Is it possible in exceptional circumstances to sit a level exam(s) before summer
I am not talking about resits, just exams.
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Original post by nothepreacher
I am not talking about resits, just exams.
I'm not sure anyone in here could help you with that. You need to talk to your examination centre (school /college) and the exam board itself to discuss the best way to proceed based on your circumstances.
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Original post by nothepreacher
I am not talking about resits, just exams.
Most likely not, as they couldn't just write a paper and a mark scheme solely for your benefit
Original post by nothepreacher
I am not talking about resits, just exams.
Most likely not.
Original post by midgemeister7
Most likely not, as they couldn't just write a paper and a mark scheme solely for your benefit
Papers are written and prepared months before the exams are held.
Original post by goldenfish
Most likely not.
Papers are written and prepared months before the exams are held.
Papers are written and prepared months before the exams are held.
I know, but they wouldn't allow anyone to see it beforehand and so the only way would be to have a unique paper - which they would not do
A friend had a chemistry and music exams that clashed so he did his music exam first and then a teacher had to follow him round for a whole day so he could not talk to anyone who did the chemistry exam he did later on.
So no, I don't think any exam board would let anyone do an exam earlier than anyone else.
So no, I don't think any exam board would let anyone do an exam earlier than anyone else.
Original post by nothepreacher
I am not talking about resits, just exams.
Sorry, not a chance. The system is the same whether you are taking exams for the first time or for the 20th re-sit. Domestic A level exams are only available once a year in May/June and have to be sat on a certain date (or in certain circumstances the day after).
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by Maker
A friend had a chemistry and music exams that clashed so he did his music exam first and then a teacher had to follow him round for a whole day so he could not talk to anyone who did the chemistry exam he did later on.
So no, I don't think any exam board would let anyone do an exam earlier than anyone else.
So no, I don't think any exam board would let anyone do an exam earlier than anyone else.
You can sit an exam earlier or later on the same day as long as there is no way that any cheating could happen. One guy did his C1 AS level at like 7:30 in the morning because he had a funeral to go to, it does happen but you couldn't really do it any earlier than a few hours.
Original post by Alex Doran
You can sit an exam earlier or later on the same day as long as there is no way that any cheating could happen. One guy did his C1 AS level at like 7:30 in the morning because he had a funeral to go to, it does happen but you couldn't really do it any earlier than a few hours.
You are not allowed to start before 0830. If you have more than 3hrs of exams in a session then one can be moved to the other session that day as long as you are kept in isolation between the exams so no one can communicate with you. If you have more than 6 hours in a day then it gets messier but one can be moved to the following day (Saturday if necessary).
Original post by Compost
You are not allowed to start before 0830. If you have more than 3hrs of exams in a session then one can be moved to the other session that day as long as you are kept in isolation between the exams so no one can communicate with you. If you have more than 6 hours in a day then it gets messier but one can be moved to the following day (Saturday if necessary).
I can only tell you what I know based no what happened. I sat the exam at about 9:00 with everyone else at which point he was in there so I can only assume he had finished it by then. Given it was a 90min exam I am guessing he started just before 7:30 or he would have had to be in the exam hall when I went in with everyone else.
I would guess he was in isolation but again, I don't actually know.
Original post by Alex Doran
I can only tell you what I know based no what happened. I sat the exam at about 9:00 with everyone else at which point he was in there so I can only assume he had finished it by then. Given it was a 90min exam I am guessing he started just before 7:30 or he would have had to be in the exam hall when I went in with everyone else.
I would guess he was in isolation but again, I don't actually know.
I would guess he was in isolation but again, I don't actually know.
It wouldn't be the first time a centre has broken the rules on compassionate grounds.
Original post by Alex Doran
You can sit an exam earlier or later on the same day as long as there is no way that any cheating could happen. One guy did his C1 AS level at like 7:30 in the morning because he had a funeral to go to, it does happen but you couldn't really do it any earlier than a few hours.
I am not talking about doing the same paper before summer. I was talking about doing different paper for which there might not be any ums but just raw marks. It sounds ridiculous but just wanted to know if its possible.
Original post by nothepreacher
I am not talking about doing the same paper before summer. I was talking about doing different paper for which there might not be any ums but just raw marks. It sounds ridiculous but just wanted to know if its possible.
I can't see the relevance of UMS but no it is definitely not possible.
Original post by Compost
I can't see the relevance of UMS but no it is definitely not possible.
well ums would only apply if a large number of people sit it, and relative marks called ums are given. Are you from some exam board or something?
Original post by nothepreacher
I am not talking about doing the same paper before summer. I was talking about doing different paper for which there might not be any ums but just raw marks. It sounds ridiculous but just wanted to know if its possible.
No it is not possible - not just because of the cost/ effort/ time etc. to the exam board, but also because of the whole UMS issue. Without multiple candidates, there is no way of judging how difficult/ easy an exam was and no way of awarding UMS. Without UMS, there can be no grade boundaries and so your exam result would mean a grand total of nothing.
Original post by dragonkeeper999
No it is not possible - not just because of the cost/ effort/ time etc. to the exam board, but also because of the whole UMS issue. Without multiple candidates, there is no way of judging how difficult/ easy an exam was and no way of awarding UMS. Without UMS, there can be no grade boundaries and so your exam result would mean a grand total of nothing.
What if one settles for a grade based on the raw scores?
Original post by Alex Doran
You can sit an exam earlier or later on the same day as long as there is no way that any cheating could happen. One guy did his C1 AS level at like 7:30 in the morning because he had a funeral to go to, it does happen but you couldn't really do it any earlier than a few hours.
Well, surely cheating could occur - unless he was followed around by staff at the funeral to ensure he wasn't messaging anyone
Original post by nothepreacher
What if one settles for a grade based on the raw scores?
Raw scores can be either raised or lowered (to produce UMS) depending on the difficulty of the exam in that season. Therefore if your paper was particularly easy your raw score might be lowered (to produce UMS), meaning that if your grade was based on the raw score, it would be inflated/ too high.
Original post by nothepreacher
What if one settles for a grade based on the raw scores?
Not possible, they need a selection of scores to know where to set the grade boundaries (this is how they do it at GCSE, you get a raw score and grade boundaries are used to set the grades - different from A level where everyone is ranked and this used to produce UMS which gives you your grade based on pre-set grade boundaries - usually top 20% of students get an A, next 10% get a B, etc.).
If just one person sat the paper, unless they got 100% or 0% it would be impossible to give them a correct grade since the paper could have been much easier than usual or much harder than usual. If you look at the last few year's UMS-raw score conversions for some subjects you will see a lot of variation sometimes - for example I sat an A2 physics exam where 75% raw score = 90% UMS because the paper was so hard. Contrast that to most maths exams where this boundary was closer to 92-95%.
Original post by nothepreacher
well ums would only apply if a large number of people sit it, and relative marks called ums are given. Are you from some exam board or something?
I have spent several years working on exams - as an exams officer, training them and in similar areas.
You seem confused about the purpose of UMS, but also seriously to underestimate the amount of work that goes into writing, checking, printing distributing, marking and then moderating the exam to check that the grading is consistent across time and between exam boards. It really isn't possibly just to knock another exam out for a handful of people.
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