Daughter melts down in exam conditions GCSE exam revision advice / suggestions?

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

My daughter is a good kid and pretty bright across the board. All the teachers seem to agree that she is a model student in terms of behaviour, diligence and work in school.
Her history teacher uses her work book as an example of how other students should be working and generally where course work still exists I am told it is of excellent quality.

However when it comes to the mock exams she has performed terribly in every subject except art. I do quite a lot of revision with her at home especially in history and science, where she really knows her stuff well . . . but she just crumbles in exams.
Externally I don't see her being actually nervous about taking the mocks, but something is not working, (she seems to be leaving huge blank spaces or just writing bursts of gobbledegook for instance).

I have tried to address this each time after every mock but the results have not changed. I know there is no magical solution, but does anyone have any experience or advice in this area?

What happened to coursework in schools?

 

[emanymton]

If you are not already doing it, can you get sample papers/questions to practice under exam conditions? It could be she is struggling to put what she knows into practice, and just not using her time well.

 

[Pickman's model]

The two issues here are revision and exam technique. With revision,there is no point imo doing any the night before, you either know it or you don't and you should focus on relaxing then.
I forget how long a gcse exam is, two hours most likely. And in that time you'll have to answer a certain number of questions, so time is of the essence. Allow a fee minutes for reading the instructions and in the case of essay subjects making an essay plan. An essay plan written in the exam paper will show thought and awareness to the examiners. She will have to work within the time per question, but should remember everything she can get down will help, put it in note or bullet point form if necessary. But essays are about arguing, making a case. In the brief intro establish a controversy - was el8zabeth I a shit monarch, was macbeth not the villain he's made out to be etc, doesn't have to be mad, just make the essay interesting and not a regurgitation of facts and other people's arguments. In the body make three or four points, three or four paragraphs, plus conclusion where you say something like the evidence adduced above supports x.
But she has to practice doing these essays to time, and her hand will hurt after writing so much. Practice just writing anything will stand her in good stead.
If she has exam nerves, she should go to the loo and use the opportunity to regain her calm, just a bit of deep breathing works wonders.
When I did gcses we could take marked texts into the English exam. See if she can, and if so load them up with useful info.

 

[Pickman's model]

My daughter is a good kid and pretty bright across the board. All the teachers seem to agree that she is a model student in terms of behaviour, diligence and work in school.
Her history teacher uses her work book as an example of how other students should be working and generally where course work still exists I am told it is of excellent quality.

However when it comes to the mock exams she has performed terribly in every subject except art. I do quite a lot of revision with her at home especially in history and science, where she really knows her stuff well . . . but she just crumbles in exams.
Externally I don't see her being actually nervous about taking the mocks, but something is not working, (she seems to be leaving huge blank spaces or just writing bursts of gobbledegook for instance).

I have tried to address this each time after every mock but the results have not changed. I know there is no magical solution, but does anyone have any experience or advice in this area?

What happened to coursework in schools?

Have you tried doing an exam with her, where you sit at the same table and do the same paper (separately) and compare experiences?

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

If you are not already doing it, can you get sample papers/questions to practice under exam conditions? It could be she is struggling to put what she knows into practice, and just not using her time well.

Yes we have started doing this. I am trying to set them with as little pressure as possible apart from the time constraints, so that they don't seem scary.
It's a lot of work though, each one is about 1.30 to two hours. . . and there are a lot of them.

Have you tried doing an exam with her, where you sit at the same table and do the same paper (separately) and compare experiences?

This is a great idea. Thank you. We have been studying Science and History together quite a lot so I should know a large chunk of it. I will almost certainly be much much worse.
The collective experience might make it more fun for her too. I am experiencing some guilt and anxiety myself, joining in might even alleviate this. "we are all in this together".

 

[Pickman's model]

Yes we have started doing this. I am trying to set them with as little pressure as possible apart from the time constraints, so that they don't seem scary.
It's a lot of work though, each one is about 1.30 to two hours. . . and there are a lot of them.

