Y11 2023-24 thread 4

[Techno56]

New thread for GCSE survival 🙂

Hoping English went ok today!

Was fine here. DD has hit a wall of tiredness now though.

DS back, AQA Eng Language and he wasn't impressed with Q2 or Q5.

These are the same two questions DS discussed. He didn't like the Mary Seacole extract as he he didn't think they was enough about her work in it or something like that. From his description of Q5 I think your DD is right about accessibility, DS is good at this subject (his only 9 prediction) and he found that challenging.

Haven't heard back from DS. He was saying the rumours about b were that it was going to be social media or ai. I told him before not to rely on Internet predictions, snd he was reading some Times articles which are all about the elections, so hopefully he had some ideas about careers and doing good in society from that. I'm jot sure how he wouid have done in the extracts. I wonder if the kids who did history of medicine would have a bit of an advantage, but who knows?

Ran into DC coming home as I walked to tube, thank God they looked happy and said they were really pleased the comparison was autobiography, where they feel confident they know how to answer well. Very relieved now as it seems likely they'll get the grade they need for first choice 6th form.

Yes I have a year 8 and I'm anticipating the opposite problems I have this year. DS2 is a bit of a maths and science whiz so can just 'do' these without thinking too much, but he's mildly dyslexic and his handwriting is terrible. Because he is doing well at school they have kind of left him, so I've had to push for assessments etc. He is also not keen on English or any essay related subjects, or reading. I have a feeling that although he is the more academic of the two, because of that, he is going to have to work harder than he does now in the subjects he doesn't like, which I am going to have to spend a lot of time cajouling him into. It's like an uphill battle getting him to read a book now!

DS told me that they usually pick questions where there wouldn't be an advantage to someone with specialist knowledge - for this reason he thought the AI question rumours would probably be false. He did history of medicine but I'm not sure it would have helped. He said the question was about whether it's better to work for money and status or for social progression rather than about the health/medicine subject per se.

DS felt he did well (a relief). He does want to do English Lit A Level rather than language but his first choice sixth form require grade 6 language (and maths) from all students.

DS said it was lovely?!
q5 was really nice

DD wrote about how it's important to make positive contributions to society- for example donating or or helping out at food banks. She used another example of clapping for the NHS (reminding examiners that she's a covid affected kid!!) being an example of how nurses and doctors are appreciated for the work they do.

However, she was quite happy with herself for using the phrase "you can't kill bills with kindness" to move into her counter point.

She seems happy with this one, but it is one of her stronger subjects and I think that's what made her identify that the topic wasn't as generic as she expected - she had predicted something on social media, reality TV or using public transport.

The second part was about careers and job satisfaction but the first two extracts bits were I think about the health service. It probably wouldn't have helped that's true. DS was hoping fir AI as he did it for his speaking, so did a load of research!

That's a brilliant line!

Similar feedback to PPs here about AQA English Language. The extracts were accessible, and plenty to write about on the use of language in Adam Kay's "I saw things that burnt my retinas" description of the night shift.

The 'write an article' topic was trickier, mainly because the topic (gist = people should choose a career that helps people, rather than one concerned with money/status) didn't really lend itself to an article; DS said it was more suited to essay/speech or even a letter, than an article.

WJEC paper here. Extract was about some people swimming across the English Channel. Half way through daughter realised that one of the people they were talking about came to their guides meeting to give a talk in that very subject a few years ago!

Okay, sorry. I have only had a quick chat to DS and it revolved around Q5.

One thing he did make clear was that he doesn't want to work in medicine 😂

Fitbits are banned from exam rooms. I hope he's left it in his bag otherwise he could be disqualified

Young family member has just messaged me to say Edexcel paper was nice.

Couldn't remember the name of the texts, but sounds like it had a gender focus on how easy a man found it to become a doctor compared to a woman. He wrote an article about the importance of having goals and dreams.

My DS said he did terribly in English, he didn't write enough for q4 and his q5 was really bad. He's so down about it and already worrying about having to do English again in college. I've tried to say he might find it's not as bad as he thinks but he's adamant he's failed. I'm so sad for him feeling so bad about it. English lang was actually the one he was most positive about as he did well in the mock and has done so well with his tutor so I think it's made him feel awful.

He's now also worrying he didn't do well in maths either, even though he said it was OK.

Poor lad, I'm so sorry for him.

Ds texted to say the exam was good.

Oh Popfan. These poor kids. Remind him that you usually only have to get no more than half the marks to get a 4.

It's ok, it goes in his bag. But because his phone is also in there (both silent etc) it will still sync, so I can see how long he's been sat down for til he puts it back on again! Ultimate stalking 😬

Nothing from ds yet - EL could go either way for him.

He was very unhappy that his class just hadn’t been taught a topic covered by one of the geography 9 markers, all the other classes in the year had. Paper was otherwise ok. He really needs his 6 and is now very worried that this might hinder him ☹️

It’s one of those where I’m seriously considering contacting the school - not something I would usually do as teacher was off sick for 2 months and we were assured this wouldn’t have an impact… As a group their grades were conspicuously lower in the mocks than every other class including several straight 9 students (not ds though!) and this was before the teacher went off.

well I have had a text from dd after the dreaded Eng exam.
It was 'alright'
That is better than I could have hoped and gives me some hope that she might scrape a 4.

Really glad to hear that the article was about helping poor v. making money. Those are things that she is really familiar with and which get thrown round in discussions in our house all the time (dh and I work for a charity and have zero money - my brother is very wealthy and oldest ds wants to follow in his shoes, dd has helped us with charity work, and understands poverty etc so we often talk round issues like this)

Feeling much better now.

Cudafrog - I am so sorry to hear about your dc. It is crap, but the exam boards do have plans for this. They have ways of making a grade form past papers and averages and mocks etc, so please don't panic. Hoping they are on the mend.

I'm pleased to hear that your daughter thought it went okay today @steppemum No more English Language now anyway

Good to hear that most of our DC didn't think it was too awful.

different learning styles - I have 3 dc. dd is youngest. 3 very different styles.

All three radically different in approach. But dc 1 and dc 2 very much did their thing. I provided space, food and encouragement.
dc1 is a crammer, massive amounts of focussed work in the last week. Like me
he can take in and retain a lot of information and reproduce it in exams.
dc 2 finds it hard to revise and study generally, and has gone to a university degree which is on continuous assessment, so lots of short deadlines all through the year and this suits them really well.

dd struggles to work at home at all, and has needed hand holding and much more structure and input, and at the same time she doesn't want my help as it is 'nagging' and makes her not want to revise.

It has been much harder than with dc 1 and dc 2.