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

[dessiato]

As a teacher I would always do practice exams. First just parts of a practice paper, building to full on, timed practice. By the time my students sat the exam proper they knew exactly what to expect, and how to manage their time etc.

Could you try this?

 

[geminisnake]

What are Kalms?

Herbal calming tablets, you can get them in Holland and Barrett or chemists iirc. Bachs Rescue Remedy might help as well

 

[weltweit]

I was taught how to sit exams when I was at Polytechnic, I bit late, I could have done with it a good few years earlier.

Divide the time by the number of questions, number of marks if that is visible. Leave 10 minutes at the end.

Leave the first page of the answer sheet blank, begin answering the first question on the second page. When your time is up on one question advance to the next, the trick is to make sure you pick up all the easy marks from each question so you have to make a fist of each one but not overrun even if you have more to give.

When you have just your final 10 minutes left, return to page one and write index, question 1 page 2, question 2 page x etc

I don't know if the index idea is valid for gcses but for the exams I was taking it worked well. (I think)

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

As a teacher I would always do practice exams. First just parts of a practice paper, building to full on, timed practice. By the time my students sat the exam proper they knew exactly what to expect, and how to manage their time etc.

Could you try this?

I have started doing this. I did the chemistry one along with her today as advised by this thread.
interesting stuff. We will mark it tomorrow evening. The last paper I did with her, after marking it we had dinner, and after dinner I did 15 minutes of relaxed (if it can be relaxed) flash cards on the same subject.

All of this is fine. My only problem is that there are sooo many exams. So much information. With me doing it as well we can both comment on our experiences. I hope it in some way makes it feel more fun. As a bonus, I'm pretty much be a lot worse than she is which may give her a confidence boost.

I just remembered . . .she already did her Japanese language exams earlier this year and got a 9 without any panic whatsoever. Obviously she knows the subject a LOT better, but it does at least suggest to me that it's not just the exam situation and the time constraints, it's also about being comfortable and confident. Repeating tests might help. I hope we have enough time to turn it around.

. . . and yes, I am also trying to make it as stress free and casual/fun as possible, just focusing on learning. Even a wrong answer is a win, as we can find out why and fill that hole. Praise just for sitting the g'damn exam. It is a LOT of work. Poor girl.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Far worse is English literature, where they basically tell you the questions ahead of time and you memorise the answers, and the right quotes from the book because you don't get given a copy in the exam. It all has less than nothing to do with using the English language.

I think this might be why she got such a low literature mark. From what my daughter says, they paper they were given contained poems or works they had never seen before.
The English teacher is an absolute arse so I don't disbelieve this. Somehow she is head of English and head of year 11 so I can't go over her head (daughter does not want me to either).

 

[SpookyFrank]

I think this might be why she got such a low literature mark. From what my daughter says, they paper they were given contained poems or works they had never seen before.
The English teacher is an absolute arse so I don't disbelieve this. Somehow she is head of English and head of year 11 so I can't go over her head (daughter does not want me to either).

There is one 'blind' paper where you have to read something you don't know and then answer questions about it. The Shakespeare and 'Modern Literature' (invariably Of Mice and Men or An Inspector Calls) exams require prior knowledge of the text and you're expected to quote from it but you don't get given a copy of the text. Last school I was working at, the walls were plastered with Romeo and Juliet quotes because everyone had to memorise them. Bizarre.

 

[SpookyFrank]

ATOMIC SUPLEX You're clearly putting in the time and legwork on this and although there might not be an easy solution to the problem, generally the kids who have that level of care and support from parents do just fine in the end.

 

[maomao]

From what my daughter says, they paper they were given contained poems or works they had never seen before.

Was it the unseen poetry exam?

The Shakespeare and 'Modern Literature' (invariably Of Mice and Men or An Inspector Calls)

OMAM off the GCSE syllabus now as no yanks anymore.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Was it the unseen poetry exam?

I have since spoken to my daughter in more detail. It just seems that the teacher isn't teaching very well. I obviously can't 'really' comment on this, but I am willing to/ have to believe my daughter. I have said we can't rely on the teacher and just make sure we know the texts and the annotations inside and out regardless. Can't wait for the teacher to get around to teaching it all properly.

