exam boundary

[Cloud]

Applies to people in UK who are doing Edexcel Double science

 

Sorry to make a topic on this. I'm just confused at how much I need to achieve the grade I want.

 

I would like a Grade A. So far from the coursework and modules, I have achieved about 43% (out of 50).

 

I went to the website to see the grade boundaries. Useless website.

It says I need 80/100 (UMS) for A grade and 90/100 for A*.

 

I just find this riduculous because In order for someone to get an A* not only do they have to score 45/50 for the modules/coursework but also 90% in the final exam (324/360 marks !!!).

 

What the f*** (I'm really mad)

 

I can't believe after all this hard work of getting the highest possible mark in the modules and coursework - I have to score higher than I possibly could to break the A grade boundary LET ALONE - the A* (which is to put it as simply as . . .ITS FRIGGING IMPOSSIBLE.

 

Could I be reading it wrong or is this one of those tough luck things in life which separate the super-brains from us substandard humans.

Could somebody just comment???

[drochaid]

You know, the point of grading is that those who get a high grade are REALLY REALLY GOOD at the subject. Why shouldn't it be high? The core problem these days is exam boards dumbing down questions and altering the baseline scores based on an average where people who, frankly, didn't bother their arse to work, suddenly get decent grades.

 

Do the work, get the grades, shut up.

[Cloud]

Do the work' date=' get the grades, shut up.[/quote']

 

Bit harsh - but ok

[Severian]

What proportion of the final mark is the coursework?

 

If there are 50 marks from the coursework and 360 from the exam (as your post seems to indicate) then you need 369 marks for A* and 328 for A. since you got 43 for the course work, you would now need 326/360 (91%) for an A* or 285/360 (80%) for an A in the exam.

 

If your get half your marks from the coursework and half from the exam then in the exam you need 94% or 74% for an A* or A repsectively.

 

Either seems doable, so why are you complaining?

[Cloud]

in the exam you need 94% or 74% for an A* or A repsectively. Either seems doable, so why are you complaining?

 

94% - it's that much? I personally think this is far too high (since in other subjects - you can get a A* for 80% - maths for example). In History and geography its even lower - 75% A*).

 

In fact, other exam boards such as AQA offer the A* grade in Science at about 75%. Thats nearly 20% lower for the same grade. (The content of the two courses are very similar).

 

I can see why its not really worth arguing and as the previous person said, worth shutting up to, but I believe I have a point.

 

Anyway, the A doesn't seem that impossible.

[drochaid]

I can't say I find anything I've said particularly harsh, those who know me best will realise how restrained I'm being. You're sitting there complaining because you might need to, uh, actually do some work to get a good grade.. this is rather the point of school.

 

As for going on to complain you only need 75% or 80% for an A* in other subjects, this would suggest they need to become a great deal more difficult to obtain. The entire country is fed up with the dumbing down of grading systems. No one trusts grades any longer.

 

If you came to me with several A* grades looking for a job, I would be waiting to hear what you've actually done that I'll care about, because it's not going to be the fact you can perform very averagely and be awarded top marks.

 

This is reality in the UK now and you need to realise how little any of this means once you're into Uni or start looking for a job. So stop whining, do the work and you'll get the grade if you're good enough ... and then no one will care anyway. Sorry.

[Cloud]

So stop whining' date=' do the work and you'll get the grade if you're good enough ... and then no one will care anyway. Sorry.[/quote']

 

You're saying the value of grades is really not that significant, these days

and there is too much competition.

 

You know what . . . you're probably right:-(

[drochaid]

You're saying the value of grades is really not that significant' date=' these days

and there is too much competition.

 

You know what . . . you're probably right:-([/quote']

I'm afraid you only need to look at the overall %age of people getting top grades. When you can have entire Uni courses filled with people on 3 A grades, something is very very wrong. I would suggest there should be no more than perhaps 2% of people with A and far far less gaining A*, otherwise, what is there left to seperate someone who is simply pretty good with another who is absolutely shit hot?

