Thread 3: Continuing to GCSEs Summer 2020 - Happy New Exam Year!

[OrangeCinnamon]

Continuation of previous thread
Thread 2

Thread 1 Year 10

At the end of last thread there was a bit of talk on prom dresses ( recommend Fonthill Rd in London if you can get there) by @proggymat and @crazycrofter

@TigerMum had a query regarding moving to foundation level at this stage.

Sorry peeps thread progressed without me noticing so none can reply to your queries!

Oh @Piggywaspushed I thought you meant 50-60% getting 9s!
Yes I’m not sure why drama is higher. DD takes GCSE drama and got a 6 but expects 7. She did say that some take drama and are surprised that it is quite analytical and uses more English skills than they expect. Perhaps that’s a way of ensuring a higher calibre of student.

it may well be but I'll bet poor old English takes them with 5s!! It's funny what departments and subjects have power in schools.

Nationally in my subject 1.6% of students get a grade 9!

Oh dear @lovemusic33 that sounds really stressful! I can’t wait for exam leave personally, dd is so fed up with school! I think it’s fact they still haven’t finished any of the courses.

They really do get that many 9s - in fact in history, 48 out of 52 got a 9. But it’s not a normal school and it’s quite a stressful environment too! We keep reminding dd that it really doesn’t matter too much what she gets. All 7 and above would be amazing but even that isn’t necessary to do A Levels.

Yes you’re right @Piggypugwashed!

@lilgreen my dd started with drama then switched as she found it very hard and analytical

That’s interesting. DD started with Spanish and switched to History! Got 2 off an 8 so I think she made the right choice. So glad they enabled students to take both humanities. DD1 couldn’t.

Yes, so am I, considering I did both History and Geography at uni and dd has chosen both for A Level!

At the risk of sounding like a scratched record, I am so fed up with DD's school.

She's just informed me that some (not sure how many) teachers have made up grade boundaries for mock results, namely 50% for a 5, 60% for a 6 etc.
DD got 75% overall for geography (the only subject that she sat all 3 papers in) and was therefore told she'd got a 7. I've just looked up the grade boundaries for 2019 and 2018 and that mark would have got her a 9 (of 1% below) both years!

She says the teachers are doing it to frighten them, but given that DD's BF had an actual epileptic seizure when she got one of her subject grades back and is now giving up that subject, that seems a bloody ridiculous tactic.

We're not talking about a school with a large number of disengaged pupils, either - it's a selective indie, with a fair proportion of girls aiming for med/ vet med at uni.

@Also I think most schools mark mocks harsher than the real thing.

I'm sure they do, but 2 grades, when you're already achieving top grades in reality? And then telling the students they're not doing well enough?
As I said, I can kind of understand it when you have students who aren't putting in the effort and need a kick up the backside, but it's seems a risky tactic, taking into account mental health concerns.

Yes crazycrofter, it’s a high achieving school generally. I am really hoping they have marked hard but I doubt they’ll admit it if I asked.

It is a high risk strategy in high performance schools, I agree Also, How do they balance the kick up the backside that some require vs not panicking pupils who are already working very hard?

They might be making up the grade boundaries because f lack of reliable data, mind. Most subjects are only in their second year of 9-1 gradings. My exam board told us all that 90/80/70/60 etc was a reasonable rule of thumb to use.

In fact, last year in my GCSE they needed 93% for a 9. 50% got you a lowish 4. Things could be entirely different this year :it's actually a bit of a minefield.

But, of course, the marking could also be out. Swapping to new specs has been really hard!

Piggy, they used previous exam papers, with accompanying mark schemes, and the grade boundaries are published on the board's websites.
In the sciences, they used the published grade boundaries, so I don't understand why they didn't for other subjects.

This is the same school that told students they should be working 2.5 hours each weekday night and 6 hours each weekend day from the start of year 10. 😐

I guess they just might not be convinced by those grade boundaries but it does seem a bit odd.

The school does sound very full on!

It's sad reading about these selective schools pushing so hard and your fantastic DC being made to feel mediocre when they're clearly anything but @crazycrofter and @Alsoplayspiccolo would you mind me asking whether, if you could have the choice again, you would make the same school choice for your DC? I only ask because my DS2 is currently prepping for 11+ at a couple of very selective indies (he's a very different kettle of fish to his brother, highly able, no SEN, CAT scores of 140) but the more I read this thread the more I'm thinking I'm really not sure I want him being in the kind of environment you describe. Do you feel that on balance the pros outweigh the cons, or do you wish now you'd gone for something less selective?

DS1 is at our local comp and is actually fairly able too - achieved 7s 8s and 9s in all but two mock subjects - and his teachers were so lovely and positive and encouraging at parents evening last week. But it really sounds from your posts as if some indies just push the DC to breaking point rather than encouraging them and I'm really not sure I want that for DS2, regardless of how able he might be! I worry about the long term effects on his mental health. Sorry, I know it's derailing the thread slightly but would really appreciate your thoughts.

Reading this I feel that although I have regretted where DS is for a variety of reasons , I think at this point he has been better off there than somewhere selective for GCSE, not sure he would have fared well at this point. If he gets in for 6th form he will be going somewhere very selective for 6th form bit he now has a quiet confidence in his ability which I don’t think would have been there somewhere competitive and the College is small and very nurturing.

One of the first things they said they do is teach their new students to fail. They said that usually they are in top sets and used to getting high scores and not getting things right comes as a big shock to some of them and they do this early on so they can support them.

