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Secondary education

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Original poster

Will this GCSE grade ruin DS’s future choices?

29 replies

Blownawash · 05/09/2021 10:29

DS did GCSEs this year. One of his grades was much lower than he has ever had in previous assessments. He got a 5 but has never had less than a 7 in tests from school and even his teacher for this was subject was puzzled. We did query it with school but there’s nothing we can do as JCQ signed of their procedure for GCSEs etc. His school took a very tough approach to GCSEs no mini assessments, basically as close to GCSEs as they could have been.
He got 7s and 8s in all his other subjects but typically the one he wants to do at university is the one he got a 5 for. He’s doing it for A’level and his teacher said he’s confident he can do well in it but I’ve been worried that university will look at his GCSE grade and reject him. What do you think?

OP posts:
clary · 05/09/2021 10:34

I genuinely cannot imagine it will be an issue, unless he is thinking of Oxford or Cambridge. Tho the fact that he wants to do it at A level and uni does give me pause. Do you mind saying what the subject is op? A 5 at GCSE is not the best start for A levels - mate of ds's did something he got a 5 in, found it tough and got a C, a good grade but not one that will get him into the most competitive unis.

clary · 05/09/2021 10:36

I meant to add, does depend on the subject - MFL or maths, not great; history or eng lit perhaps not such an issue (because they are modular rather than linear), as long as there was a good reason (hated Animal Farm, mucked up essay on Germany)

clary · 05/09/2021 10:38

Sorry for multiple posts! What I am trying to say (not well I fear) is that his predicted grade at A level is what will count for unis. So if in 12 months' time that is an A, great.

However, if his 5 was actually realistic, especially in relation to other options for A level, then maybe think about that.

Scarby9 · 05/09/2021 10:41

The part from your OP that stoodout was 'even his teacher for this subject was puzzled'.

S/he really shouldn't be puzzled this year when teachers gave the grades. Even if his teacher was low in the department, they would surely have been involved in collating the evidence and moderatining within the department.

That's what I would be questioning.

If he genuinely 'never had less than a 7 in a test' and his teacher who saw all his day to day work is surprised, then the 5 is an incorrect grade because this year there is nothing else that could be taken into account when assessing his overall grade.

WeAllHaveWings · 05/09/2021 11:05

The part from your OP that stoodout was 'even his teacher for this subject was puzzled'.

The teacher will know exactly where the grade came from, I can only assume they were puzzled why he performed poorly in the main assessment which probably accounted for, was heavily weighted for, the majority of his grade.

OP, if he doesn't know why he got a 5 can he ask so he knows where he went wrong. Ds got a low A for Physics (Scottish Highers) when he was expecting a band 1 as it is a subject he enjoys. He thinks it was because he didnt study nearly enough for the assessments as he was focusing on the subjects he struggled with. Lesson learned.

ragged · 05/09/2021 11:07

If you look at the FoI requests to Oxbridge or medical schools, you'll find Grade C (4/5) in the GCSE lists of successful applicants. It don't mean a lot.

BeyondMyWits · 05/09/2021 11:09

Dd got a 5 in English language ... it did limit her choice of uni for pharmacy or pharmacology. Some required a 6. She is perfectly happy now, but for a while it caused some anxiety.

UserStillatLarge · 05/09/2021 11:17

It's fine as long as he gets a better grade at A Level.
My DS had the same issue with teacher assessed grades being lower than he would likely have got in exams (2020 cohort) - his teachers told him they had no issues with him coping with the A Levels and he's just targeting a higher grade there :)

LindaEllen · 05/09/2021 11:22

Depends if it's English or Maths. Either of those I would personally be taking again to try and raise them - a lot of unis and even some jobs require a decent grade. A 5 is a pass, but it just depends on where he wants to go in the future.

If it's any other subject though, it doesn't matter. Even if he was planning to go to Oxbridge there's not much he can do about it - as they don't look kindly on retakes anyway.

Original poster
Blownawash · 05/09/2021 11:32

@Scarby9
*The part from your OP that stoodout was 'even his teacher for this subject was puzzled'.

