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Original poster

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

999 replies

OrangeCinnamon · 07/01/2020 09:54

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!

OP posts:
Alsoplayspiccolo · 17/01/2020 17:52

If DD gets any 8s, or actually 7s, in the real exams I will be over the moon for her!
I think that giving 9s in mocks might be setting kids up for disappointment. It’s already clear that 9 is the new 8...where will it stop?

namechangenumber2 · 17/01/2020 17:53

Our school won't predict 9's

PostNotInHaste · 17/01/2020 17:59

What’s the pass for Maths this year- is it still 4? I thought I read it was going to be a 4 to start then raise to a 5. My eldest thinking of resitting for fourth time so could do with it being a 4.

Wheresthebeach · 17/01/2020 18:13

DD has a new Biology teacher this year, she reduced all predicted grades that were 9's to 8's. Has told girls it all has to go 'just right' to get a 9 so she won't predict it.

I agree it sets expectations, and then if they get an 8 in the real thing they will be disappointed (bonkers of course, but that's the way they'll think).

Not sure about Maths pass grade, I thought still a 4.

clary · 17/01/2020 18:44

4 is a pass and no retake needed. They initially (3yrs ago) said it would rise to a 5 but then changed their minds (cos after all it made no sense)

dietcokeandwine · 17/01/2020 18:46

*@MrsElijahMikaelson1 I actually felt quite sad reading your post because those are amazing results! Is your DD a natural perfectionist type, or is her school quite pushy and encouraging that type of attitude? It is a really really sad state of affairs if teenagers are now starting to think of an A grade as failure.

dietcokeandwine · 17/01/2020 18:54

The problem with the whole 9-8-7 grading spectrum is that it translates (incorrectly, but you can see where they are coming from) in the kids' minds as 9=A, 8=B and so on.

A friend's DD said to her last year 'the thing is mum, a 7's like a C, isn't it'. And no it flipping bloody isn't, back in the day when we could only get an A (and who knows where any of us parents would have come on this 7/8/9 spectrum?!) we could just be chuffed with an A.

The more they split out that A grade cohort into sections, the more pressure they pile on. It's sad that so many of our children will now see a 7/A as really quite average when actually it's really, really good. And the pressure on kids at the super high achieving schools must be unbelievable.

PostNotInHaste · 17/01/2020 19:40

Thanks Clary , that is a relief.

Very much agree about the splitting of the A cohort. The cynic in me thinks they did it this way instead of 1 at the top to leave the option of introducing a 10. So glad DD is out, I think she would find it all really demoralising - it was difficult enough for her at the time with the letter grades.

mumoftwodc · 17/01/2020 20:12

DD has her results and we're very pleased. She hadn't applied herself very well to revision concentrating on the subjects she enjoyed.

She got 7s in physics, geography, Spanish & English lit.
6s in English language, biology, maths, chemistry, PE & RS
5 in drama

She was told English language was one mark off a 7 and biology two marks of a 7.

She doesn't enjoy RS and didn't do any revision so was very fortunate to get a 6.

She's chosen maths, biology and geography for A levels and has been pulled aside by her maths teacher asking her what happened as she is predicted an 8. She failed to tell the teacher she hardly revised!

We were surprised she did so well in the English as she's had a cover teacher over the last year or so and speaking to friends in other classes she realises they haven't covered as much as they should have.

I think she got a good set of results but we are really trying to boost her to show her what she could achieve if she focuses properly.

I'm hoping she will start to do a bit of revision in the February half term and then start to up it around April time. Does this sound about right? She made a revision plan for mocks but decided not to use it!

MrsElijahMikaelson1 · 17/01/2020 22:50

@dietcokeandwine I am 100% with you there! There idea certainly no pressure from us. In fact I did say to DD that an 8 or indeed a 7/6/5/4/3 or whatever was 100% ok with us as long as that was her best effort and that I thought her thinking was not ok and that an 8 in whatever subject was an absolutely amazing result.

It turns out that she livid because on paper 1 she had got a 9 with 90% so didn’t understand the combined paper mark thoroughly. This is also a learning point for weaker areas etc
One of her teachers was spot on by saying don’t revise and work on stuff you know-work on the tricky stuff you find hard...

ProggyMat · 18/01/2020 11:02

Well done @aibuquestions and @MrsElijahMikaelson1 DD’s!
My DD is a self confessed perfectionist but I’ve been really impressed with how she has been able to contextualise revision and perceived performance in the papers she has sat during the mocks- which are now over, YAY!
She has said she will happy with 7s as ‘ a 7 is an A
In regards to the grade 9, DD’s school do give a 9 in assessments and will do when reporting mock exam grades.

PostNotInHaste · 18/01/2020 15:43

Sixth form exam is over, now the wait to see if he gets an interview. Nerves were getting to me yesterday, it will mean a big change in our lives if he does get in. Very proud at how he has been handling it, not easy to have 4 hour round trip to contend with in top of a hard exam and he kept his cool.

Piggywaspushed · 18/01/2020 17:47

Am just putting a random post on here as I fell off thread!

DS eventually has all mock results back. They range from a 9 to a 2! Somewhere in the middle, the truth lies...

