Year 10 exams - so dismayed and concerned

[Motherofpearl52]

Hi all. I feel as if I have just woken up from a dream in which I thought my Year 10 son was doing pretty well at school, working hard, getting good feedback at parents' evening, and being very calm taking his exams. Having just received his end of year report, I feel very naive and stupid. Poor exam marks and low achievement grades. Blaming myself for being too laid-back and not monitoring him enough. He's really bright and at a good school, so I trusted in both him and the school to ensure that he was working well and moving towards achieving his potential. That's not to say we don't support him - we do, we keep an eye on what he's doing and have good lines of communication, but as parents, we are not breathing down his next, tutoring and testing him non-stop. Didn't think we needed to - how foolish were we? Have felt very down over the last few days, with GCSEs a year away. Have had a calm but firm chat with my son - have gone absolutely mad at school (totally unlike me) as I feel very let-down by their lack of information. Just trying to pick myself up and decide on a plan of action, involving being a lot more hands-on from this point onwards. Thoughts from anyone who is in a similar situation would be much appreciated. Saw a related post from a year ago, but thought I'd start a new one for parents facing the full 9 - 1 GCSEs next year. Perhaps we can form a support group.

Does the school have an online system? We have a thing called Go4 Schools where as a parent you can log in at any time and look at how they are doing - every assessment is on there, conduct grades too.

If your school doesn't have anything like that then it's very poor that the school hasn't rung any alarm bells.

On the plus side you now know that your son is lackadaisical about his school work and will need pushing, and you've got a year to turn it around. And yes, you will need to check on him and monitor his work - some DCs need that kind of push. They all mature in the end though.

Good luck , GCSEs are horrendously stressful. I have one DD going into Yr13 next year and 1 going into Yr11. I will be a shadow of myself come June.

I have DS1 (pfb) going into Y11 next year. Also a capable boy but clueless I think in terms of the amount of effort actually required. So, no good advice I'm afraid but sympathy! Mine will also not really allow me to check up on his work. He will ask for advice sometimes but it's not clear that he takes it at all! I have got him a maths tutor once I realised the set he is in will mean he almost certainly can't achieve his targets because they don't thoroughly teach level 8/9 material

It’s a new GCSE system. No one knows anything about grades at this point. Don’t write your DS off at this time.

Everyone messes up Year 10 exams. See also: Year 12 exams. It’s the kick up the arse they need, then they get their act together for the Dec/Jan mocks. Don’t worry about it, but let him THINK you’re worried about it, make the right noises etc.

It’s the first time they’ve ever sat a GCSE exam paper, they haven’t been taught the whole syllabus, and when you’re 15, real exams being a whole year away sounds like forever; it’s only as adults we realise a year is nothing. Be positive, encouraging and practical: let’s do this together - how can I help? Explain that revision is non-negotiable and set up time slots in the week to sit down together and check progress. Also, build in rewards and relaxing activities: Year 11 is incredibly intense and mental health comes above all else.

Good luck!

DS1 has just sat and done poorly, atrociously even, in some of his year 10 exams. He has high targets and is in top sets but his report today is a sea of red, as are many of his friends. The problem is that many of the new grade boundaries are complete guesswork, even the teachers have admitted that, so who knows in reality where exactly they are in relation to their 'targets.'
It's been a bit of a wake up call though tbh. And I've told him to enjoy his summer because from September he will have to knuckle down, and we will be far harder on screen time, checking his work etc. I do feel for them. I looked at his BIology, it was what I studied for A level!

DS1 got quite low grades in his end of Y10 exams. Thankfully his actual GCSE grades were a lot better. Most subjects were a grade or two higher, some even more. He has just finished Y13, so that was in the days of well-established GCSEs courses that had been taught for several years.

Other than Maths and English, there's no results data for the new GCSE exams, so it's difficult for teachers to accurately estimate grades even in Y11.

pointythings I had one taking A-levels and one taking GCSEs this summer. It wasn't pretty.

Same here ds1 has just finished year 10 and he struggles anyway but he really has tried hard. Sadly he's just not academic.

Problem is when they're trying and not getting anywhere it is so debilitating.
I remember myself crying over my GCSE results because ide studied and tried SO hard but just didn't feel like it had paid off.

OK, I've found DS1's results.
End of Y10 exams: ABCCDFUU
Actual GCSE grades: AABBBBBD

What Indiana said.

Yes, they can't really estimate grades.

Dd was pretty pleased with her 94% in the Maths exam, and was then informed that it would be a Level 7 as so many students across the country were expected to do better than that.

Do you get regular school reports? Ds is at a state school and he gets them every half term and end of term. Then the big school report at the end of summer. These give his predicted levels, working at levels, effort grades, assessment marks etc. Really helps to keep on track of where they are.

My Y10 maths group who are all high fliers who did well in their Y10 maths exam were discussing their terrible grades in other subjects. It’s possible that the other subject teachers don’t know how to assess the new GCSE grades yet because they don’t have any official results yet and are marking harshly with high grade boundaries.
Also possible that they were given a GCSE style exam for which they are not yet properly prepared and will make massive progress in Y11.

Or he could need a kick up the arse. Many, many students need a kick up the arse in Y10 and come good in Y11. It’s all still to play for - he needs to start Y11 with the right attitude.

I'm a little jealous as my DC's school barely does exams. DS did some mock GCSE's in March and apart from one exam to determine double or triple science these were the first exams he ever took in the school. I didn't get the results either. I guess there is method here but honestly, is there not some merit to learning exam technique, how to revise etc? Is ours the only school in the country not to do end of year exams? (it's an outstanding state school btw). Worried about next year!

I had this with DD1, she’s now awaiting her A level results having had 3 offers from vet medicine. DD2 is in a different school with better feedback anyways she’s not like her sister and does her best without interference thank heavens.

I advise if possible that you sort him out with some paid tuition over the summer holidays-sounds like a punishment but both of mine have had some from time to time in different subjects, and it really helped their confidence. They complained beforehand but both said thanks and it was actually kind of fun afterwards. Maybe some kind of group would be better? It’s not just for reluctant or struggling learners, all sorts do it. It’s not that easy finding a good tutor though so buyer beware and all that. I really feel it was worth the money. If you can’t stretch to that try to find a friend or relative, even for one subject. You are too cross to do it yourself, at least I was, and another perspective from a helpful adult or Uni student can really help, even just with revision timetables tips and advice.

My dd also didn't do well in year 10 exams, she has mental health/anxiety issues and does not cope well with exams. We have been working with the school but am dreading next year!