 

The government taking the stance that everyone needs to improve accross the board is just wrong, it results in meaningless letters and increased stress on the students, such as you, who have been trained to believe they need top grades or their lives are over.

 

I wasn't a great academic, I didn't do especially well in school although things improved at uni with my choice of course and the different attitude to grades there. My post nominals are now longer than my name (BSc MBCS MIET MIEEE), I'm chasing two charters and more professional qualifications.

 

Believe me, get into uni and everything you're going through now will become irrelevant. You'll still have to work, probably even harder, but your results should finally start to reflect what you do and not what the government believes you should be doing.

[Cloud]

 

Believe me' date=' get into uni and everything you're going through now will become irrelevant. You'll still have to work, probably even harder, but your results should finally start to reflect what you do and not what the government believes you should be doing.[/quote']

 

The fact still remains - to get into university they look at grades (first and foremost)

 

I agree with the whole pressure thing.

I think that the whole education system in UK is just plain . . .bad.

You mentioned the averaging of grades before and also the main point:

 

11 years of schooling and all you have to show for it is about 10 grades at the end . . . and thats basically it. All these years of school culminates in just a month of exams under high pressure. The teachers tell you how improtant it is and how it will effect the rest of your life.

If you mess up (have a bad day, family member dies or any other negative social impact) you're pretty much stuck with the grade you've got and this may not be a true representation of your ability. And all you have is this one shot (after 11 years of work). Sure you can re-sit but 'oh wait' employers frown on this.

 

I think continuous assessment is better. The pressure is spread out evenly over the years and there is a set grade boundary.

 

Rules are rules, however - so I'm pretty much going to work for these grades like I've never worked before.

[Severian]

The fact still remains - to get into university they look at grades (first and foremost)

 

That's not true. They look at the order of cadidates' grades, not the actual grades themselves. So if everyone did badly in a particular year, a lower grade might still be enough to get in.

[drochaid]

The fact still remains - to get into university they look at grades (first and foremost)

But as Severian said, and I implied previously, grades are baselined on overall results. If the subject receives a generally poor result, they alter the bands.. you don't have to be able to get top %age, just be one of the top 20% or so of people.

I think continuous assessment is better. The pressure is spread out evenly over the years and there is a set grade boundary.

I agree entirely. It's also far more realistic for most jobs. I personally don't actually the point in exams for the majority of subjects (there are always exceptions). How often will you find yourself in a situation where you can't check a book, ask a colleague, phone someone or check the internet? Experience is the only real way to go, and exams get in the way of that in my opinion.

Rules are rules, however - so I'm pretty much going to work for these grades like I've never worked before.

Good. That's exactly what you should be doing. DO the work, forget about the grades you think you need and watch the stress decline and the quality of your work improve.

[Klaynos]

GCSE's are supposed to allow alot of people to pass, but the top grades are supposed to distinguish between people who are just good at a subject and people who've actually done alot of work...

 

Speaking about unis and A-levels...

 

When I was applying for universities, and in my experiance since (both of my tutors where either incharge of admissions the year before or whilst my tutor) and whilst taking part as a student on inverview days. My opinion is that grades are a factor, BUT they will look at more things, which in my experiance relies alot of whether you get better in your exams than your predicted grades, your personal statement, and your headteacher/tutor statement. These things are very important, and in my experiance most unis will give an entry level that is above your predicted grades, but will change for everyone, depending on the above. If you then fail to get these grades then your interview and how you talked to people who you met on interview days becomes more important...

 

This is mainly because uni's (or at least physics departmens) want people who will stay the whole course, not just come along, find out they've actually got to work!!! and quit...

[sophster]

What level paper will you be doing in the exam Cloud as you tend to need different pass marks depending on the hardness of the exam 80% doesn't sound right for a higher level paper but might be necessary if you do an intermediate paper which has less hard questions on.

 

Also are you sure they are actually out of 100? I did edexcel (I think) GCSE maths last year and I only needed about 40% or something stupid in the higher paper and the marks were out of 160 rather than 100.

 

Good luck with your exams and just try and concentrate on learning and revising as much as possible rather than flapping about how many questions you need to answer correctly.