This is a great idea. Thank you. We have been studying Science and History together quite a lot so I should know a large chunk of it. I will almost certainly be much much worse.
The collective experience might make it more fun for her too. I am experiencing some guilt and anxiety myself, joining in might even alleviate this. "we are all in this together".

If you look at the old questions in history a pattern will develop where the same themes come up, and she'll only need to really know four of them in English, her English teacher ought to be able to give her pointers on this, same with history.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

If you look at the old questions in history a pattern will develop where the same themes come up, and she'll only need to really know four of them in English, her English teacher ought to be able to give her pointers on this, same with history.

Her english teacher is an arse from what I have experienced of her and what my daughter says about her. I suspect she is really confusing the kids and not preparing them properly for the mocks. I can't go further up the pole at school because she is the head of year. She wasn't at the last parents evening so I have not been able to talk to her about the last mock result (which was especially terrible). This is really upsetting because english/ creative writing/ literature was my daughters strongest subject. I feel really lost as to how I can help when it comes to english revision.

 

[two sheds]

In the past I've suggested people think about beta blockers if they freeze up in driving tests and I've seen that they can help by keeping the stress at arm's length. Not sure whether they're overall a good thing though.

 

[Pickman's model]

Oh and a good thing in history is to know a bit of what people used to say. If there's a q about the British empire, she could say here's a quote from Churchill then say but obvs he'd say that, he was on top of the imperialist heap.
Attacking the question is always good too, saying something like this restricts djiscussion by ignoring x, y and z, and the real point about this subject is a, b, c. The thing as I say is you should do well if you show thought, originality, entertainment value - not being the same as all the other papers the examiners read, and legibility. Think of the examiners. Think of the grading structure. Write something where your daughter's views shine through, where she picks a few facts to support her case - what the examiners are interested in is the use she puts her knowledge to

 

[chilango]

A few thoughts:

Practice looking at exam questions to figure out what it is they want in the answer.

Strategic answering of easiest/most valuable questions first rather than working through the paper from beginning to end.

Similarly, read through the entire paper (quickly) before starting to answer. Get a feel for the scope of the paper.

Brief, discreet breathing/mindfulness exercises to use when actually sat in the hall.

 

[Pickman's model]

Her english teacher is an arse from what I have experienced of her and what my daughter says about her. I suspect she is really confusing the kids and not preparing them properly for the mocks. I can't go further up the pole at school because she is the head of year. She wasn't at the last parents evening so I have not been able to talk to her about the last mock result (which was especially terrible). This is really upsetting because english/ creative writing/ literature was my daughters strongest subject. I feel really lost as to how I can help when it comes to english revision.

Look at the operative words in the essay titles in the papers eg discuss, to what extent, do you agree, each of these things will affect how you answer the question, chat to your daughter about these, highlight them, see how they make you approach the questions. It helps to read, to really read, the question. You say the English teacher is head of year: but who is head of English?

 

[Pickman's model]

A few thoughts:

Practice looking at exam questions to figure out what it is they want in the answer.

Strategic answering of easiest/most valuable questions first rather than working through the paper from beginning to end.

Similarly, read through the entire paper (quickly) before starting to answer. Get a feel for the scope of the paper.

Brief, discreet breathing/mindfulness exercises to use when actually sat in the hall.

Always take mints or similar in

 

[Mattym]

What exam boards is she doing the subjects in/on?

I use a countdown clock in my lessons to prepare pupils for exams and intentionally award less time than they are allowed in the exams, so that pupils become used to constraints in a non-pressurised setting, with the hope that they will find it easier on the day. eg. Yesterday, we were practising for the AQA GCSE MFL foundation written paper. Pupils write a 40 word and a 90 word piece (among other things), so I get them to produce a hybrid of the 2 (a 70 word piece) and they have 5 mins to do it. We've discussed the important phrases/ grammar etc in advance, so they can't write gobbledygook.

 

[Pickman's model]

Yes we have started doing this. I am trying to set them with as little pressure as possible apart from the time constraints, so that they don't seem scary.
It's a lot of work though, each one is about 1.30 to two hours. . . and there are a lot of them.

