GCSE 2018 no. 6: stress, struggles and success (hopefully) *Title Edited by MNHQ*

[mmzz]

New thread for GCSEs 2018

Another one to add to my list of n8ghtmares teen and I bet the answers would all be wrong.

In my real life exam world, students have had their specs checked in case anything is written inside the frames, all watches are banned and at least 9ne student has had their tattooed arms checks for hidden cheat notes.

Sandy if it's any consolation, DD took a revision break a few days ago and went to Sainsbury's with me. It cost a fortune. Thank goodness I decided against Waitrose!

DD is 5ft 9ins...last year she was a size 4-6 (I spent 14 years worrying about her weight - apart from when she was born 8lbs 11). She's still slightly underweight for her height but is now a healthy size 10 ...Ice cream has been her weakness over the last week..(and mine )

stitching up blazer pockets omg that's genius teentimes

I'm not letting DD wear her blazer...cardi or jumper it is because there are no pockets and I will be shaking her kilt style skirt to ensure there is nothing in the pocket before she puts it on. I'm going to suggest phone doesn't enter school because she is only there for the exam...although not sure whether this policy will work when she has exams in morning and afternoon.

Just opened my email and finding this a little amusing: the maths department have decided to hold a series of mandatory sessions after half-term (i.e. during study leave). Some of them starting at 7:45am, others straight after DS has done 2 exams back to back in other subjects.

DS (who is not a morning person) will be thrilled when I tell him!

One of DD's drama class did her performance, then put her blazer on to keep warm and joined the audience. Then her phone rang ...

I never did hear the outcome, but there was talk at the time that she would have got 0 for the performance element for disturbing the others (as you can't really cheat with a phone during a performance).

DS3 has moved to his summer uniform this week which is a polo shirt (and jumper if cold) so his blazer has been worn for the last time! But at least there are no pockets. His wallet and phone will stay in his rucksack during exams. His school are allowing watches but they must be taken off their wrist and placed on the desk. Not sure why?

I have invigilated GCSEs before now, usually with those needing extra time and readers/scribes. Sadly one girl forgot about her phone in her pocket which rang right at the end. She was with a 1:1 scribe throughout the exam so no cheating had been possible but the school had to report it to the board. I think she had that subject disallowed but was able to take other subjects. Had it not been fully supervised she'd have had all exams by that board disallowed.

Holy crap at the ringing mobile phones scenario. I really must impress upon dd that as well as switching it off, it needs to go in her locker.

mmzz - 7.45 am? What is wrong with your ds' school!

How did everyone's exams go today? Dd said the English Language paper was not the hardest she had done but not the easiest either and it was "fine". Apparently the Head saw her as she left the exam hall and was concerned because she had not used all her extra time - she had 5 minutes left. I am telling myself he is overreacting - since she used 25 of the 30 mins extra time

DS thought the English paper was tough. Apparently 'everyone else' thought it was too, so hopefully it wasn't just him...

Most of the extra timers I invigilated for, didn't use it. They often had finished as much as they could answer well before the end, sadly.

Just to reassure you, the students are usually told about phones before they go in and again before the exam starts. It's drummed in.

DS thought first passage was more challenging than past papers but all was fine and says it went really well. So far so good!
mmzz your DS' school is starting to annoy me. There's no way DS would attend a 7:45 session during study leave. Are they for real?

I have heard stories about students whose phones have started ringing during exams. There was one on here a couple of years ago. I can't remember what the sanction was but it was significant.

I might suggest to mine that they just leave their phones at home on exam days.

His school are allowing watches but they must be taken off their wrist and placed on the desk.

Not just his school. Mine have also been told this.

DS has extra time and for some subjects he needs it all and more - but for other subjects he doesn't use it.

From experience the mobile phone etc reminders need to kick in on about the third week. DDs and teachers were really careful about checking and reminders at first but by exam 22 when the novelty had worn off they got more slack and blasé could have easily slipped up.

Still plodding away here - worryingly there is a lot of stuff he doesn't know at all or in enough detail so does he go over that or more important to keep refreshing the stuff he does know so he doesn't forget it - and more practise or just revision at this stage !! Can only do what he can in the time though

Haven't got much out of DS1 yet about the English Language paper. He says it was 'OK' but didn't say much more. Once I've fed him he will probably be more engaged.

Are you spotting a trend here? Sandy's DS eats quite a lot and his mood is driven by how much he's eaten.

There was something in the press saying new rules were brought in about phones needing to be on desks - not sure if it was for gcse s though.

Cherry I’m proper wailing here whilst sat on the loo not sure why I felt the need to say that
My dd has been very lovely lately, more huggy thank she’s been in months/year and I wonder if it’s the realisation that she’s finally growing up

Cherry, another DS here who says English was 'ok'. Apparently it was a story that had to be turned into a report? Anyway, his cunning reverse strategy of starting with questions 3 + 4 worked well.

He had planned to meet his Chemistry teacher for a couple of questions, but she stood him up! Rescheduled to tomorrow.

Off now to turf him off the sofa and make him do some French.

Hmmm, DS definitely thought it was worse than 'ok'! Just have to hope that Friday's paper goes better for him-it's usually his strongest of the two

Feedback on the TSR forum seems to be that it was tough (yes, I'm that sad. I had a look). I think I'm clutching at straws!

Phones Oratory or watches! I think one of the big issues a lot of students have now is that they use their phones as calculators, so they're in the habit of having them on their desks in some lessons. Well, my grown up students do. There they are meant to be calculating a money market hedge and they're actually looking at pictures of puppies (we don't look at Sost's pictures at all!)

I remember the phone thread. I'm sure someone let their phone ring in a biology exam and they weren't sure if the paper would be discarded, the whole subject or the whole exam board's papers. I've been drumming it into every class I teach ever since, hence the stories they tell me about having their tattoos checked.

mmzz I still don't believe that this is a bog standard state school - are you sure you haven't been fibbing to us all this time and your DS is actually squirrelled away at WinCol or Eton and the staff are using all these extra sessions to indoctrinate them with the answers to the exam papers that they themselves have written?

Cherryburn - although my dd described it as 'fine', fine for her means that she could have a decent stab at it and wasn't completely flummoxed. She did say it was challenging.

Confusedandfrightened - my dd tolerated a hug yesterday, although she shoved me away when I chanced my arm and went in for a peck on her cheek

I reminded dd about her mobile phone - she sighed and said that she was already putting it in her locker thank you very much. She then said that she had been paranoid in the exam when she took her jeans belts off (they don't have to wear uniform during study leave and exams) in case they thought she had written crib notes on it

Cherry it might have been ‘The exam was ok mum (let’s hope that makes her leave me alone on the sofa to watch Eggheads).’