It's quite well known in education circles that Gove wanted 9 as highest grade rather than a 1 , so that grades could be added at a later point.

crazycrofter · 18/01/2020 19:29

@PostNotInHaste is he applying for a boarding school? That will be a big change! Dd has just applied to a second sixth form, a comprehensive, in case she doesn’t get into the grammar. I’ve suggested she might even want to attend the taster days in the summer in case it’s actually a better option as it’s much nearer.

She thought a youth group friend would be going with her to the grammar and now that’s looking less certain so she’s feeling a bit wobbly! She knows a few people at the comprehensive already.

Wow @Piggywaspushed that’s quite a range! 😀 What are his predicted grades?

PostNotInHaste · 18/01/2020 21:11

Yes Crazycrofter he is, would be weekly boarding as too far to commute. Not something I even thought about 6 months ago but we all feel School would be a really good fit. It’s very competitive though so needs local options and not keen on any of them after other school. He really dislikes our Grammars so they are off the table but has two applications in for others.

Piggy that is indeed quite a range, how has he reacted to them? Interesting about Gove, DD went through during his era so not a lot surprises me.

aibuquestions · 19/01/2020 14:59

A Levels chosen - Biology, Chemistry and History.

Piggywaspushed · 19/01/2020 15:40

He is fine with them post. There have been some - shall we say- 'interesting' issues in music GCSE so he (and the new teacher) is playing catch up. We are hopeful he'll end up with at least a 4. He never should have taken it but no use crying, and all that! He has also just lost both of his English teachers but that is a good thing on balance. he now ahs the new HOD who seems very good. I have no faith in previous teachers marking or grade predictions so time will tell on that one!

The 9s were for business and Spanish. Really frustrating as these are the two non permissible in combination A Level subjects at his school and are by far and away his favourites.

TeenPlusTwenties · 19/01/2020 16:23

Piggy Move schools for A levels? Is that an option?

That is one of the positives about the Hants system. The state schools almost all don't have 6th forms so more or less everyone has to make a positive move to where they want to go next.

Piggywaspushed · 19/01/2020 16:27

We are looking at that but public transport is poor. I did mention this upthread but wouldn't expect anyone to remember! He could come to my school, but we don't do Business A Level and Spanish is in a precarious state 9as it is at his school). He could go to a standalone sixth form in a nearby town but would leave all his mates and I am not sure of the quality of the institution. It also involves early bus journeys, the expense of the public transport and lessons which go on til 5pm... none of those are absolute dealbreakers but DS1 lasted a week there. All that said, DS's school now charges its students for the shuttle bus journey to their own sixth form , which is a long story...

TeenPlusTwenties · 19/01/2020 16:36

That's a pain. (I'm only dipping in and out of this thread, as my DD2 is y10 so I'm just keeping myself aware of the trials of next year. DD2 is going to have an hour's journey, as did DD1 to a different college).

Piggywaspushed · 19/01/2020 16:40

It is indeed a pain - and galling as DS1 could do business and Spanish only last year (but wanted to do economics instead of business and couldn't) and now we have DS2 who wants to do business and Spanish and can't! He is considering economics - which IS now a combination!- but it really is not the same subject.

Oblomov20 · 19/01/2020 18:06

At Ds1's school They have started P7 Intervention classes: ie revision classes. 1 hour every day, at the end of school.

Maths one day, English another. Biology one week, chemistry the next.

And extra bits, questions and papers have been handed out.

And I talked to all teachers and HoY at parents evening.

We have our 1/2 hour interview with Deputy Head, for this month, which everyone does.

It's now up to Ds1 as to how much hard work he's prepared to put in.

Isn't it only 16 weeks? Till exams start?
Perhaps we should start a countdown soon?

crazycrofter · 19/01/2020 20:14

@Piggywaspushed out of interest, why the regret over music? Why hasn’t it worked out? Ds is considering it, but we’re not quite sure.

That’s such a shame about the subject options. Dd would have considered our nearest grammar which is a 5 minute drive away, but they don’t allow the combination of Geography, History and Psychology together which seems like a regular combination to me! And they don’t allow four subjects - she wants to start with these three plus RS which the nearer grammar doesn’t offer anyway and then drop one later.

So instead she’ll be doing an hour’s journey!

Piggywaspushed · 19/01/2020 20:16

Oh , it's entirely focused on his particular school, don't worry! Plus, it was a straight choice between that and French and , had he listened to his mother taken that, he probably wouldn't be in the Spanish related pickle he is now in.

PostNotInHaste · 20/01/2020 06:16

That really sucks he can’t take Spanish and business at current school Piggy, would have thought they went well together but it’s never that simple is it. We've found the whole sixth form thing very hard work.

Crazycrofter It’s an hour journey here if you want the only decent sixth form college option rather than a school and if you want agricultural college it’s even longer. I would have thought those three choices not unusable but I guess maybe people usually do Geography or History.

I don’t think DS totally decided on whether to do computer science as was not on offer for GCSE and is well aware he would be playing catch up. But think on balance he is now going towards the starting it then dropping option.