This is a great idea. Thank you. We have been studying Science and History together quite a lot so I should know a large chunk of it. I will almost certainly be much much worse.
The collective experience might make it more fun for her too. I am experiencing some guilt and anxiety myself, joining in might even alleviate this. "we are all in this together".

The other thing is it doesn't really matter how she does. Yeh it's great if she gets all top grades. But it's far from the end of the world if things don't go to plan, if possible she should approach the exams in a spirit of curiosity rather than abject terror. If she can see them as just a glorified test and not believe the hype about their supreme importance it'll likely help. When I took my gcses, I was in first year to take them so thought they'd be largely easy and didn't revise. This worked in everything except music where confusion over coursework weighting let me down. Speaking of coursework weighting, how much actually rests on the exams in history and English?

 

[chilango]

More controversially, subtly convey the message that, so as she can move on to whatever it is she wants to do next, GCSEs aren't actually all that important. Certainly not as important as the atmosphere in schools would suggest. In a few short years time noone will care what her GCSEs (Maths/English an occasional exception) were.

I often get stressed pupils to try and guess what GCSEs I did (and A-levels and Undergrad for that matter). It kinda proves my point.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

More controversially, subtly convey the message that, so as she can move on to whatever it is she wants to do next, GCSEs aren't actually all that important. Certainly not as important as the atmosphere in schools would suggest. In a few short years time noone will care what her GCSEs (Maths/English an occasional exception) were.

The other thing is it doesn't really matter how she does. Yeh it's great if she gets all top grades. But it's far from the end of the world if things don't go to plan, if possible she should approach the exams in a spirit of curiosity rather than abject terror.

It's a tricky one, as you need to pass with certain grades to go into sixth form and then on to college. I think she needs a six for most subjects to do what she has been planning after school. She was easily on track for this but the exams are now placing her waaaay below.


GCSEs get you into sixth form and then to college, I also think (correct me if I am wrong) they are more important to get job placements these days, especially when they are kept on record. In general there are less opportunities for kids in general these days, I would have been a bit screwed if I had not followed my college / uni path, something I could not have been able to do if I was kid in today's Britain.

 

[Pickman's model]

It's a tricky one, as you need to pass with certain grades to go into sixth form and then on to college. I think she needs a six for most subjects to do what she has been planning after school. She was easily on track for this but the exams are now placing her waaaay below.



GCSEs get you into sixth form and then to college, I also think (correct me if I am wrong) they are more important to get job placements these days, especially when they are kept on record. In general there are less opportunities for kids in general these days, I would have been a bit screwed if I had not followed my college / uni path, something I could not have been able to do if I was kid in today's Britain.

I don't know what your daughter wants to do. And it's possible it'll change before she leaves school. When I was her age I thought I wanted to study chemistry at uni, but also liked history so did chemistry, history and maths a levels. I looked through the auld ucca handbook and saw those would get me on a very wide range of courses, many of which I'd not thought about. Maybe your daughter might like to do a science a level plus eg English and history (which is from what you say where her interests lie) which would be useful for both breadth of potential degrees and for understanding science stuff after she leaves school? Also and this is utterly unrelated to the thread topic, if she can get an eu passport she'd find uni in the EU far cheaper than here, about a grand a year fees. I work in he but couldn't in all honesty recommend someone saddling themselves in debt for a uk degree

 

[Sasaferrato]

More controversially, subtly convey the message that, so as she can move on to whatever it is she wants to do next, GCSEs aren't actually all that important. Certainly not as important as the atmosphere in schools would suggest. In a few short years time noone will care what her GCSEs (Maths/English an occasional exception) were.

I often get stressed pupils to try and guess what GCSEs I did (and A-levels and Undergrad for that matter). It kinda proves my point.

I gather that GCSEs are important when it comes to places at university.

 

[Pickman's model]

I gather that GCSEs are important when it comes to places at university.

You have to have an auld grade c or above in English and maths. That's basically it.

 

[chilango]

I gather that GCSEs are important when it comes to places at university.

Not especially.