So no, not the unseen poetry section. . . she just did utterly terribly in the exam. Frustrating, because again, she has always been a model English student. . . right up until these last two sets of mocks.

 

[maomao]

I have since spoken to my daughter in more detail. It just seems that the teacher isn't teaching very well. I obviously can't 'really' comment on this, but I am willing to/ have to believe my daughter.

It's very believable. I know GCSE English classes that are being taken by random external cover teachers or being taught by teachers from other specialisms because there's a massive shortfall of teachers at the moment. I would just grab a couple of relevant workbooks (CGP are quite good but get the white workbooks as well, they have all the example essays in them) and work your way through them with her.

 

[SpookyFrank]

It's very believable. I know GCSE English classes that are being taken by random external cover teachers or being taught by teachers from other specialisms because there's a massive shortfall of teachers at the moment. I would just grab a couple of relevant workbooks (CGP are quite good but get the white workbooks as well, they have all the example essays in them) and work your way through them with her.

At my previous school half my year 10 science lessons were actually English literature because they made the kids do the exam a year early and then had them spend that entire year cramming for it, at the expense of all other subjects. So I had to to teach lessons about Romeo and Juliet, which I have never read, with no planning or resources.

And the people who come up with these fuckwit schemes are on 75 grand a year.

 

[maomao]

had to to teach lessons about Romeo and Juliet, which I have never read, with no planning or resources.

That's not fair. Kids deserve to be taught Shakespeare by someone who can explain all the dirty jokes.

In general it does seem to be all powerful leadership cults that are making some schools impossible to teach in. We all returned to school after half term and were told to bin all our planning (which I'd spent my break on) in favour of centrally planned power points that we're given at the last possible minute (my resources for today's period one class were uploaded at ten pm last night) and are riddled with mistakes. Which is why it's very believable that AS's daughter is being taught incoherently but I'd still hesitate to blame the actual teacher.

ATOMIC SUPLEX, I'm happy to help with feedback/marking on any timed essays you do (Eng lang or lit) as practice. Though I'm currently only teaching up to Y10, I do know the specs.

 

[SpookyFrank]

ATOMIC SUPLEX, I'm happy to help with feedback/marking on any timed essays you do (Eng lang or lit) as practice. Though I'm currently only teaching up to Y10, I do know the specs.

LIkewise but for science, or maths at a pinch.

 

[SpookyFrank]

We all returned to school after half term and were told to bin all our planning (which I'd spent my break on) in favour of centrally planned power points that we're given at the last possible minute.

Common practice these days. Everyone in the trust is expected to teach the same lessons at the same time, from often rushed and shoddy resources.

This is a nightmare for science technicians too as they often who have to prepare the same complex practical for 8 classes at once.

 

[maomao]

Common practice these days. Everyone in the trust is expected to teach the same lessons at the same time, from often rushed and shoddy resources.

This is a nightmare for science technicians too as they often who have to prepare the same complex practical for 8 classes at once.

We could do with a teacher moaning thread. None of this will help Suplex Junior.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

ATOMIC SUPLEX, I'm happy to help with feedback/marking on any timed essays you do (Eng lang or lit) as practice. Though I'm currently only teaching up to Y10, I do know the specs.

Thank you. It's one we talked about and were not sure how to approach marking ourselves. For english we were going to look at the marking paper (and what they want) before attempting to sit a past paper.

So I might take you up on this at some point. We have a lot to get through for now though and I would like to speak to the teacher (she was not available on the parents evening that we got all the mock results on - she is supposed to be giving me a ring, but I have no idea when).

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

LIkewise but for science, or maths at a pinch.

Also, thank you. I 'think' I have science under control, and it's something we can mark together. It's quite helpful just letting her mark herself and write notes, she can see what the examiners wanted, and how she might have gained an extra mark here and there.

 

[DaveCinzano]

That's not fair. Kids deserve to be taught Shakespeare by someone who can explain all the dirty jokes.

