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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

GCSE results day 2021 support thread

308 replies

HappySonHappyMum · 02/08/2021 16:22

10 days to go until results day. Thought I'd start a new thread for parents who are getting the heebie jeebies and are probably more stressed than their DCs. I personally am trying not to mention it AT ALL, so it would be really good to have a thread where I can worry along with everyone else!

OP posts:
RB68 · 12/08/2021 15:43

Sorry no 8 in Maths was a 7 but still bloody proud of her

Abetes · 12/08/2021 16:22

Ds got eight 9s and three 8s. Very proud of him for getting such good grades but also for retaining his sense of humour and resilience and for generally still being his fantastically laid back and generous self over the past year despite the stresses and strains of learning from home and not being able to do sport and see his friends. Well done to all the year 11s for getting through the year.

OnTheBenchOfDoom · 12/08/2021 16:41

@TeenMinusTests I have been thinking about you and your DD all day and popped on here to see how she did. I am sorry you are disappointed, it really has been a shit time for her. But, school is now over for her, she can go to college and hopefully this will be a much better experience for her.

@chocolateisavegetable what a lovely thing to share, well done to your DD and it does prove that schools are not necessarily the best environment for everyone because we all know that they are not.

TheShriekingCrow · 12/08/2021 17:07

Well done to all the dcs. It’s been tough for everyone. Some amazing results.
Thanks for the support. We’ve been to-ing and fro-ing, looking at various courses and their syllabus. Ds has a place to do A levels but is still unsure about his 3rd A level. We’ve written to the HOY to see what they can do. They suggest to try it out for a couple of weeks in September then change it. We’ve still got our fingers crossed that they’ll let him do one that he’d love to do. He got 6 in it but he needed a 7.
And he did say that he wished he’d listened to me and not played so much Xbox all the time Hmm
Hindsight, hey?

igelkott2021 · 12/08/2021 17:23

@Duetorain

Watapalava Surely you can appeal a grade that was 2 below your mock? surely that's not allowed? In my view it shouldn't be allowed - there should have been a general no detriment policy to say you couldn't do worse than mocks.

First well to everyone getting through this. Mocks are all sat and marked differently in different schools. Also a lot did ongoing assessment after that. What happens for a student who worked hard up to the mocks and then pretty much stopped (with no good reason such as illness)?

They seemed to manage at universities. Anyway the no detriment policy could have been applied at the end, so the students didn't know about it.
TeenMinusTests · 12/08/2021 18:32

@Hellohah @LynetteScavo @ChocolateRiver @OnTheBenchOfDoom
Thank you. We are taking solace in our new rescue DCat who arrived last week and is currently snuggled next to DD. Considering querying one result but I don't expect it will get us anywhere.
I need to keep telling myself

  • she got what she needed for college
  • any results were a 'win' considering the state she was in a few months back.
Imapotato · 12/08/2021 18:41

Well done to all the DC. Whatever their results they should be proud that they got through what has been a very unusual and challenging couple of years. I hope they have all got what they need to go on to the next stage of their education.

Dd is thrilled with her results. She has worked very hard and done well. She’s pleased that all the subjects she will be doing at A level she has achieved an 8 in. Her results were mainly 8s with one 7 and two 6s. Also a distinction* in her btec subject. So very proud of her determination through lockdown.

OnTheBenchOfDoom · 12/08/2021 18:46

@TeenMinusTests what? No photo of the cat? Sad

Your DD has come far, she went and got the results herself. That is amazing. My niece was under CAHMS for her GCSE years, went through a lot. Was heartbreaking to watch. My sister and BIL celebrated any small achievements she made because to her they were huge. Flowers

TeenMinusTests · 12/08/2021 18:51

Dcat. Smile

GCSE results day 2021 support thread
Imapotato · 12/08/2021 18:55

@TeenMinusTests

That’s a cute cat. Like a bit like ours.

Mangowood · 12/08/2021 19:52

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

cptartapp · 12/08/2021 20:08

DS got 7x9's and 2x7's. State school.
Absolutely over the moon. Not all went as planned for his friends though.
Have seen a completely different side to him during Covid, his resilience and perseverance during such uncertainty and disruption make me extremely proud, grades aside.
An exceptional cohort.

Lowther · 12/08/2021 20:21

DD got 1x6, 2x7, 6x8 &1x D*. Really happy.
Has been accepted at her 1st choice for 6 form. All happy here. Now out celebrating with friends. Some did not do as well as hoped but they are all supporting and celebrating together. Good to see smiles and hear laughter. Something that was missing for a large part of the year.
I'm on taxi duty so I am hoping I don't have a late night!
Well done to you and all DC. Onwards- wonder what the next year will bring? Smile

NotDonna · 12/08/2021 21:07

@TeenMinusTests Im so sorry you are both disappointed as I know what a particularly difficult year it’s been for you both. Thank heavens she can continue what she wants and hopefully put the disappointment behind her. x

clary · 12/08/2021 21:55

@TeenMinusTests echoing others, she has done really well to get what she did, I am sure you are celebrating her achievements. Ashe can go on to college, that's great.

