GCSE Support - the results are in

[SheilaFentiman]

Continuing the threads we had going during revision and waiting for results day!

Try @noblegiraffe

I was expecting DS and his friend to go off to celebrate after they'd enrolled at college but they're both too knackered after being out all day yesterday distracting themselves and then barely sleeping, so they headed straight home. DS is now busily sorting out the rail pass he'll need to get to college and we'll have a nice takeaway and some fizz later.

Last years GCSEs on the whole also got lower grades than expected for English

Also AQA english language way down here. Predicted 8/9 and got a 6 but 1 mark off a 7 so teachers suggested review. Other (good) shock was an 8 in Biology- after shocking IGCSE papers!

Another mixed bag here expected 8 for Dance and got a 6. Missed by 1 mark getting the grade needed in physics and biology so asking if it can be looked at as she needed it for A level. But after five years in a ofsted rated inadequate school so proud of the hard work gone in just to pass all her exams. Just hope it’s enough to move onto college now.

We had a couple of surprises. For us english is really high at a 6 predicted a 4/5 at most. Lang is 5 when hoping for a 6. And she got a 5 in history when expecting a 3/4. She does enjoy it so I am glad she got what she deserved. Science and maths were good. So overall quite happy and no where near as bad as I thought it might have been.

There's some anomaly with aqa English it seems. I'm really hoping DS can have his reviewed.

Is anyone else having trouble contacting the school? I don't know what else to do. I have contacted teachers, SSO, but heard nothing. Is this radio silence normal on results day? I'm at a completely loss. I have so many questions.

I think we're going to appeal the drama result, as it's so far off what she was predicted and will stop her from applying to sixth form.

Has that been said anywhere official or just your opinion?

I'm wondering about bringing it up with the school but it doesn't affect his next steps so I don't know whether to chalk it up to one of those things and just move on.

DS2's English was AQA, he got a 5 in Language and a 4 in Lit. His school had given him a MLG of a 3. So better than expected here. His maths is lower than expected as he'd been 9s in everything throughout school. He said he had struggled with the exams and wasn't surprised.

Just from what I've read in various places, but nothing official. I'm the same, don't know whether to push for a remark as it doesn't actually affect any a level choices.

His maths was EdExcel

Yes. They're a bit busy with the kids in there.

For those missing a mark for AQA Lang, it's likely because the information management system can't cope with the Spoken Lang grade as well. It will exist but you'll need to ask your exams office for it

Overall very happy with DS1s result. All 5s and 6s which is as hoped.
Except for maths (excedel) he didn't get the 7 he needed and can't do A-level maths now so we are mulling over alternatives.
He got his only 7 in English lit (aqa) which was a surprise as we were expecting lower.
He managed a 5 in history when we expected a 3.

It was bedlam at DS2s school, I had to go back there and arranged to discuss once they'd officially shut the hall etc. They weren't prepared for the volumes that needed to discuss their options, so I guess DS2 wasn't alone in his situation. (Good enough results for A Levels generally but missed the grade on 1 subject he wanted to do).

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/08/24/gcse-results-day-private-schools-grammar-record-drop-grades/

Thanks for the new thread be good to keep up with everyone ad dc move forward!

Interestingly I dug out his report from last Oct and his KS4 predictions there which I think are based on the yr 6 SATs are fairly accurate. Eng Lit on that is a predicted 5.

It's his internal school marks that have been 7s and 8s so I'm actually wondering if it's a case of overly generous teacher grades giving a false impression? Bar art and history that he's got top grades in the rest are roughly where you would predict from his SATs.

When did you contact them? They may have gone home after lunchtime.

I'd suggest, if you can, contacting a general email address- there will very likely be some SLT members in tomorrow, who will hopefully be able to help, but individual teachers may not be picking up emails.

Or could you work out the email addresses for SLT or the exams officer?

We have weird English too. Both 7s, but DD was comfortably on for 8s and predicted nines. Leaving it as there's no need for her to have higher but she's pissed off. Music was 7 too when we might have expected higher - but she hasn't had a teacher for two of the three years so it was a scramble to get it done.

On the other hand she's done super well in the sciences and only just off an 8 in maths which is a real shock. Swings and roundabouts I guess. It doesn't affect A-Level choices and I hope it won't affect her confidence as she's actually really good at Eng Lit...

For anything to do with reviews, you need the exams office because they have to do all the processing.
I've picked up a few queries from my own class this afternoon but exams are focusing on the last of the A level priority reviews today (the deadline is today)

We have had no luck with contacting the school. DD emailed, and I have as well as she was given very little information on what happens next when she collected her results. She is less upset than when she came home but is feeling so in limbo at the moment. She could apply to college but doesn't want to commit to them if she can stay on and is happy with her choices at 6th Form but the paperwork says that after tomorrow you can not contact staff until the 4th September which is also when the college courses starts.

Same! DD predicted 9, got a 6. She thought the exam had gone fine and is usually v accurate about how she's done

DD has a fantastic set of results as expected, all apart from English Lit. Her teachers were shocked at her 6 (she's been getting 8s and 9s in mocks and got a 9 for English language) so had a look - paper 2 she scored 70 and paper 1 was only 34! They checked with her to make sure she hadn't missed out a question and she hadn't so they're asking for a review as it looks like maybe a question hasn't been included in the marks. She's only 1 mark off a 7 too, so it's got to be worth looking at again. Poor kid was so upset, even though everything else was amazing.

It's so stressful when these errors are made and from this thread it seems like English is particularly bad this year.