It was never the same after they shuttered Maidenhead teacher training college

 

[maomao]

It was never the same after they shuttered Maidenhead teacher training college

My Y8's have just sat an assessment on The Merchant of Venice that will be marked by someone else after I leave. I gave them the full Antonio and Bassanio are gay interpretation and explained every dirty joke in Act five. I'm hoping someone's going to have fun marking them.

 

[DaveCinzano]

My Y8's have just sat an assessment on The Merchant of Venice that will be marked by someone else after I leave. I gave them the full Antonio and Bassanio are gay interpretation and explained every dirty joke in Act five. I'm hoping someone's going to have fun marking them.

Verily

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

In another related question. . . . what happens if she doesn't get the grades she needed to do sixth form? We already had to submit our applications for the subjects she wanted. There are other subjects she can maybe take but she didn't apply for those.

 

[CNT36]

In another related question. . . . what happens if she doesn't get the grades she needed to do sixth form? We already had to submit our applications for the subjects she wanted. There are other subjects she can maybe take but she didn't apply for those.

There used to always be spaces. Anything undersubscribed will snap her up. There are also the sucking up and resit options.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

There used to always be spaces. Anything undersubscribed will snap her up. There are also the sucking up and resit options.

What is a sucking up option?

 

[Shippou-Sensei]

To a large extent all learning seems to finish early and the children are simply learning how to parrot the correct responses to get ticks on what they know will be in exams. This is really obvious in science. (we are doing test papers now) more than half of our study time isn't anything to do with science, it's about how to answer questions for marks. Working through problems logically and showing you can problem solve does not exist. It's remembering the correct descriptive word that will be marked on the paper.

It's really depressing.

I feel I'm seeing the knock on effect of this particularly in level 3.

 

[Shippou-Sensei]

Also plenty of colleges doing level 1 and 2 stuff.

L1 if you don't have four 3s L2 if your don't have four 4s.
Although some exceptions apply particularly if you have a portfolio if work.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Also plenty of colleges doing level 1 and 2 stuff.

L1 if you don't have four 3s L2 if your don't have four 4s.
Although some exceptions apply particularly if you have a portfolio if work.

Sorry I don't know what this means What is Level 1 and 2?
What are four threes and Four fours? Is that four three grades in something or four grade of grade four for a subject?

 

[8ball]

I have a mate who always knew all the stuff better than me but for some reason couldn't get it together for exams - I'd be getting the top marks (this was in the subjects I liked - not across the board) and his would be really bad and I couldn't figure out what had happened with his results and he couldn't either.

He did fine after some resits. I think he had a tutor for "exam strategy" or something similar to that.

Exams are weird. I used to quite like the drama of them back in school, but it wore thin later on.

 

[8ball]

Exams aren’t there to help students. They’re not there to help schools. They’re not there to develop kids or work out who needs more help or even to best discriminate those who are “smart” (whatever that means).

No. Exams are there to make students normalise the idea that in everything they do, they are observed, ranked and recorded. They’re there to make students normalise the idea that they exist in a scale of “good”, ie deserving, to “bad”, ie undeserving. They’re there to make students believe that if they “fail” in life, that’s their fault and they deserve it.

Once you understand all that, you realise that exams work perfectly.

Well, that's put me right off moving to China.

 

[Shippou-Sensei]

Sorry I don't know what this means What is Level 1 and 2?
What are four threes and Four fours? Is that four three grades in something or four grade of grade four for a subject?

Level 1 is a qualification that is equivalent to a gcse grade 1 to 3 (D to F in old money) level 2 is equivalent to a GCSE of 4 and above (C or better). Level 3 is A level equivalent. Level 4 first year of uni etc.

To do a level 2 qualification at a college they will normally ask you to have at least a 3 in four different subjects at GCSE (ir an appropriate level 1 qualification). To do a level 3 they want at least a 4 in four different subjects. Two of which should be English and Maths.

I do this diagram for my course handbook

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

I see. Thank you.
So if my daughter was changing her mind about her A level choices and wanted to do media studies instead would that be possible.
She has not submitted an application to do Media Studies (they wanted that by December).
I probably have to contact the school don't I?