GCSEs 2018 (2)

[Stickerrocks]

Pre-empting our 1000th post.

Yes, at DS's school the science dept wanted the entry for A level science to be a 7, but SLT overruled them and said a 6. Although, I can see why the dept wanted 7, I think you have to remember an awful lot of DC when they sit A levels will not be getting A/B's and C and D's and even E's can still open doors for them and get them to Uni etc.

mmzz I so agree with your post.

I agree too with mmzz but for instance a level 9 was put at %90 for maths in the mock. My dgd got 1 mark off %90 and was given an 8 which is down on her predicted 9. Her school sets very high standards and whether it us this year or several years ago nothing is solid until the DC open their real GCSE papers and begin. But mocks and predictions do give the DC something to work towards. My dgc has always realised that the real GCSEs are all that matters, hence the amount of time she devotes to study. Tbh wished we lived in Finland where the DC don't sit any exams till they are 18!

Short answer is that apart from maths and English, you can't really predict a 9. The thing to bear in mind as well is that the new exams are harder!
Fantastic result Second!

Except in your example, the school (not the exam board) compiled the exam and created the grade boundaries, and unless it echoed the exact level of difficulty the exam board would have created and the exact grade boundaries that the rest fo the country would have got at that same point in the school year, then calling 90% a level 9 is just a guess.

It is not that bad a guess since 88% was the grade boundary last June (I think), so as long as the exam was similarly difficult then 90% is in the right ball park, probably.

But that's maths (and english). The sciences, history, geography, MFL, etc.,etc are all making finger in the air predictions when setting their grade boundaries in every department in every school across the whole of the country.

"Try your best and see what happens" I think that's the only thing we can ask of our DC this year.

Totally agree I think this year is going to be a tough year within education for everyone concerned. I'm relieved that my DD's school has not fully swapped onto the new 1-9 system - so 7 of her exams will be graded A-G - but Maths, English will still be 1-9 together with the ill fated Computer Science (which makes a complete mockery of the lack of teaching in this subject and exam practices). I think the school fully converts next year to 1-9 by which time hopefully the syllabus and grading would be a little clearer ...although not sure what anyone will make of exam results which show both A-G and 1-9.

ERM I thought ALL schools will be doing the new 9-1 grading system???

Business Studies is stil A* - G & some mostly independent schools can still do old IGCSE instead of the new reformed ones.

Oh I see thanks Alexander

Not so much pressure do you think teenmum as the new exams are supposed to be so much harder?

They're supposed to be harder, and I believe they are, but the boundaries are calculated from the scores the DC who are sitting the exams get, so surely the grade boundaries are just low if the exam is more difficult and everyone does so much worse as a result?

Surely the only difference now is that those students who are able to do the most difficult parts of the exam now get a different grade from the tier below them whereas before they all got A/A*?

What happened to maths and English was that they needed to show a similar proportion getting a 4 as got a C before and similar for 7 against an A. I don't know if it's the same for the new reformed GCSEs this year.

I'm with mmzz on the grade 9 issue. They are bound to be all scooped up by the grammar schools and indies not taking iGCSEs. An 8+ is the standard prediction for the brightest kids here with the caveat that grade 9s are extremely unlikely, so don't feel like a failure if you get a few 7s thrown in when you would previously have been a straight A* student.

Now see I thought that the top 20% will get a 7-9 and only 2% will get the 9 and pot luck for the other 18% whether they get a 7 or 8

Yes and schools predicting 9's and indeed giving them out in mocks is not helping the DC face the reality of the situation, it's very difficult for DC to appreciate that the exams they take in the summer they will be measured against everyone in the country and if you are use to coming top or there about in your schools's tests/exams getting 7/8's to some will feel like they haven't achieved, which of course we know is just not the case. It will probably take a couple of years for the system to bed down and pupils to realise that most get a spread of grades and not a string of top grades.

Which to me is just.not right. The same can be said for the 5 and 6 and the 6 and 7. If you get a low 7 chances are you might end up with a 6 and vice versa, the 5 is almost an old b in reality so the only solid is the 4! IMO.

Sorry for confusion I was carrying on from my previous post.

Absolutely right Bluebell and that is why so many in top groups trying their damn hardest for the top grades! They will feel they haven't achieved with 7s instead if 8/9. It us only natural they will feel that way. But personally I feel that thus years cohort will be bright only because our headteachers said this cohort were the brightest they have had for a while ( he may have said that as encouragement mind!).

sostenuto yes, your name did give away your profession
DS is only getting numbers for two subjects (rest is still letters), which should make everything easier except I don't know how a sixth form asking for 60 or 50 would cope with that.

But what really bothers me mist about new grades is will employers, units look at anything below a 7 cos of the old system always being a,b,c or 1,2,3 in my day? Its a long way from 9-4 and I think whole system stinks!

I was led to believe that the IGCSE's were always perceived as easier to get a grade C (pass) but more challenging to get an A/A than the GCSE's and those that did get the A/A were well prepared for A Levels but I think the new GCSE's have changed all this and are allot harder plus the syllabus has changed where has it is static for the IGCSE's.

Agree I think the difference should only be the grade 9 but to my knowledge very few of the Independents have fully converted to the 1-9 and therefore how do you prepare say a child with a grade 9 from a grammar school (or any other school) with say a child from one of the top Independents who has an A* if the A Levels are identical....

I'm pretty sure DD's school will convert fully next year because they want to be on the league tables so without changing fully they cant .....

What a mess.

this from Pearson (aka edexcel)
All awarding organisations will apply a formula to the results of each reformed GCSE specification in the first year, in order to calculate the correct proportion of Grade 9 outcomes for that cohort.

This approach means different subjects will see different proportions of Grade 9s awarded, because the ability of the cohort needs to be taken into consideration.

The Grade 8 boundary will be set arithmetically, meaning it will be set midway between Grade 7 and Grade 9.

and

www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/551571/Decisions_-setting_GCSE_grade_standards-_part_2.pdf

so as clear as mud, really!

Exactly mmzz!

Drummer

The whole thing is a complete mess and with some schools still using the old letter grading how on earth are employers and universities supposed to compare students? I am really saddened that my children are part of a badly thought through and implemented system.