A-level Results Day

[Lady Gull]

I'm getting my AS results tomorrow. Not too nervous as there's always re-sits.

My son is getting his AS results tomorrow - I don't hold out much hope to be honest - its been a challenging year to say the least! He has the same attitude as you - oh I'll resit them!!! I just feel he will have wasted a year of his life - he has no idea what he wants to do

Still tomorrow we will at least find out the damage and hopefully it will be a bit of a wake up call for him if it's all gone horribly wrong.

I'm trying to not worry as there is nothing I can do - he has to sort this out himself I think

 

[Mr Smggles]

Getting my A Levels but also get a call from my flying school to be told whether I passed the interview I took today. My head feels as though it is gonna explode!

 

[StonehamPark]

Younger brother at Bhasvic getting AS results tomorrow.
I didn't bother with College/Uni and I'm so flipping glad!

 

[Bad Ash]

I did every single past paper last year for Maths (about 16 of them; 2 a year) and I can defs say they gradually got harder!

Out of interest did you start with the most recent papers and work backwards, vice versa, or do them more randomly?

 

[Husty]

Take Physics, Chemistry and Further maths and then tell me A Levels are easy.

 

[Uncle C]

Take Physics, Chemistry and Further maths and then tell me A Levels are easy.

Here you go then. As a scientist you will understand this.

 

[brightn'ove]

I guess you didn't do the English one then

Caught in two minds in that sentence

 

[coagulantwolf]

Out of interest did you start with the most recent papers and work backwards, vice versa, or do them more randomly?

Start with the oldest papers and worked my way forwards mainly. Obviously with practice initially I got better and they were probably around a similar level. I was getting 100% on a few papers without cheating at all. However then the last 4 or 5 papers gradually got worse, until the actual exam! Had a crazy 14 mark question which I had never seen anything close in any past papers.

 

[Wozza]

 

[coagulantwolf]

Here you go then. As a scientist you will understand this.

Actually without proper labelling of the axis I'd say it's pretty meaningless

I'm guessing the percentages are the change in the amount of people getting those grades?

 

[brightn'ove]

I did every single past paper last year for Maths (about 16 of them; 2 a year) and I can defs say they gradually got harder!

Same with chemistry, I did every single paper from 2000 - jan 2011 and they got harder and harder every time. As said, the papers are not easy, it is the profiteering exam boards looking to be the 'best' for getting the highest grades and manipulating the results using the 'UMS' system (you can get 100% in UMS but not actually get all of the questions correct).

It should be simple, the top 10% of marks should get As, etc etc. in some subjects you have a situation where over 50% of students get As.

It should be simple

 

[Philzo-93]

A-levels are by far the hardest examination you'll take in education - that's what all my teachers told me

I retook my AS year as I did really bad (ceee) then did so much better (abcd) and working towards an ABB! Good luck to everyone.

Oh and they're an absolute BITCH!

 

[Uncle C]

Actually without proper labelling of the axis I'd say it's pretty meaningless

I'm guessing the percentages are the change in the amount of people getting those grades?

Thats correct. Its not my graph, but shows a dramatic shift as the numbers getting the lower grades reduces and the numbers getting higher grades increases.

All this has taken place over just a 10 year time span. As its unlikely that evolution of the human brain has gone into sonic overdrive, whats your explanation?

 

[halbpro]

Here you go then. As a scientist you will understand this.

Students are getting brighter over time? Or possibly it includes some of the newer A-Levels, which are often seen as easier (much like Mickey Mouse degrees). For a fair comparison you'd need to break it down by subject, and also look at the number of people taking it. If less people are taking a subject then it could well be only brighter students are staying in, thus creating a percentage rise.

 

[brightn'ove]

Thats correct. Its not my graph, but shows a dramatic shift as the numbers getting the lower grades reduces and the numbers getting higher grades increases.

All this has taken place over just a 10 year time span. As its unlikely that evolution of the human brain has gone into sonic overdrive, whats your explanation?

It's all about the marking and the manipulation of the marks by the exam boards, the exams themselves are not easier.

 

[halbpro]

How can you get an A* in A-levels in those years?

That's a very good point, it didn't exist until 2008.

 

[brightn'ove]

How can you get an A* in A-levels in those years?

Didn't notice that, the A* has only been available for 3 years, this must either be a bullshit graph or a GCSE results graph, F and G are not grades at A level either.

 

[Norman Potting]

As a former 'A' level examiner I would say that their (sic) not. The exams IMO are pretty tough, and are aimed at assessing candidates across the whole ability spectrum.

However the A level boards (which are profit making entities) are in competition with each other, and schools are drawn to those boards which produce the highest proportion of good grades. Pressure is subtly put upon the markers, when a paper is borderline, to nudge them northwards.

Definitely a ROTFL Avatar!! In my day all we got was a postcard with the result on it, none of this drama, shrieking and appearing on breakfast TV (which hadn't even been invented) that we get these days, meh!

In fairness "in those days" (1977) was when you could be taking your "A" levels safe in the knowledge that a job was waiting for you secured from an interview the previous Autumn irrespective of results.

Good luck to all waiting (and parents thereof), hope you get what you need.

 

[Seagull27]

Take Physics, Chemistry and Further maths and then tell me A Levels are easy.

I did and they were

 

[Uncle C]

It's all about the marking and the manipulation of the marks by the exam boards, the exams themselves are not easier.

You have hit the nail on the head. Students that sat exams from any year will have found them difficult and stressfull. But, over the last 20 years or so there has been a pledge by Governments to filter more people into higher education rather than the dole queues. So the pass rates have been manipulated.

Exams aren't easier (the questions may indeed be harder) but its easier to get good grades. Anyone that thinks humans have become brighter over this period doesn't deserve a pass at 11 plus.