Lose 20% marks for having a scribe

[Playingcatch]

Can anyone confirm if this is correct? In GCSE English if you have a scribe you lose 20% of your marks before you have even opened your paper?

I have never heard this. Ds1 has a, scribe and I'm sure this wasn't the case. You do need to be careful to check punctuation and spelling as the scribe is obliged to take what the student says - ie not use their own knowledge, but that's the only issue I recall, unless it's changed in the last 3 yrs.

I have looked into this and verified if you have a scribe in the English GCSE paper you lautomatically lose 20% and 5% for using technology. It is indeed a recent change you are right. It was brought in during the changes sept 2015. I am glad your dc missed this.

I don't think that's quite correct. The AQA website says that Spag (spelling and grammar) now accounts for 20% of the marks.

Students can access all of those 20% if and only if they dictate answers, indicate punctuation and spell out every word. This has to be confirmed by a cover sheet.

In practice I guess no one is going to spell out every word, but the dictation and punctuation seems fair enough. If a, student did that they would access two thirds of the Spag mark ie about 14% instead of 20% of the total.

It's only 20% of the writing questions.

All the questions on the English paper are writing tho 🙄

I just had this highlighted to me as a “thing” today. DS is only at primary but we’ve been recommended touch typing by the EP and OT. No one mentioned this until a secondary school senco dropped it into conversation by chance. If it’s a keyboard without spell check etc isn’t it discriminatory to remove marks for use of a disability accommodation?

The bullet point on the mark scheme that pupils with scribes can't practically access is the one that deals with spelling. The pupil needs to get practising dictating punctuation and paragraphing, and also reading back what has been written to check for sense. That's one bullet point of three on one assessment objective. On each paper that AO is worth 16 marks out of 80 for the paper. It means that if the pupil were to do as well as possible on sentence structure and punctuation, it equates to a possible loss of up to 5 marks per paper.

In terms of the other questions on the paper, they are only marked for reading content.

The bit of this document that is useful is on page 56. www.jcq.org.uk/Download/exams-office/access-arrangements-and-special-consideration/regulations-and-guidance/access-arrangements-and-reasonable-adjustments-booklet

you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/make-gcse-english-exam-fair-for-students-with-dyslexia

This is the petition to try and stop discrimation against children with dyslexia. Please sign.

This also punishes children with dcd and hypermobility though too. My son is only in primary but even now it looks like his future will be technology and/or a scribe due to multiple Sen.
This seems to be opposite of the sats for ks1 though where they’ve removed handwriting aspect for Sen children in getting greater depth.

DD can use her laptop (normal way of working) - handwriting is impossible so we switched to a laptop at aged 9. Who cares if you can write neatly between the lines? And this isn't needed for GCSEs
She gets 20% extra time (dyslexia)

I am a parent of a dyslexic (1% blended phonics percentile) and I think it is absolutely fair that in English they are marking the candidate's ability to put together a coherent analysis of the text that is both spelt correctly and is grammatically correct. There are therefore penalties for spag

She then has choices

• keep spell check on and def lose spag points
• turn spellcheck off and use basic words so lose some spag points for spelling but keep the potential points for grammar and punctuation

-turn spell check off and use complex vocabulary that may not be spelt correctly but demonstrates a broad range of language that will hopefully get enough points to offset the spag

• use a scribe and either lose all spag points or spell out words and dictate the punctuation. BUT this isn't for the entire exam. You know when the spag points are going to be counted (spag isnt across the entire paper).

It's a strategic choice and one I would rather my daughter didn't have to make - but she had to because she's dyslexic

My DD is never going to be good at high-jump either given that she's 5 foot tall. Is that unfair? Should we lower the bar? MFLs are also impossible for her to master so should we say that in a French written exam we ignore the spelling?

For what it's worth she went for spell check off and broad vocabulary for her English GCSEs

If she was 5 foot she wouldn’t be focusing on the high jump. We are not equal and reasonable adjustments should be made or it’s discrimination. One size does not fit all.

Dd is hypermobile. She used a laptop for her exams and got a Grade 9 for Lang & 8 for Lit.

Ds’s school wanted him to use a scribe but although he struggles with organisation of thought his spelling and punctuation are immaculate so I’ve pushed for a laptop for him too.