2022 gcse exams?

[Wowwellokthen]

So much disruption in schools at the moment. My yr11 ds has had 2-3 of his subject teacher (different ones) off school I'll for the last 8 weeks. Now three sets of assessments plus mocks and not having finished the syllabus.

Can't help but wonder if exams might be cancelled again....not sure what I think would be better to be honest!

Thought?

@spiderlight I am glad not to be alone! Ds is having an hour online revision tomorrow and Thursday, then back in school Friday with 3 lessons of revision and 2 lessons of revision on Monday. It is cramming but they are not really learning or understanding how to revise. I would rather he not sit it than do badly due to lack of teaching. He is trying his best and doing past papers but it is madness really especially as he is year 10 so they could wait. I have asked about grade boundaries etc but I do not think the school even know what WJEC are thinking. Fingers crossed.

It's so stressful, isn't it? Mine doesn't even have online work going up. His teacher has basically said 'Give it a go, do your best, and you can resit if you don't get the grade you want', which is all very well, but I'd much rather they did it once and did it properly, rather than cramming. We can be stress buddies until Tuesday is over!! Is yours doing 'of Mice and Men'?

@spiderlight yes of mice and men so not a long book but still. I cannot wait to see what is achieved in the hour this morning!

Good luck to those who's children have exams this week. My DS has full mocks starting tomorrow.
He has tried to revise over Christmas but is now heartbroken due to being dumped a couple of days ago. So, god knows how these exams are going to go! Young love 💔

Oh, bless his heart, @Wowwellokthen! :(

I'm a GCSE teacher - in college so our cohirt sits in just 1 year. Up until yesterday I'd have said exams would happen - gut feeling after our latest update from management about masks etc is that they'll be cancelled.

We have the 3rd of 3 mocks in Feb and a full set of 3 in March. I'll be telling my students to start revising this week.

I'm gutted at the thought of TAGs but I've never been more certain of my data than I am right now. Every mark is tracked and accounted for.

Zahawi has apparently announced today that exams as planned in summer. But of course we have heard this before ….

I though announcements on whether and what form exam this sumner was always expected in early Feb? Why is he on about it now?

If they want to be fair to this year, they'll need a hybrid (exam plus TAG) - because different schools have had different amounts of disruption, and pupils different numbers of isolations. And a dodgy few weeks lies ahead.

MeditrinA, i don’t know it certainly seems premature.
schoolsweek.co.uk/omicron-more-air-cleaning-units-would-be-waste-of-money-and-6-things-we-learned-from-zahawi/

It's all such a mess. I have one about to sit a-levels and the other GCSES. The U6 child might not sit any proper exams before Uni which is crazy. I think current Year 11s for GCSEs and U6 for a-levels have had the most disruption and poor school experience. My U6 at least had it normal until March 20 before GCSE exams, but I would have never thought he'd be in the same position 2 years later. And then you get people saying the kids are 'given' grades, what choice do the poor kids have if they're not allowed to take them?

Yes it’s a total mess - no idea how they can even remotely create a ‘level playing field’. Maybe at least if they do go head they will give plenty of advance info in feb?

I expect them to happen. Even with the amount of disruption some schools will have faced. Regardless of whether it is fair or not.

I think they'll happen unfortunately 😢 poor kids.

Not all schools will have done three sets of mocks either. There's already provisions for details on content for most subjects, coming out in Feb, and with the government's general laissez faire stance I think they'll go ahead.

DD Y11 currently doing Mocks. No Christmas hols to speak of at all (like so many of you). Gut feeling is that exams will happen, but at this stage I don't know if I want them to or not. I really don't. Counting down until 7 February when we'll find out (I hope). Anyone know if that announcement is just for England or Wales, Scotland and N Ireland too? Have those nations decided what to do yet?

It seems he has said today that

Move to full-blooded testing will be staggered, with this year's GCSEs and A-levels to take a hybrid form that includes teacher assessment

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/01/09/last-year-go-easy-exam-marking-covid-promises-nadhim-zahawi/

Hate that they’re saying ‘go easy’

It devalues their grades.

Will be interested to see how this works...roll on Feb for full details.

So the stress of revision for 6 months continues....tags/mocks/block tests/then full exams....🤯 my DS is already sick of it.

Frankly combined TAGS and actual exams feels like the worst solution ? Continual stress for months on end with with every test mattering😔

DD did mocks before Xmas- she he's her results tomorrow

Gets

@mumonthehill - how is your DS feeling about tomorrow? Mine is OK, just trying to get M&M quotes cemented in his head this evening. I'm a nervous wreck and trying to stay out of his way!

My dcs' school has had no disruption at all this academic year so for their school there would be no reason to cancel exams. They had done two lots of mocks already and dc has done really well in them, so we don't mind as such either way.

@spiderlight currently making cake in a mug!!! He is ok and did well in his mock although only got his grade last Friday. This is the first external exam for 2 years I think so a big day for school and kids. I am trying to keep it calm!! It’s so tough. Positive thoughts!

@Exhausteddog hope she’s feeling ok about her results. Ours did mocks b4 xmas, school have now decided not to give grades, just marks. (In case they need to use them in TAGs)
It would have been nice to know beforehand; last year they didn’t even use the mock results as part of the TAGs so we thought they were a dry run.