English GCSE struggle

[Wafflesandcrepes]

Hi - DD, who used to excel at English, got another 5 in English Lit today - one month before the mocks. I’m at a loss. This is a child who used to love reading and has now been put off English completely. She says her hand hurts and she can’t write that much. But she doesn’t seem to have that problem in history for example.

Anyone else in the same boat?

Thank you.

What feedback have you been given last year and this year so far. There must have been progress reports and parents evenings to talk through how she is doing.

Is she getting feedback on what she needs to include to get further marks? Ie spelling and punctuation, structure of her essay, making she her introduction includes her point and then summarising at the end.

Is it exam technique/understanding what they need to write for high marks?

If it helps, my DD got a 6 in English Lit mocks and then a 9 in the real thing - the improvement was solely down to focusing on how to format "model" answers.

Although, unless she wants to study English at A Level (which I guess is unlikely) a 5 (likely to improve) is a perfectly respectable grade.

(To note, I think English Lit GCSE puts off a lot of people)

She also got a 5 at the end of last year. School reassured us that they’d be focusing on it this year. I see no progress. DD is confused on structure still - nobody seems to understand why. And she’s not writing enough. Teacher says it’s all in her head but seems physically unable to write to the extent that is required. I’ve lost all trust in the school so not sure how much of this I believe or not.

Congratulations to your daughter on her 9 @redskydarknight. My DD can’t wait to drop English at the end of the year. She wants to do humanities at uni though and I worry a lower grade might affect her chances to get into her chosen uni.

I don't think most universities care much about GCSE results for humanities degrees (as long as you have sufficient number of them and English and maths passes).

(When I say most, I'm thinking that the likes of Oxford and Cambridge might, but most won't).

It’s interesting you say she is told she is not writing enough - and yet her hands are hurting.

IME candidates often think they have done well bc they have written lots - but it is not relevant to the question. Better to write less but make good points supported by textual evidence. But if teachers say she’s not writing enough then it’s not that, by the sounds.

Have you had past papers back and seen where she has dropped marks? Could she do a past paper and check it against the mark scheme (maybe with your help) to see where she is going wrong? Or maybe her teacher would mark it (I would).

Agree tho a 5 is a fine mark, nothing wrong with that. Certainly if she can push to a 6 by May that will be fine for just about any uni (I agree some do ask for a6). What grades is she getting in other subjects? What board fit Eng lit and which texts?

English language is the one that matters the most. English lit only matters if you want to continue it. Just focus on other subjects. No point stressing her out over something she isn't interested in.

I’m on a GCSE thread on Reddit and students that got 9’s highly recommended Mr Salles teaches English.

he has a channel on You Tube and also has published books with model answers.

maybe she can have a look at those if the school isn’t helping.

English lit has nothing to do with liking reading.

You need to learn the play/books/poetry selection you have been given and be able to analyse it.

Higher grades come from more complex analysis not writing more.

Compared to English language it's easy to game - there are only a few common essay topics for each book/play and you need to memorise quotes that help you write those essays.

I'd ask school if she could try (or re-try) a paper at home, but type it, and get it marked.
Do it under exam conditions - ie timed, and no phone. See if it's a hand thing, or an exam technique thing.

English lit these days is a tedious memory test. I have been teaching it for 25 years and it has become frustrating for teachers as we just have to teach to the test as there is so much content. English is not usually given enough time to complete both GCSEs

Has she tried a different pen? I give my students more inky pens (and many of them find they get on well with fountain pens)

This was my DD last year. She managed to get a 6 in the end but she’d be put off the subject so much. She hated her teacher and she didn’t revise for it until the day before. She never finished a paper. She had 8/9 in everything else. I wouldn’t worry about it. Some subjects don’t gel with children and I think it’s best to focus on their strengths.

In the Private school where I worked several kids were allowed to use a laptop in exams for exactly this reason. I didn’t know how they wangled it.

Can you afford a few sessions with a tutor? If it is exam technique more than knowledge/ability that might sort it?

I have said this before, Ds went from a 4 in November mocks to an 8 for Lit in the actual GCSEs.

What changed? We bought Mr Salles books for Lit specifically the books he was studying. He learned the books/play so he could literally walk through, if they asked about masculinity in Romeo and Juliet, Ds could mentally walk through the book to find examples. These books and the youtube channel contain different examples of grade answers including grade 9s. The books are great but it depends how much time she has to dedicate to lit. Ds hated lit but was basically 8s/9s across the board for everything except English lit and lang so we could concentrate on those at home and he had a really good attitude to working at it. I helped a lot with guidance from his amazing year 11 teacher. Ds was a grade 9 in History so we knew he could format a structured argument.

He knew what he was going to write before he went into the exam for the poems, again all learned from Mr Salles youtube about which quotes to use and why. Opening, ending, structure, form, language. Ds had prepared openers at a level 6. He also practised reading new poems and applying the same guide. The best thing to understand for your DD is that everything she is reading is fiction, deliberately crafted, specifically chosen words to make the audience feel a certain way. She needs to reference that.

For yourself, I am assuming the exam board is AQA, look at a past paper and the corresponding mark scheme, all available online. They have to hit Assessment Objectives (AOs) listed in the mark scheme and your DD will know about these because they should have done them to death in school. Then it is about levels, the top being level 6. The mark scheme literally lists out a guide telling you what they are looking for. Look into that so you can assist your DD.

Absolutely!!
so many students writing so hard you can feel it through the page - pens should glide across.
the lit2 exam is the longest gcse though at 2 1/4 hours, and does require some stamina from
students who aren’t used to writing for more than 15-20 minutes. Like any muscle!
if this is genuine and not an expression of masked perfectionism, then some hand warm ups and exercise; squeezing a stress ball type
stuff as well as building writing stamina

On the pen thing - just don't get her onto gel pens. They can't be used in the actual GCSEs

Bookmarking this thread for tips as my DD is the same. Complains that her hand hurts and her teacher says she doesn't write enough for English. She's in year 10 but it's been an issue for a while now. Don't know what level she's at currently but at the end of year 9 she was working quite a bit below average against the cohort.
Her brother is in year 11 and predicted an 8 in Eng Lit. He likes the content and set texts and he loves reading which his teacher said was a big positive and he can tell when kids are readers. DD on the other hand doesn't like fiction, so she's not that into analysing these set texts and finds it a chore.

My DD with dyspraxia uses Uniball Air pens. They seem to flow really nicely.

Thank you for all your suggestions. DD has tried a range of pens. Her fountain pen is her favourite. She did a timed exam at home this morning and is actually in pen from the wrist to the elbow. We’re taking her to see the GP next week. I’m really worried as I know how long a tendonitis can take to heal….

“In pain” not “in pen” obviously!

Hi OP,
Taking DD to the GP is a good start. If she has tendonitis or some other issue, you can approach the school/SEN department about alternatives like using a laptop to type her longer answers or, if her issue is too severe for that, having a scribe to write her answers as she dictates them. In order to use any of these options in an exam, she'll need to have used them frequently in school so that they become her 'normal way of working'. The SEN department should be able to navigate the process to make this happen. You might need to be VERY proactive. I didn't see if she's yr10 or yr11 - if yr11, you'll really need to get your skates on.
Also, it might be worth a few tutoring sessions. We used Spires when DD was in yr11 and it brought up her mark very effectively. At a minimum it's guided revision so should be effective. As others have said, it's mainly what you write not how much - you do need to answer the question directly and concisely

Do you have a source for this? I've not heard before. Thanks.

@Zucchero it's in the JCQ information for candidates

www.jcq.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/IFC-Written_Examinations_2023_FINAL.pdf