GCSE Support - nervously waiting

[Hellocatshome]

Hopefully everyone from GCSE Support The Final Frontier can find this new thread!

@DarkChocHolic we used to use next for dds school clothes. 6ft tall and size 16-18.

My DD is waiting for the results of her job interview - they have promised to call tomorrow. She handled it really well I think for 15 as it sounded like a proper interview not just a chat. Questions around how you had come across and handled certain scenarios - conflict, teaching people etc. I think she's better at thinking on her feet than me.

@PPhotoDad @christmastreefarm @RRowgtfc72
Thank you!
I've ordered a few skirts and blazer from Marks and Next.

@DarkChocHolic DD is set firm against a blazer but I think she will change her mind at one point, latest when she realises how cold a thin smart top is when she wore jumpers each day for 5 years.

We got her for the interviews a pair of slim fitted trousers from Zara and a top from FatFace. I think FatFace will be out of the price range for a whole wardrobe but she also has some smarter tops from NewLook.

About collecting results. - our school put everyone in a time slot, organised by alphabet. DD's is from 10.30 onwards.

We've been told no parents allowed into school when collecting results. Is that normal?

I can’t call my Ds’s either - very clever but didn’t revise much - was overwhelmed by it all . He tells people he is going to sixth form he has no plan B. So I have 2 days off work to support results day if necessary and find a plan B . If I told him I was concerned he would dismiss it and take it as a personal attack . He has Asd/adhd so I worry about results alone . No uniform for sixth form he plans to go to / same as currently so wears joggers and a t shirt

I've not booked results day off. But if it's the disaster it might be then I can finish early or DS can meet me at lunch. He might need to enrol in 3 colleges the following week so that's when my annual leave might need to kick in. His preferred college is later in the week and they can't guarantee he can study the subjects he wants. I'm basically counting the days until 1st Sept when we know where we are.

I haven't booked time off and we don't have a plan B. I can't see DD not getting the grades for 6th form but there is uncertainty around A-Level choices and she'll go into a huge despondent fugue if she doesn't get the grades she wants for maths and physics, so I will be available to be proactive if necessary. I'm feeling increasingly nervous about it all. DD not mentioning it at all

I'll be in work as well, and TBH if she gets her grades I don't think it will even enter her head to contact me. Not sure what time school opens, but even if I was off work I wouldn't be allowed anywhere near.

She is holding two college places. First college requires an 8 for one subject, 7 for another, 6 for the third and she's already got the requirements for the fourth. Second college is 7, 6, 6. So a bit of wiggle room, but she's heard horror stories from year 12 mates about the teaching in her favourite subject at the second college, so is really desperate to get into the first.

Took the day off for the results but only because I need to get her on a train at dinnertime.

I also have the day off as need to drive ds in to get results. We then need to take results to a school that has 6th form to see if they will take him. If not he will have to enroll with the local college. Oh and if going to the school will need to get uniform!!

I will be working at home (barely) on the 24th.
Parents can go in at DDs school but pretty sure she wouldn't want me there.
I am quite anxious as DD will be quite upset if she doesn't get what she needs. She isn't in the best of states emotionally so I hope i am able to reassure her if things don't go as expected.

Just seen this on Facebook and it put the fear of god into me!
Life was not back to normal for our kids in the slightest.

@Rowgtfc72 . I don't think you need to worry as such. This is not new news we have known they will be going to 2019 levels for 2 years. Teachers should have been doing predictions based on this.

If the cohort across the country have been disrupted, then their standard will be lower than 2019, but they will still get the same grade profile.

What they cannot, and indeed never can do, is adjust for disruption in a specific school or for a specific child.

What matters most is getting the grades to move on to the next desired course.

Keep the faith

Could you explain this to me please? How does this work in relation to grade boundaries? Thanks!

If the cohort across the country have been disrupted, then their standard will be lower than 2019, but they will still get the same grade profile.

I'm worried as DS was taught the wrong syllabus in DT for a while and only got 30% in his practical. That subject could easily be a fail. That, English and RE are on very shaky ground. I just want to get to September now and know where he's off to.

@TeddybearBaby
An example; in 2019, the top 4.7% of papers for a Grade 9.
This year, Ofqual will also give the top 4.7% of papers a Grade 9.

Maybe, in a particular subject, to reach the top 4.7% in 2019 required getting 90/100 in the exam (made-up figure). If students this year are weaker, the marks will all be lower, and so perhaps to reach the top 4.7% you would only need 85/100.

That should get "got a Grade 9" in the first line. Need more coffee!

ARGH! "That should say." I give up.

Thought this was interesting. This shows inside the factory where all the GCSE papers go!

https://www.tes.com/magazine/analysis/general/exam-marking-gcse-alevel-papers?fbclid=IwAR1De_UWt8CSwH4xYolpPCKYXrV94IJl93EGDEEgZDUpl0a3zl1bfVz0kas#=

I don't know about your schools but my sons school they used pre-covid papers for their mocks and marked them to pre covid standards. Therefore I don't believe we will get too many surprises here but I could he wrong...

That is amazing! Thanks for sharing.

I just hope all the staff are dedicated to how important this is!!

@TeddybearBaby Yup, as PhotoDad explained. If the overall cohort has performed worse then grade boundaries will be lower to enable the same % of students to get the grades as in 2019. (assuming papers of the same hardness of course).

(Lower grade boundaries are what I am pinning hopes for my 18yos maths resit on anyway! If she passes it will be her only GCSE pass having missed education in y11.)

Thank you @TeenDivided and @PhotoDad for explaining……. I think I understand it now, the grade profile stays the same as in (this is a very basic analogy) full marks go to a student who consistently shows the use of full stops, lower marks go to the student who occasionally uses full stops. The grades have nothing to do with it at that point in a way. They’re just marks not grades and the grades are made once it’s seen how the cohort has performed.

Good luck to your daughter with her resit 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼.