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Original poster

GCSEs 2018 (9) Will we get to half term, for never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and who is Banquo

999 replies

Stickerrocks · 22/05/2018 21:53

Thread 8

OP posts:
dogzdinner · 23/05/2018 07:08

Was up until late last night as DS wanted me to go over physics with him. I feel almost ready to take the exam now myself

Sostenueto · 23/05/2018 07:15

Same here dogzdinner just had 20 minute rundown on phone with dgd about what the content of exam then she casually tells me she's not sure if she ticked box on exam paper saying what questions she answered in geography ( if in fact there is one) so she's off to exam office to checkConfused

Sostenueto · 23/05/2018 07:22

She also said that geography really is her passion more than anything and she feels she has let her teacher down and herself if she doesn't get the 9. I really feel for our dcs this year I really do! 6 six marker questions 3 9 marker questions 1 12 marker and that's without all the other questions. A minute a mark 6×6=36 minutes 3×9= 27 minutes+3 = 30 minutes which left 33 minutes to answer all other questions!

Sostenueto · 23/05/2018 07:23

That was AQA geography paper 1.

mmzz · 23/05/2018 07:27

Me too, dogzdinner. I think I could make a good fist of some of the papers (RE Judaism especially). There's been a few times that I've had to stifle feelings of resentment that I already did my age 16 exams and I don't want to prepare for them twice.
It's especially hard when DS is struggling to make progress in a subject, so I'm trying to help him, but while I'm looking at the materials, making sense of them and then trying to explain it to him, he's sulking, rolling his eyes and telling me that it's boring or irrelevant to his life. And I'm thinking, you're right, it is, but you've got an exam in it soon, so there's your motivation right there. However, my exam was 35 years ago, so why the hell am I putting in the effort to learn it while you sit being childish.
Rant over!

Original poster
Stickerrocks · 23/05/2018 07:28

If anyone wants to put the results predicted/ wanted/ needed in perspective, trot off and watch any of the final episodes of the Channel 4 Educating series (Yorkshire, Cardiff, Manchester etc). I remember watching some of them with DD and suddenly appreciating how lucky we are. Solitary grade As were treated with great delight and it certainly wasn't down to a lack of effort on anyone's part. We'll all be leaping around with huge grins on our faces when the much longed for top grade in Biology is a 6, but replaced by a 9 in Greek instead or our DC get the magic 5 GCSEs to get them the place they want at college.

OP posts:
BlueJava · 23/05/2018 07:37

Business studies for one DS this morning then Physics for both DS this afternoon... they seemed very chipper after English Lit and Geography yesterday. 1 DS got in the car and said "That's the last time I have to know about camel milk research in a market in Pakistan!" Hope it's not like Chemistry, they both had the grumps after that.

Theimpossiblegirl · 23/05/2018 07:44

Good luck all. Business studies and physics today for us. The stress is still here, she's very snippy.

Teenmum60 · 23/05/2018 07:46

It's tough being a parent seeing our DC's go through all these rollercoaster emotions. Most kids tend to zoom in on the negative what they didn't do well as opposed to what they did do well. I've found it difficult to motivate DD in the subjects she's not too fussed about and for all intensive purposes, I somewhat agree with her ..(hence I think it would be great if the DC's had the opportunity if they so wish to drop 2 to 8 GCSE's). I looked through the amount of History revision last night - DD has 10 days to probably concentrate on just History but having seen the content even this is probably not enough.

Good luck to everyone sitting exams today - hope the questions are kind to our DC.

cubscout · 23/05/2018 07:56

Gosh, fast moving thread! It's nice to start getting to know all the dc and what their hopes/aspirations are.

At ds school, no-one is predicted a 9 in anything - 7's and 8's are target and aspirational grades. The head teacher explained that this is because they have no idea what grade boundaries will be. That said, a few 9's were given out in mocks for very high scores (over 90% ds thinks).

Ds is hoping for a 9 in Maths and I sincerely hope he gets it! I think that if he doesn't, there is something wrong with the system ( or he has a spectacularly bad day) as he is a very talented Mathematician, reaching Olympiad level in the Maths challenges and taking 2x AS papers in Y 10 and getting an A in both. He wants to study Maths (predictable!). But we have to remember that 8 will be equivalent to an A* and not to see it as a failure! It would be terrible if our dc felt that 7's and 8's and not good enough.

Good luck to all today.

HesMyLobster · 23/05/2018 08:02

That's exactly it cub scout! A 7 is an A!
Imagine being disappointed with an A?!
But because there's now a 9 it just doesn't sound as high to the DC - it's really unfair.

Good luck all for today!🍀

LooseAtTheSeams · 23/05/2018 08:11

Good luck everyone! DS just has physics. He’s clearly hoping it’s maths in disguise!
He’s been really calm about the exams apart from frequently mislaying his calculator - which always turns up in his bag!