Perhaps for certain subjects at certain Universities, but as a general rule of thumb not really.

As ATOMIC SUPLEX notes above, she'll use them to take whatever the next step is, and thus they'll have a degree of importance for this brief window of time and choices.

Beyond that? (Almost) No one will care. That perspective is really important when kids are bombarded with messages about how "life changing" getting a 5 rather than a 6 or whatever is.

Cynical truth is that GCSE results are more crucial to schools and their league table ranking than they are to the poor pupils sitting them.

 

[StoneRoad]

My "O" levels were a loooong time ago, but I recall having a similar problem all the way in my academic endeavours, in that I was good at coursework and pretty crap in exams. As in I knew the subject matter, but had problems with producing details in my answers that the examiners were after.

So, assuming that the subject knowledge is there ... and it is improvements to exam technique your daughter needs.

Practice is a key point. So, study past papers, initially without the time limit and with source material - looking for common and frequent themes.
If you can get "marking scheme" details that can help planning how to craft your answer ...

I found it very important to read the whole of the questions on the paper, looking to see exactly what was being asked and then spending a few minutes more planning my answers - noting main points to be discussed in 'essay' questions, for example, as a short "draft" section. Make sure you are actually answering the real question !

Sometimes I would go for the high value questions I could definitely answer first / quickly and then devote more time to the ones for which I needed to recall the details or do longer calculations.
Also, plan to allow for a few minutes at the end to re-read what you have done - checking spelling and any calculations, for example.
Oh, and "show your working" in calculations - as that may have marks allocated, not just getting it right.

 

[CNT36]

My daughter is a good kid and pretty bright across the board. All the teachers seem to agree that she is a model student in terms of behaviour, diligence and work in school.
Her history teacher uses her work book as an example of how other students should be working and generally where course work still exists I am told it is of excellent quality.

However when it comes to the mock exams she has performed terribly in every subject except art. I do quite a lot of revision with her at home especially in history and science, where she really knows her stuff well . . . but she just crumbles in exams.
Externally I don't see her being actually nervous about taking the mocks, but something is not working, (she seems to be leaving huge blank spaces or just writing bursts of gobbledegook for instance).

I have tried to address this each time after every mock but the results have not changed. I know there is no magical solution, but does anyone have any experience or advice in this area?

What happened to coursework in schools?

Sounds from the thread you're doing a lot and with the advice given you'll do even better. I'd suggest blowing it all off once in a while getting a Doctor Who box set on or dragging her out for a run. Get her out of the house or have a mate around. She obviously knows her shit let her have space to relax, take the edge off a bit and face it all in a better frame of mind.

 

[Pickman's model]

Sounds from the thread you're doing a lot and with the advice given you'll do even better. I'd suggest blowing it all off once in a while getting a Doctor Who box set on or dragging her out for a run. Get her out of the house or have a mate around. She obviously knows her shit let her have space to relax, take the edge off a bit and face it all in a better frame of mind.

Very good advice

 

[clicker]

She has probably already discovered the Mr Bruff you tube videos? He does amazing 'how to' complete English lit and lang gcse papers. Each question is slowly gone through and all bases covered.

He updates every year and even puts up videos the day before the actual exam....no idea how he knows what is likely to be set the following day, but he is uncannily spot on.

 

[Red Cat]

My daughter is a good kid and pretty bright across the board. All the teachers seem to agree that she is a model student in terms of behaviour, diligence and work in school.
Her history teacher uses her work book as an example of how other students should be working and generally where course work still exists I am told it is of excellent quality.

However when it comes to the mock exams she has performed terribly in every subject except art. I do quite a lot of revision with her at home especially in history and science, where she really knows her stuff well . . . but she just crumbles in exams.
Externally I don't see her being actually nervous about taking the mocks, but something is not working, (she seems to be leaving huge blank spaces or just writing bursts of gobbledegook for instance).

I have tried to address this each time after every mock but the results have not changed. I know there is no magical solution, but does anyone have any experience or advice in this area?

What happened to coursework in schools?

What does she think the issue is?

