticking with familiar surroundings because everything else is scary & changing. Take the pressure off making a decision now and keep all options open. September is still a long way away.

Queen of obvious and silly questions strikes again:

• when the school give grades after mocks, will they have done the same calculations boards do and establish their own boundaries based on the cohort, or will they base them on past boundaries?
• Boards have published times for the real exams. It only specifies am or pm. What time does am mean? 9am? 10am [she dreams]?

mmzz we're in the same position. DD has been offered a place at a girls school but is now having second thoughts.

She's getting pressure from her friends (who are also staying) and from one teacher as if she leaves there'll only be 2 students taking that subject at A Level.

I'm hoping another visit to the new school will convince her it's better for her. After all it was her who originally suggested moving school due to friendship issues.

mmz I've been in this position with ds1, and the opposite with dd! Ds1 really did not want to budge from his present school. He has been happy there but it wasn't the right fit for A level socially or academically, (possibly because they were in a very fixed academic mindset, and ds should never have attempted 4 A levels, and it has totally screwed up his choices and he has ended up in a muddle. Also the school while supportive is geared up toward more academic pupils who are doing Oxbridge) Ds however was adamant he was staying. Dd on the other hand is keen to leave her current very good school to go for a more exciting alternative, which iI don't think will suit her all.

However, I think the best thing is to press on with the interview, and see how ds feels when the dust settles, and when he meets some of the other people also going for interview, visits school again, you may find he feels a bit more "at home" there and beginning to consider it.

There are always new people in every Sixth Form, it is not the same as the lower school even if you think it is your familiar school, and tbh whatever is wrong with your current school may be quite different in Sixth form and vice versa. I am hoping dd will have changed her mind by the end of this year, and want to stay (state school so no deposit) but I am not ruling out that the private school she has set her heart on will still be in the running up until the time they ask for first term's fees, at which point I am going to have a serious talk with her, and we will decide then. There is nothing worse than not having a plan for next year, and possibly that is what your ds wants, Plan A Plan B. ds1 was determined that there was going to be no deviation from Plan A, and tbh it was very exhausting, not knowing from June to Sept what was actually going to be the outcome.

the pressure on subject numbers is a bit of a red herring. Often there are students who come in from outside, especially if they want to do an undersubscribed subject (welcomed with open arms) Ds1 was the only person to do his niche A level from his whole school, several other schools locally ended up sending their pupils there for the A level, the school will find a way to run it if they have to! I know of Girls private schools where there are only two people doing French A level for example, but ds1's is a state school.

Leaving a single sex school for mixed sex sixth form seems to be always a great success, unless the mixed sex school is utterly dire!I think if you know you want to leave for that reason, you are probably ready for a change.

mmzz first congratulations on your DS passing the exam, I imagine the interview will be just a formality and provided he's predicted the grades they ask for he will be offered a place.

On the basis that he is willing to go to the interview, then I would refrain from speaking about it, as I think you will be doing more harm than good. He will become more entrenched in his opinion and it will make it harder for him to change his mind, you have to remember he is getting to the age whereby he wants to be making these decisions as its his future.

We had something similar with DD and her A level choices, DH really disagreed with one of her choices and felt she should be doing maths instead (won't bore you with the details) DD was adamant, I told DH to back off and leave her to it which he did and within 2 weeks of starting she had changed to maths for all the reasons previously put forward by DH but to her it felt like her decision and her choice which was the key.

I would definitely look into a taster day but delay any further discussion to after results, a lot can change between now and then for one he won't of been at his old school for months, so no peer pressure.

Am:9am pm:1.30 though schools can vary this slightly.

Thanks docmartens

Nettleskeins Completely understand regarding subject numbers, I just think it's unfair of the teachers to try and change her mind. She's confused enough as it is!

lots of schools have the problem that they haehmorrage their brightest pupils at sixth form to other schools with "better" results (which is usually just because the school has a more selective sixth form entrance or asks for higher grades or weeds out the C/D grades earlier on at end of Year 12) My daughter's school suffers from this, but the pupils who stay often do extremely well there, and no better than they would have done if they had moved. The problem is that there is no "control" for this unless you had identical twins who did exactly the same A levels in two different schools.

found no-one should have pressure put on them to stay anywhere though, I suppose schools just think the pupils aren't given enough evidence to support their staying on. I know one girl who left an academic school because she felt stupid, and the teachers at last minute made point of telling her how clever she was, because she was in fact very clever, just brilliant at Maths subjects and school had somehow passed over her earlier on, but not realised that they had given the impression that she was in any way LESS clever than those around her - of course in Science A levels she was going to excel at her new school, and they knew they were losing a wonderful student.