Any teachers out there? Wanting advice re. DSs normally high achieving school mock GCSE results.

[muminthesummer]

This is a school in an affluent area which normally gets way above average GCSE results. They did mocks before Christmas and results coming back now are much lower than normal and in some subjects absolutely dire. This is obviously really worrying for actual GCSE marks this summer. What do teachers think? The school had fairly good provision in lockdown one - no live lessons or much in the way of feedback, but quite good lessons on PowerPoint etc.

Exactly this totally agree @NovembeR.

‘It's so rubbish.

DS is likely to be given CAG of 4 grades below his target. How shit is that? They are basically testing him on what have you managed to teach yourself over this two year course?...’

DD also had a grandparent die during lockdown one and had to say a family goodbye via facetime and attend a funeral alongside her studies. The nightmare still isn’t over for our year 11’s.

@Randomrebel Your poor girl! I'm so sorry for your family.

I know a lot of pupils in DS class really struggled over lockdown. Fairly stereotypically in many ways...lots of the boys failed to engage because there were no consequences for not doing so and they aren't good at organising themselves. Lots of the girls really struggled with their mental health and not having their friends to support them and stressing about their grades.

I realise that's a generalisation and that teens are individuals, but I would argue that the majority of our Y11s are obviously not in the same position they would have been, either academically or mentally and emotionally, without the pandemic.

To judge them on their academic success without taking all this into account seems unfair.

DS is in Y11 and hasn’t even done mocks yet. He is predicted 7’s and 8’s but on the “tests” they were doing before Christmas he was getting 3’s and 4’s. Its just ridiculous and completely unfair. He fully engaged with learning over lockdown but nothing compares to in class learning and there are huge huge gaps.

My ds not even done mocks yet were planned for jan, apparently may be doing them in a couple weeks online

Of course no one will cheat online and will be a completely level playing field.

I honestly think schools will do more tests march time to get a better idea plus classwork
As thats how they know roughly where they are , just told my ds to treat every work or test like thats the bit they will use.
As yes with whats missed feel he may end up with grades below his ability , but it does sometime go other way ds1 did his gcse a couple years ago mocks all 5/6's and constantly worked at that level ended up with 6 x 4's and couple 3's , why I think gcse should be 50% coursework , 50% exams

@Randomrebel i guess some may stand out if they get an 8 and normally only work at a 4 , plus I am sure schoolwork will be taken into account not just the mocks.

DD does her school work completely on her own and has never ever asked for help or accepted any help or advice from DH or myself but she is weary and becoming despondent so often rushes, especially now as she is working on her own in her messy bedroom, refuses to open the blinds and I struggle to persuade her to go out for fresh air. We have tried to reiterate the importance of her school work since March which doesn’t go down well.
But I know for a fact that other pupils in her year group are receiving and freely accepting a great deal of help with school work when working from home from parents, older siblings and neighbours (with DT projects) etc.