She sounds quite anxious and perfectionist to me.

 

[muscovyduck]

Not the solution to the current situation but I'd advise looking for a BTEC course or similar for FE. That's how I noped out of exams after GCSEs and still ended up very highly educated. In a lot of subject areas depending on the uni and course BTEC students are at a massive advantage above students who do A-Levels.

I'd also echo what other posters are getting at with the pressure on her etc. If she's a star pupil it might be the school's not only piling it on with the grades, but steering her down further education and career paths she's not interested in for their own ends (eg an easier application for Oxbridge or something). This will be confusing her when she's trying to manage her time and energy with the GCSE exams

 

[chilango]

...and, ime, it's really important for you ATOMIC SUPLEX to model a positive, relaxed, attitude towards the GCSEs. Keep your interventions and support low-key (yet practical, theres good advice above). Perceived parental pressure and expectations can have a massive impact on how young people feel approaching exams etc. If - for example - a parent is afraid that "poor exam results" will prevent their child pursuing "successful" career path then that anxiety may well be picked up in and adopted.

 

[Elpenor]

I did my GCSEs in 1998 so a very long time ago but perhaps more recently than most of the thread! I found the essay subjects I did (English, History, Classical civilisation ) straightforward at this level and got As or A*. I didn’t do as well at other subjects and wasn’t a great reviser but did feel I was good at writing essays - less so at A level when there was a need to be more analytical and less narrative

I don’t remember if they were open book for English but either way for a play you knew approx 8-10 key quotes which you could then incorporate into your answer. I recall there being a choice of essay questions, so I picked the ones which suited my strengths in the topic and the quotes I could apply best.

For history there were perhaps fewer quotes but this was more a case of applying theories / events to support an argument. I can’t even remember what I studied at gcse for history.

Is perhaps the issue that she is good at coursework as she can take a measured approach and take her time? Whereas in exams you need to be working fast. But you still need to plan.

I recall my essay exams being 4x essays in 3 hrs: so basically 5 mins planning, 40 mins writing. Perhaps that’s A level actually but either way, the same principle applies. You have to be ruthless with timings, there’s no point writing an A* answer for 1 essay but leaving so little time left you can only do D answers for the other questions (sorry don’t understand the numeric system).

In practice this means potentially writing shorter essays and not going into as much detail as you can with coursework, so you can fit in an introduction, argument and conclusion. While also not missing out your four of five key points.

Practice must have made perfect but I should say my school was an exam hothouse and it showed in the results (top 10 state school in country, although not thanks to me as I dragged down the average!)

 

[Red Cat]

...and, ime, it's really important for you ATOMIC SUPLEX to model a positive, relaxed, attitude towards the GCSEs. Keep your interventions and support low-key (yet practical, theres good advice above). Perceived parental pressure and expectations can have a massive impact on how young people feel approaching exams etc. If - for example - a parent is afraid that "poor exam results" will prevent their child pursuing "successful" career path then that anxiety may well be picked up in and adopted.

Perceived being crucial here, perception sometimes being clear-sighted and accurate, at other times might be quite distorted. Sometimes young people project their own anxiety onto others, and experience their parents as having high expectations when they don't.

 

[SpookyFrank]

My daughter is a good kid and pretty bright across the board. All the teachers seem to agree that she is a model student in terms of behaviour, diligence and work in school.
Her history teacher uses her work book as an example of how other students should be working and generally where course work still exists I am told it is of excellent quality.

However when it comes to the mock exams she has performed terribly in every subject except art. I do quite a lot of revision with her at home especially in history and science, where she really knows her stuff well . . . but she just crumbles in exams.
Externally I don't see her being actually nervous about taking the mocks, but something is not working, (she seems to be leaving huge blank spaces or just writing bursts of gobbledegook for instance).

I have tried to address this each time after every mock but the results have not changed. I know there is no magical solution, but does anyone have any experience or advice in this area?

What happened to coursework in schools?

The school should offer alternative arrangements. Last year we had some kids who had to be in a room by themselves, with just a member of staff to invigilate.