S/he really shouldn't be puzzled this year when teachers gave the grades. Even if his teacher was low in the department, they would surely have been involved in collating the evidence and moderatining within the department*

Subject Teachers actually weren’t involved at all. They did the exams (GCSE format), they were marked anonymously then SLT applied grade boundaries based on previous cohorts. In this particular subject most pupils scored much lower than expected and on looking at previous years marks they do seem quite low so I have a feeling that could be why.

OP posts:
clary · 05/09/2021 11:38

What's the subject op?

Leibham · 05/09/2021 11:40

I hear you. My DC school was very tough on the students and downgraded them whilst all their friends in other schools got inflated grades.

Teacher assessed grades were an awful experience for us.

TrampolineForMrKite · 05/09/2021 11:43

If it helps I got a C in RE GCSE which I wanted to do for A Level (and did). Just a weird one on the day. I got an A at A Level. Had no impact on my later choices. I wasn’t applying for Oxbridge though.

Original poster
Blownawash · 05/09/2021 11:44

@Leibham I know it’s been incredibly stressful for the dc and parents. I’m relieved it’s only one subject we’ve got an issue with but typically it’s the one he really needs a good grade for. We never even considered he’d get less than a 7 and were even hoping for higher so it’s been a shock.

OP posts:
Leibham · 05/09/2021 11:49

@Blownawash I’m so sorry for him. Will he be doing a resit this Autumn?

As long as he works really hard at A-level he will be fine but that is so frustrating for him and you, especially seeing that most have enjoyed the effects of grade inflation!

Pieceofpurplesky · 05/09/2021 11:49

@Scarby9 I had no input in to the grades for my classes. I did the assessments with them, they were centrally marked (each teacher taking a separate element for the whole year group) collated and the final grades input by SLT - often with no relevance to what they had done all year. As teachers we raised issues but none of us were listened to or included in the grade. I know many colleagues in other schools had the same. That said they did resemble the assessments and targets - it was
Just the anomalies that were different.
Still better than the variable nature of exams

Original poster
Blownawash · 05/09/2021 11:55

@Pieceofpurplesky DSs grade was lower than his target. There was nothing over the entire GCSE course to suggest he was going to get the grade he did. He’d always exceeded his target prior to this. It’s incredibly disappointing.

OP posts:
TheFallenMadonna · 05/09/2021 11:57

You can still appeal, even if the school followed their centre policy, if you think the grade is unreasonable for the evidence produced.

Original poster
Blownawash · 05/09/2021 12:06

@TheFallenMadonna I think it would only be successful if the school failed to follow their procedure which apparently they did (although it’s quite overwhelming when you read it!)

OP posts:
Seeline · 05/09/2021 12:12

Depends on which subject it is. I have some unis asking for 6s in some subjects in the entry requirements. Also there are sometimes grade requirements for specific modules within a course (usually optional ones) so he may find his choices restricted.

Original poster
Blownawash · 05/09/2021 12:19

@Seeline that’s depressing. He got 8s for the three sciences, both English and maths.

OP posts:
KaptainKaveman · 05/09/2021 12:20

Why can't he do the resit OP?

TheFallenMadonna · 05/09/2021 12:24

One of the permitted reasons for appeal is the the school did not exercise reasonable academic judgement in either the choice of evidence used (unlikely to succeed if they used past papers or exam board materials) or in awarding a grade from that evidence. Merely applying boundaries based on historical school level data might fall into that category, especially in a small cohort where there is variation in attainment. However, the word "reasonable" does a fair amount of heavy lifting!

Looneytune253 · 05/09/2021 12:28

Same has happened here for dd in gcse maths. She only got a 5 despite a fantastic track record. She was hoping to do medicine eventually but might not be achievable now. College wouldn't accept her for a level maths but did negotiate and allow her to do biology without the maths grade. She 'only' got 6s in sciences too despite being top of the year group for a few years in a row and generally getting 100% in tests. Obv not the ones that counted for the gcse grade tho which is so sad for her. She had a traumatic experience around the time of the assessments too which didn't help matters. Everything seems to be working out though thankfully. Poor kids. This grading system hasn't worked for everyone unfortunately

Original poster
Blownawash · 05/09/2021 13:04

Sorry this has happened to you too @Looneytune253 I really hope things turn out well for your dd. I’m hoping that universities will realise there have been inconsistencies between schools this year and will not take too much notice of GCSEs but instead focus on predicted grades.

OP posts:
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