I think on the whole a bright child will do well anywhere thing works for GCSE but have seen a fair few come unstuck at A level. Maybe you could put DS2 where Ds1 is for GCSE Dietcoke and then look for somewhere for 6th form when you have a better idea of which direction he is headed?

dietcoke, in DD’s case, her school actually isn’t particularly selective, so I don’t think that’s the issue. DD has actually been pretty happy there, to be fair.
Our issue is that the students aren’t supported in a useful way; they are told what’s expected of them and left to get on with it. There’s a lot of box ticking talk about mental health, mindfulness blah blah, but the reality is that they are really only interested in results. For example, we met the head to complain about the lack of support for DD’s SEN, and her response was, “ We’re a selective school, NOT a “special” school!”
True, but you selected DD when we were very clear about her SEN and why we were moving her from the local comp.

DS is also at a selective school. In many ways, it’s more selective, in that it has more demanding requirements for 6th form, for eg, but there is a real sense that the school, parents and students work very closely together to achieve, and the emphasis is very much on effort and living up to your personal potential, not chasing 9s.

@dietcokeandwine it’s hard to say but I don’t think I’d make a different decision. DD’s school has given her so many experiences and until the GCSE years they went off curriculum loads, compared to ds at grammar, as her school is independent so has the freeedom to do so. She was very happy in years 7-9 and has lovely friends. She’s also learned to work hard and she’s not been allowed to coast.

There are some issues with all girls, in that they get very intense and serious over their work which is where the stress comes from. Years 10 and 11 have been more pressured for that reason. I think co-Ed would have been better in that respect but we didn’t have that option. She complains that the school push them to get 9s but in her case I think that’s fine, because she is genuinely capable - not that she’ll necessarily get 9s across the board! I think it’s a hard environment if your ability is patchy - good at English/humanities but struggle at Maths for example.

There is actually very good support at her school - constant drop ins available and mentors if you’re struggling. DD’s issue is she’s very independent and hates being offered help!!

She’s suffered with low mood this year - but a good friend of hers had an awful time in year 11 last year and she was at a comprehensive so I’m not sure how much it has to do with the school.

dietcoke DS is at a vaguely selective indie in that it has an entrance exam but few fail. There is a little pressure but they're only just putting on a how to revise workshop this half-term for year11. A friend was telling me recently about the stress her DS is facing at a local comp with a solid reputation. He's in year10 and they are being pushed to revise on top of homework already. She thinks the school just regurgitates a work hard, work harder mantra without recognising some also need to hear don't forget to relax. As ever it comes down to individual schools not necessarily sectors.

Thank you all for the comments - really helpful. I agree it’s very much individual school rather than sector that drives atmosphere, support for DC etc. And @PostNotInHaste that is a really good point about A levels too. I would send DS2 to DS1’s school in a heartbeat tbh but it’s DH who feels he would really benefit from a more competitive environment and wants him to try for the selective indies.

Apologies if I'm asking a question that is obvious on the thread but i've skipped some pages.
Is there anyone here whose dc's school mandates everyone to start of A'levels with 4 subjects (drop one after 1st term)? DS kind of has his 3 subjects (Geography, Economics, biology/chemistry) that he wants to do, he's also considering an EPQ. He has been a bit undecided wether to do with Biology/Chemistry and because they mandate 4 we thought that will give him time to decide. After Parents meeting yesterday it became pretty obvious that he should stick with Biology and not bother with Chemistry.

The course he wants to study at uni does not require him to do Chemistry nor biology, he just enjoys them. Inspite of the fact he now has his 3 subjects, he still has to come up with another 4th A'level to do before then dropping it. This is beginning to sound really daft to me and wondering wether anyone else is in the same position.

One of DS’s options says 4 A levels for first half term on the basis some will be doing ones they haven’t done before. Then they can see if it is what they thought it would be and decide which of the ones they want to take through.

@Shimy DD is at an all-girls super selective and they are definitely not pushing starting with 4, unless one of the 4 is Further Maths or the girl is clearly outstandingly brilliant and capable of managing a heavy workload. One other possibility was doing a MFL in Year 12, because the school still offers the possibility of getting an AS level in MFLs. For any other subjects, they wouldn't get any credit for a year of work.

The message from the parents' eve talk last week was very much that the girls should not take 4 if it means that they will not achieve the highest marks. 2 Astars and an A is a much better result than 1 Astar and 3 As, as the vast majority of courses offer on 3 subjects.

So DD's plan is to do Chemistry, Biology and English, plus an EPQ in something Ethics based and possibly a MOOC in something around forensics. She also plans to continue playing a couple of sports at quite a high level.

My DS did start with 4 and dropped 1 at the end of Year 12. Looking back, it was a really silly idea - they were all essay subjects, 2 had course work and it meant that he was under huge time pressure from the very start of KS5.

My eldest is about to take his A levels. His school - selective indy - requires 4 A level choices. It is accepted that some will drop to three, but students are expected to keep 4 until at least Feb half term (from memory). I think my DS kept all 4 too long to the detriment of the other 3 (dropped at the end of L6), but many do 4. They don't do AS levels. They are expected to do EPQ too.

I think the real advantage is something my DS mentioned. Although a lot choose their 4th subject 'to make up the numbers' as it were, many end up dropping one of their firm 3. I think having a term to get to know each A level in detail allows students to change their mind, or realise that they have made a mistake. It would be very difficult to pick up a new subject at that stage, which would mean if only 3 are picked, having to continue with a subject not really enjoyed.