Exams cancelled 2

[Orangeblossom1977]

Started a new thread as last one is full.

allabove if your DS is emotionally exhausted and well prepared for assessment, I'd suggest giving him a bit of a break, tbh.

He can just do the bare minimum for the next couple of weeks. He's not going to be assessed on it.

@portico

AllAboveAverage It's important to let your kids have a time out to collect thier thoughts, have fun and be kids, too.

Btw, how we use the quotes functionality on here - it's new

On my screen, you click on the 'quote' button. Not sure if systems vary.

There's no fun to be had tbh! Can't meet friends except to exercise. No clubs, no sport.

Re quoting, most posts (not all for some reason) have the Quote option in the blue bar next to the poster's name.

Thanks upDownQuark

You can't quote a post with a quote in it, to avoid massive chains of quoted posts. A good thing I think!

If he's emotionally wrung out then I would suggest more mindful type activities might be beneficial.

Except he isn't in a far better place. He is emotionally exhausted. It's like it's been exam season for months, not just six weeks in summer. So he is now going INTO exam season with no resources left.

My dd is exactly the same @AllAboveAverage. She worked really hard through the last lockdown, and then for her mocks last term, with practical coursework to complete at the same time, which was really challenging. She put everything into it, and did brilliantly in her mocks. She has worked really hard again through this lockdown, but now has another set of mocks starting as soon as they go back to school, and who knows what more assessments this summer. I totally understand that the school needs to collect as much data as possible, so I understand why it's necessary, but dd's tank is empty and her energy is so depleted. Just month of exam stress without any of the fun stuff that would normally help her to cope with the pressure. I expect she will somehow manage to pull it out of the bag, but I really feel for her. It has been such a tough year.

@noblegiraffe

allabove if your DS is emotionally exhausted and well prepared for assessment, I'd suggest giving him a bit of a break, tbh.

He can just do the bare minimum for the next couple of weeks. He's not going to be assessed on it.

I am putting no pressure on him at all. It would be counterproductive and harmful for our relationship if I tried.

However, he has additional needs which school make no allowances for so keeping up with everything has taken all he has. Part of him wants to carry on, but I think he just can't do it anymore. He is getting grumpy and emotional when he was much calmer a few months' back.

School have said assessment will start from 8th March, so no matter what he does in the next week, he has that looming over him.

@AlexaShutUp - this exactly. Thank you for the solidarity.

(except DS isn't a high flier, just want to get what he needs for the next stage. He is giving his all though)

I'm still unclear as to how schools are going to "reflect the generosity of 2020". Will they be told to estimate the grade they expect the pupil would achieve in a normal exam year, and then increase is by 1? Or will it just be the case of giving the higher grade to those sitting on the cusp of two grades? This does not seem to have been addressed at all.

How on earth can this be done with any consistency at all from pupil to pupil within one school let alone between schools on a national level?

"Grades would not have to be submitted until 18 June to give pupils more time to study following the disruption to their learning."

Is that later than usual?

I am putting no pressure on him at all.

That’s not what I meant. He’s obviously putting it on himself and might need someone else to tell him to stop for a bit. It will actually be better in the long run for him to have a break but it can be hard to get them to see that.

From: www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/25/covid-tests-masks-not-compulsory-english-schools-nick-gibb

If the exam boards allow work prior to 8th March to be assessed then I assume that would be a grounds for appeal if the school don't look at work produced prior to that date

Hi all, just wondering. When you mention your children are doing mcoks when they return to school. Are you referring to Y11, 12 or 13.My Y13 has mocks to do, but not my Y11

Mine is Y11, doing mocks on return, as they didn't do them January after schools didn't return. They have been doing some formal assessments online as well the last few weeks.

@noblegiraffe

I am putting no pressure on him at all.

That’s not what I meant. He’s obviously putting it on himself and might need someone else to tell him to stop for a bit. It will actually be better in the long run for him to have a break but it can be hard to get them to see that.

I appreciate your expertise here @noblegiraffe Just want to clarify, DS isn't putting pressure on himself (to excel, or hand in perfect work etc), he's just trying to keep up - attend the lessons and do the work set. Which isn't onerous, just hard as a 15 year old boy, with additional needs, working at home after a year of pandemic (and consequent bereavement, for example)

@ineedaholidaynow

If the exam boards allow work prior to 8th March to be assessed then I assume that would be a grounds for appeal if the school don't look at work produced prior to that date

Good point. But if school say they can't use work because they don't believe it meets requirements, Ofqual are not going to overrule that. They both want rigour and quantifiable evidence. I totally get that. I just am worried for DS.

DS's school did mocks in November, mainly paper 1s, then they were planning to do mocks after half term but postponed due to lockdown, but we are waiting to hear what the plan is now. This is Y11

I hope schools can use as wide a range of evidence as possible, including previous mocks, classwork, etc, as need be.
That should absolutely include work prior to March the 8th in my opinion...

I don't understand why the schools have not been given guidance today as to how they will be assessing.

It can't just be from 8th March, even with testing there is still going to be kids self isolating due to close contact/families and catching those covid and having to isolate

I don't either @treeeeemendous, at least clarification on whether they can include work prior to 8th March

No mocks here for either Yr11 or Yr13. School said they’d assess once they knew what the exam boards wanted.
Apparently exam boards will give schools the ‘grade descriptors’ nearer the time. Does this matter? Can schools crack on with assessments and once marked then look at how they compare to the ‘grade descriptors’ OR do teachers need to know these ‘grade descriptors’ upfront?

@treeeeemendous

It can't just be from 8th March, even with testing there is still going to be kids self isolating due to close contact/families and catching those covid and having to isolate

I was just reporting what DS's school has said this afternoon, that most of the assessment will be based on work not yet done.

Not all schools will choose to do this it seems. I think it is a shot across the bows for kids by my DS's school, and while a few may need that, my DS certainly doesn't need to hear that.

A reporter on the BBC news channel has just said these plans will be tweaked along the way to ensure fair and robust. He’s probably right too. 🙄