GCSE’s summer 2020 thread 5 - And then there were none..

[FoolsAssassin]

Once upon a time there was a group of year 11 students who had spent the last few years preparing to sit their GCSE exams in the summer of 2020. Then one day they woke up and found themselves as characters in a real life disaster movie and as if by magic the exams disappeared.

What lies next for the Corona Cohort?!

Thread 4
Thread 3
Thread 2
Thread 1 (Year 10)

Anyone lurking please feel free to jump on in .

@HPFA I think there were more children sitting L6 than that article suggests.
DD also went to a primary in a deprived area and was taught in combined year group classes. Out of 13 Yr6s (14Yr5 also in class) 2 sat SATs L6- DD included whom achieved 3 x L6.
Many of her peers at her current independent school who moved from state primaries also sat L6 papers.

Our junior school did Level 6. DS did level 6 maths (about 15 children did) and level 6 reading (only three children took the level 6 reading and one achieved it).

I remember similar kind of figures from our school @JustHereWithMyPopcorn. From what I remember it was generally harder to achieve the L6 in reading than maths - something to do with the logical problem solving ‘steps’ of maths that meant L6 work could be taught to highly able DC, but L6 reading requiring an emotional maturity of inference and deduction that most even highly able DC would not have developed at 10/11? Unless I’ve dreamed that

I guess numbers would depend on the school/area/individual cohorts but I remember a friend’s DD (who attended a school in a much more deprived area than ours) being entered for L6 - she was the only one in her 3 form entry primary who was entered but they still entered her, although she didn’t get it.

Yes that's right, there was a 0% pass rate for Yr 6 Level 6 in reading reality was 0.1% pass rate I think? It was generally considered that DCs didn't have the emotional maturity for that level of understanding in reading. DS was the only boy to be put forward in his year, ended up with a 5a - now taking English Lit at A level. The maths was much easier to attain as it wasn't about nuanced understanding but if you were good at maths i could be taught.

I think they were being kind putting him, I think they probably felt they needed to enter at least one boy , he was never going to achieve it but e's always been a reader hence keeping his interest through to A level.

I think they could try the level 6 papers at DS’s school if they wanted to, a lot opted not to. He decided to have a go and he did get a 6 in reading and maths but not in the SPAG.

That's good going getting the 6 in reading Fools!

DD got L6 in reading but the difference between the L3-5 reading and L6 reading paper was vast- not so much of a jump from Maths and SPAG papers.
DD used to ‘bounce over’ the L3-5 reading paper questions as she was ‘looking for other things than the obvious’- if that makes sense.

@FlyingPandas found this online. Not my school just first I found that had a graph!

A natural reader Proggy, is she still a reader?

That pic didn't come out quite as I meant - oops.

National Average (2015)
Maths - Level 6 or above 9%
Reading - Level 6 or above 0%
Writing (teacher assessed) - Level 6 or above 2%
Spelling, Punctuation & Grammar - Level 6 or above 4%

@JustHereWithMyPopcorn yes an avid reader from being small
We used to read my idea of ‘classics’ together in between the usual popular stuff.
We have several bookcases full of books.
Her reading has slowed down this year-of the nil GCSEs- but she’s got a few lined up once she’s finally dismissed!

Yes, we had bookcases full including some classics which I used to read with him as some of the text is hard to understand. I remember reading Tom Sawyer with him, bloody hell that was hard work!!

DS's reading has also slowed down, it was definitely affected once they introduced ipads into school.

We did to kill a mocking bird together but she then went in to read go set a watchman by herself
A kestrel for a knave (fabulous book) was another.
Strangely enough, she has mentioned us reading a book together again which I think we should organise given the current circumstances.

How lovely, I can't imagine 16yo DS wanting to read with me now, makes me sad.

He may surprise you!
DD also 16 is a party animal but I think she’s thinking ‘needs must’

Blimey hes just come in, given me a hug and asked me what I wanted for lunch. Now he's making me a ham and cheese toastie - maybe I can push for the reading while he's in such an accommodating mood....

Go for it!

Hmm, I'm thinking now. He said yesterday that he's going to start reading The Great Gatsby (when the book arrives this week), maybe I'll read it too and we can have a mini book club!

Thank you for new thread @FoolsAssassin.

Sorry been AWOL all - was it you @proggymat who sent the reading list ? DD is reading Tess in preparation for English Lit A level. We have Caroline Criado-Perez' Invisible Women for Sociology and nothing for Music prep so far ( not too worried about that). Would be really nice if she could get into more reading and some classics - they just don't have the time usually do they.

I'm doing Open Uni ( hence my sporadic absences) and we have been looking at Openlearn courses too. DD currently completing one on Human Rights Law.

Awaiting the Grade 5 Theory resit mark with trepidation.

Wow, send him here Popcorn! DS is supposed to be baking a cake later as I am crap at baking. His L6 in the reading paper laid to rest the fact he didn’t pass the 11 plus.

Was a keen reader , not so much now but I think he does usually have book on the go. He has never been able to read to someone else very well. He has a diagnosis of dyslexia and very spiky cognitive profile , something like 3rd percentile for processing but 99.8 percentile for verbal something or other. Struggles with months, alphabet and telling the time and says his spelling is by muscle memory.

Orange, it was Piggy.
I’ve already started curating books on the list from our home library, and will buy others as DD works through them.

@OrangeCinnamon no it was piggy who compiled the list.
@JustHereWithMyPopcorn good idea!
DD is asleep I’ll ask her when she wakes which book will be the joint effort

My Dds different primary schools reported it differently, which was shown on their report cards through Secondary. 1st child had 5a marked down, 2nd child just 5. Never bothered me before but may be important this year if they are going with that matrix. It seems the secondary school didn't ask for subdivisions. Any school admin know if schools do in fact get raw data or just input it from the primary school?