It's not always about strings of high grades - a student I worked with is totally delighted with her 4s and 5s (as she should be - she worked hard) and my ds1 (years ago) worked so so hard to gain CS in maths and catering and Ds in science and geography. I was delighted and so was he. Good luck to your dd, onwards and upwards.

Cocopogo · 12/08/2021 23:50

DS got 9s for CS, chemistry and maths (his chosen A levels) and 8s for rest. Northern state school.

Dancingdreamer · 12/08/2021 23:52

I think it’s wrong to assume private schools inflated their grades. I looked the the results of some of our local private schools last year (at least the ones where they were deliberately opaque about their exam results) following the debate about grade inflation. I checked after the algorithm debacle, when the teacher assessment were actually awarded. Many of the selective privates continued to get rafts of 9s and 8s as they always had done. However, when the number of A*s at levels doubled across the board nationally, at our local less selective private, the ratio of top grades was virtually unchanged compared to previous years.

SerenadeOfTheSchoolRun · 13/08/2021 07:12

DSs results in line with expectations - his school gave % marks for the many assessments that he sat and no surprises with the grades. He is pleased with his although was hoping for a good surprise/dreading any of the grades being moderated down. (2 9s, 5 8s, 4 7s). We are very proud of him and how he kept going through the relentless rounds of revision and testing he went through for most of year 11.

And yes thank you so much to the teachers for all the setting, marking and moderation.

I do think think that the smaller topic tests he had made it easier than the schools that more closely replicated the real thing. It isn’t fair between the different schools this year which must be very hard to accept if your school’s approach to gathering evidence didn’t work so well for you as another schools system would have done.

WhatHaveIFound · 13/08/2021 08:53

All ok here and no need to resit English (my biggest fear). DS admitted that due to his chronic fatigue his revision was very limited so on that basis he's done very well. Just got to get him organised with his options blocks now so he's with some of his friends.

Flowers to all those who need them and hoping that all your DC can continue down the path they want.

mrshoho · 13/08/2021 11:21

Well done to all the kids and parents for getting through this milestone. I remind mine that these results although seemingly significant now, will not define the person they become as they grow up. My daughter achieved well and is enrolled on the A Levels of her choice. She had a rocky time through high school and was diagnosed with ASD at 15 after a bad time of social anxiety, self harm and suicidal thoughts. We are so proud of her and have worked to get her support to build resilience and self belief. It's an ongoing mission but feel positive that her new sixth form will be a better environment to support her needs from the start.

Her high school was so rigid and results driven. In the whole time she was there her effort and achievement was not acknowledged ever. I believe because she went in there with exceptionally high target grades which she was unable to reach she was continually told she needed to make more effort even though just getting through the school day was a huge effort most of the time. She finished with 2 9s 4 8s 3 7s and 2 6s which we are thrilled with but sad to think in the eyes of her high school her full potential was not reached. So little do they really know about their students.

ChnandlerBong · 13/08/2021 12:45

ds pretty pleased with his haul.

but mainly pretty pleased that the box has been ticked and he can drop all the subjects he doesn't like and focus on the 3 he does!!

best wishes to all - what a rubbish experience for all our dc. Here's hoping the next stage in their journeys is a little less random.

ChnandlerBong · 13/08/2021 12:48

and on the q of whether the results are as expected... yeah pretty much.

for him having no context as to what everyone else got (he got results via email) has been a massive bonus. Easy for your general satisfaction to flip if you realise everyone else did better?

Ekofisk · 13/08/2021 13:19

Easy for your general satisfaction to flip if you realise everyone else did better?

I remind my DCs that comparison is the thief of joy.

Obakarama · 13/08/2021 13:24

Yes, starting to feel my DD did not do as well as I thought. I guess MN kids are not wholly representative!

SlightlyJaded · 13/08/2021 13:40

@Obakarama

Yes, starting to feel my DD did not do as well as I thought. I guess MN kids are not wholly representative!
Agree. BUT DD herself will admit that she probably applied herself at 75% capacity whilst many of her friends worked at 100%. Under different circumstances, I would have been harder on her but she really REALLY struggled with lockdown, was working most days and had to move school half way though Year 10, so I wasn't as hard on her as I might have been.

We both feel her 7s and 8s are a fair reflection of her efforts (and of some of the challenges she faced ie moving schools). She knows she can't sit back for A levels though and is ready to put the work in.

We will see....