LooseAtTheSeams · 23/05/2018 08:30

Not only is a 7 at least an A, and thus a brilliant grade, it will also be an A for a much tougher exam with more course content. The same goes for a 4, which allegedly is a low C. That still ignores the fact the student with a 4 had to work a lot harder for it than they would have under the previous system to get the C.
Schools really shouldn’t predict 9s. There’s nothing wrong in a student hoping for them but it’s much more sensible to see the scale as 1-8, with 9s awarded for really exceptional results beyond the old A*.

TeenTimesTwo · 23/05/2018 08:34

Gate-crashing again (keeping in touch for DD2 y8).

I think Stick is right re perspective on grades. There can be a big difference between what the DC needs and what they want. Three years ago we threw everything at English Language because DD1 needed a pass to get onto a Level 3 course. We were more delighted over that result than any of the Bs she got for some of the other subjects.

For other DC that may be needing a 7 to be able to do a preferred A level. But no one (I think) needs a grade 9. They may want a 9 or an 8 but they are rarely a requirement for the next step. I think on the whole 9s should be treated as a bonus not an expectation.

ps How can anyone study Macbeth and not know who Banquo is?!

mmzz · 23/05/2018 08:48

ps How can anyone study Macbeth and not know who Banquo is?!
They can't. What they can do is sit in lessons, with the book in their hand and chat to their friends, day dream, pay games online and generally pay no attention. Then do a bit of skim reading revision resources and plan to just wing it in the exam.

TheSecondOfHerName · 23/05/2018 08:50

Good luck to everyone's DCs for Business, Psychology and Physics today.

Will be at work today so might not get the chance to check in till later, by which time we may be several pages further on.

KittiesInsane · 23/05/2018 08:50

Predicting 9s for English has backfired for my cautious DD, I'd say. She said she felt inhibited by it yesterday - constantly second-guessing herself to see whether she was writing something '9-worthy' rather than just answering the question, and she thinks her essays were quite possibly rubbish. Previously she would have had a gleeful bash at it, gone off-piste and had fun, which is probably why she was predicted the damn grade in the first place.

Luckily she's not predicted very high in anything else, so she can relax a bit!

goodbyestranger · 23/05/2018 08:58

8s and 9s may not be needed for the next step but they do count for plenty of DC for the next step but one ie uni. To that extent they matter TeenTimesTwo. 8s and 9s are the valid currency for lots of top end courses and unis although I can see that thinking about '9 level' stuff in the actual exam could be a real distraction. I've advised DD4 not to think about any of that stuff in exams and just let things take their course.

Sostenueto · 23/05/2018 08:59

mmzz yep I feel like I'm sitting these exams too! Trouble is dgd thinks I'm awesome but truth us I'm not actually academic! I'm arty my fortes are music and art! Maths is really all going over my head yet she expects me to understand. When she goes through things in different subjects like for example physics ( in my day a girl doing physics unheard of!) I have learned to turn off but still manage to say yes, that's good in all the right places even though I have absolutely no idea what she's going on about! I have nothing but admiration for our dcs.

mmzz · 23/05/2018 09:01

Were the English Lit questions yesterday more obscure than the ones last year? (I don't know which last year's were).

If they were, then I'm wondering if this how the exam boards intend to test in the essay-based subjects going forward: by asking questions that you'd have had to revise extremely hard for to have practised previously, so that being able to analyse and present an argument are truly being tested, rather than just a recital of what you've maybe had half-written for you by the teacher?

Its just a theory, but it will become clearer when we see the next english paper and, maybe, if the maths paper really goes for it with the non-obvious solution questions, then we'll know.

TeenTimesTwo · 23/05/2018 09:03

stranger I agree with you re 8s and universities, but this year especially I do think 9s should be treated as a 'bonus' and not an 'expectation'. No DC should feel they have underachieved because they 'only' got an 8 for anything.

KittiesInsane · 23/05/2018 09:06

According to 'a friend' connected to Cambridge Assessment, there are definitely off-piste and non-spec questions chucked in to separate the 'revised hard' from the 'read around the subject as well' at the 8/9 end of things.

goodbyestranger · 23/05/2018 09:07

Absolutely agree about the attitude towards 8s TTT. 9s would definitely be regarded as a bonus here if any happen to turn up.

mmzz one of the questions DD had yesterday in English Lit was slightly quirky/ not an obvious take on the subject, and quite a few of the DC seemed a bit taken aback.

Sostenueto · 23/05/2018 09:19

Its all about perception as regards top grades. If your child is in top set and highest grade is a 9 the children will feel they have to get that top grade because they are in the top group. I also believe with the advent of these new grades anything below a 7 will not be given its worth by people. For too long we have seen A B C as the grades to get then the A was added so perception changed to A A B. Now its 9 8 7. In some peoples eyes that looks like A B C. It seems that only 3 grades are importantHmm and when the 10 comes, which it will, it will be 10 9 8. This is the psychological effect of having 9 grades IMO.

mmzz · 23/05/2018 09:20

goodbyestranger Ds didn't find yesterday's English Lit straightforward either.
He's one of those generally bright, but not at all gifted at English students, and yesterday's paper would have definitely shone a light on the difference between him and another student who is gifted in the subject.