Odd question I know English specific exceptional reader year 11:kindly knowing answers only please...

[StrangeBrewlook]

Dd is an exceptional reader.. She always has been since reading clicked.

This is very outing hence name change for this: age 15 she's read war and peace peace, balzac, Anna kareina, tess etc.

Her other subject grades are hitting 9 and yet for English she's 7.

I've looked at some point recent essays and she's got one point ao3... One ao2 and one ao1.

Leaving her 2 marks off an 8.

Yes of course I will speak to her teacher but I'm also wondering if i should contact anyone else within the school to alert them to this what I would say is exceptional reading..

Something with the gcse English is not clicking. Her vocabs and spelling is always spot on.

Unfortunately she hates it and doesn't want to pursue it at a level but what a waste!

What should I do.

My post wasn't actually about competence in English as it goes.

But , anyhoo, glass houses and all that.

Totally agree with others – this is about exam technique and the specifics that are needed to get maximum points – but PLEASE understand that a 7 is a fantastic grade!

I examine GCSE Lang and GCSE Lit.
Previous posters are correct that there are no grades until all of the papers are marked so "2 marks off an 8" is a red herring, as is her choice of reading material.
She needs to really understand the texts she is being examined on, the mark scheme and be able to get to grips with the nuance of the questions on the day.

Hi OP,

I think it would be fine to get your dd a tutor. I had an english tutor and I found her extra lessons really interesting. It got me up from a B to an A in the Scottish system.

My ds has a simlar problem becuase he is an avid reader but the dark topics in teh GCSE turn him right off. i'm teaching him myself so I can choose topics he likes. It's reigniting his love of literature, which is lovely.

I think it's pretty bad form to call out errors if you aren't prepared to say what they are

I agree with many others on here that being a voracious reader is not necessarily linked to success at GCSE English.

I read anything and everything as a child, always had my head in a book, and as a teen I read many classics as well as more adult books.

But English at school sucked all the pleasure out of reading. I hated the analysis, hated being told what to read and, quite frankly, hated class reading when we ploughed through endless chapters out loud at what felt like a page/hour. I came out with Bs at O-Level when everything else was an easy A and my parents still don't understand how a great reader didn't do better at English.

Teen DD is similar and reads a lot. Has just read a copy of Shogun that was in the spare room which, although not War and Peace, is still a beast of a book. English grades hover at around the '7' mark and it's her worst subject. She is really working hard on exam technique and marking schemes to get a better grade but will never consider English at A Level.

There has been some great advice on this thread. Encourage the reading but try to park the idea that there is any correlation between reading and GCSE English results.

Is it just her teacher?

Many moons ago, my English teacher always marked me B or B+ when my work was clearly A or A+. I have no idea why because my SATs/end of year/mock exams were always graded as As and both my English Lit and Lang GCSEs are As!

Look up hyperlexia. It's advanced reading skills in kids, both in speed and level of comprehension. It also frequently overlaps with autism or ADHD. If your DD displays any signs of neurodivergence (PDA for example) it might explain why her grades don't match the expected level of performance based on her reading skills.

I had/have hyperlexia and never realised what it was. I was reading an average of 1 paperback fiction book every 1.5 days and ran out of kids/YA stuff that interested me very quickly. Around the age of your daughter I was reading adult novels, readers digest, classics, horror, non-fiction, basically anything I could get my hands on (this was pre-internet days so online material wasn't possible).

You should strongly entertain the possibility of ND and seek support if needed. Emphatically, this does not mean the child will struggle or have a more difficult life than any NT peers. I was very successful academically and career-wise. I was able to form friendships and relationships. My diagnosis came by chance after a difficult start to motherhood coinciding with the pandemic. It was only looking back that I suddenly realised the signs of ND were there my entire life.

God this makes me sad about the teaching system we have and what we are testing / measuring children on.

Nothing will kill a love of reading more effectively than formal study of literature.

Let her do history. It's clearly where her heart is.

I think this comment sums it up OP.

Ignore those debating your use of the word "exceptional"

Get your daughter to practice her exam technique

Let her make her own decisions

Perhaps she doesn’t like having to analyse texts. She clearly reads for pleasure and that’s great. There’s also nothing wrong with not wanting to go further than that, and keeping books for fun rather than having the joy sucked out of reading by being forced to study and analyse the books.

if she has other subjects she enjoys and also does well in, let her follow that path for her education and leave her reading for pleasure. You seem fixated on her doing English Literature at A Level based on her liking to read books. Maybe it’s just a hobby for her.

Just to come back to that idea- I think reading as a young child absolutely makes a difference to all round academic potential. And trying to keep less able students reading at all is often a challenge : reading does definitley improve vocabulary and expression. It's at the very top end where it doesn't necessarily add much, if any, value. That said - once into A Level, I definitely notice the difference. The well read manage ideas about context, genre and literary patterns so much better - and have a better writing voice- in all three A levels I teach.

And I agree : reading for pleasure is great. Don't inadvertently turn it into a chore, OP, with a whole load of expected outcomes attached to it.

My DS who is gifted in Maths read War & Peace in Year 4 and spent the whole of Year 4, 5 and into 6 working his way through all the Russian, French and English classics.
His favourites are still Count of Montechristo, Anna Karenina and Wuthering Heights. I remember thinking at the time why is a 9 year old interested in reading Bleak House (it seemed very dull to me), but it never occurred to me that he was “gifted” in English. Maybe if he weren’t so exceptional at Maths he would have done English A Level. My DS is definitely interested in history and philosophy but not really into English, the way it is taught in schools. As a young child he did win some writing competitions but his story lines were always very basic and funny with very quirky vocabulary. After that he got into Maths competitions.

So I think intelligent children don’t always enjoy the way English is taught. It did benefit his drama though, oh and psychological and historical knowledge.

Voracious reading habits are a good thing on their own merit. I am very well read and was reading at a similar level to your DD at that age. I got B in Eng lit and Lang at GCSE and D in A level. Being good at writing essays and analysing texts is a different skill to reading.

My DD1 is doing A level Eng Lit, she got a perfect score for one of her essays on Tess last summer. She is still panicking about doing well in the finals and her extended essay next Summer. DD is not quite as well read as I was at her age but that is not holding her back. Her skill is in creative writing and writing in general. She has ADHD and Autism diagnoses, so just going to school is a challenge.

Your DD is clearly clever, curious and interested in the world, reading can bring subjects to life. It may be that there are other humanities or language studies that interest her more. Being a good reader does not confine you to English Literature.

This is interesting. You could be talking about me. I’m AuADHD. Diagnosed post pandemic.