Parents angry about my GCSEs - what should i do

so recently my mum has started comparing my GCSEs to my cousin who got 9 A*s. My parents really want me to do well but i only ended getting 2 As :frown:

and i know for a fact my cousin spent less time revising than me. i guess she is just naturally more clever.
i am really depressed right now as i have let my parents down big time. any advice what i can do to improve for A levels as I am looking to do sciences and maths. I am trying not to get into a competition with anyone regarding grades and just want to focus on my own study.

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Reply 1

katiiiiie

Your parents shouldn't be comparing you to anybody, everyone is different, it isn't your fault. Don't believe you've let anyone down as you tried your best and that is all you can do. Two A's are great imo. You have nothing to be ashamed of :smile:

The only advice I can give you on A-levels is try your best, don't fall behind and do lots of revision. :smile:

Reply 2

VannR

Original post by geokreig

so recently my mum has started comparing my GCSEs to my cousin who got 9 A*s. My parents really want me to do well but i only ended getting 2 As :frown:

This.

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Reply 3

ckfeister

oh ignore them, even 2 As are good, only 1 person in my school got 1A* and 3 only got As and 2 only got Bs and 40 got Cs and the other 200 got D and under so don't feel u did bad

Reply 4

tal_08

Tell your parents you're sorry and that you screwed up.

The road is just going to get more difficult and you need to be prepared for it. Make a plan on how your going to study (ie going over everything you did in class on that day atleast once to make sure you understand everything [this make revising at the end of the year a lot easier!]). Ask them to get you some books for next year so that you can start learning (CGP do some books that bridge the gap between GCSE and A Levels quite nicely!). Once they realise that you know you messed up and that you need to work hard they will forgive you!

Good luck, i know it sucks to be where you are right now - but things can only get better!

Reply 5

SiJ0NES

You shouldn't compare anyone's results to anybody else's nevermind your own child's. That can lead to some serious psychological problems. Just tell them to sod off, you did your best and they should be proud of what you achieved.

Reply 6

Mindless Behavior

Original post by geokreig

so recently my mum has started comparing my GCSEs to my cousin who got 9 A*s. My parents really want me to do well but i only ended getting 2 As :frown:

Compare them to Bill Gates

Reply 7

Mindless Behavior

Original post by tal_08

What exactly are they apologising for?

Reply 8

katiiiiie

Original post by tal_08

They have nothing to be sorry for...

Reply 9

mollyxrose

Ignore your parents. Forget about your results and focus on working hard at A level, that's all that matters.

Reply 10

geokreig

Thanks guys i really appreciate it. My parent's have thankfully calmed down - they're not tht strict they just want me to do well. I am really looking to bounce back at AS because i know i am better than this. I do admit though i kind of feel jealous of those who get A*s and it's not good i know.

any advice on chemistry and biology will be helpful and how I should approach them at A level.

Reply 11

username1333513

Original post by geokreig

so recently my mum has started comparing my GCSEs to my cousin who got 9 A*s. My parents really want me to do well but i only ended getting 2 As :frown:

i'm literally in the same boat as you right now! my parents were ok with my grades but i really felt like I've let them down, i was honestly expecting to get better, and my cousins have done so well compared to me. The last few days have been really depressing :frown:

Reply 12

tal_08

Original post by katiiiiie

They have nothing to be sorry for...

Original post by Mindless Behavior

What exactly are they apologising for?

S/he wrote "i am really depressed right now as i have let my parents down big time." So told her/him to say sorry for letting his parents down..

Can we let s/he decide whether or not THEY think they need to be sorry or apologise? If Geokreig doesn't think s/he needs to be sorry, then by all means don't be!

Reply 13

geokreig

Original post by bubblegumcat

good to know I'm not alone :smile:

. even my teachers expected better of me as I was one of the 'better' students but oh well. for now I won't say anything and stay low and surprise everyone with my A level results hopefully this time next year. my uncles and aunties can praise my cousins grades for the time being :colone:

Reply 14

subjunctivehistorian

Original post by geokreig

so recently my mum has started comparing my GCSEs to my cousin who got 9 A*s. My parents really want me to do well but i only ended getting 2 As :frown:

Your mum should not compare you to anyone. She should just accept you for who you are. You should tell her it's upsetting you. Try not to feel down about it, you are a unique person, I'm sure you have a lot to offer and in time your mum will stop comparing you with your cousin, and just love you for yourself.

Academics aren't everything. Just work hard, and as long as you've done that, you'll know you've been the best that you can be. That's the most important thing in life. To do the best that YOU can do! :smile:

Reply 15

username1046019

Original post by geokreig

any advice on chemistry and biology will be helpful and how I should approach them at A level.

Bio student here. One thing I should emphasise is that biology at A-level goes into a lot more detail with topics and there's a lot more importance set on getting the correct biological terms in your answers. I would recommend doing consistent consolidation- if you feel like you're getting rusty on topics go back to them and write notes on them. Key terms are also important so make sure you're confident with these as people tend to forget about them. Using diagrams is important too- it's likely that you'll be required to label diagrams or even draw some (things like carbohydrate and protein structures). Past papers are also important for nailing exam technique and recognising areas that you struggle with.

I'm with WJEC for bio, if you're on the same exam board I can give more specific info. If not, hopefully these tips will help you.

Also try not to worry about your results and your parents. There's nothing that can be done about them now so try and focus on A-levels. I can understand feeling jealous especially if it seems like people can achieve these sorts of results with minimal work, however like you said just focus on your own studies and achieve what you can.

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 16

Allaboutthatbass

Don't get down, some parents are just like that, I know mine are.
But everyone has different qualities. So you may not have A*s, you still worked hard and got good grades, 2 As isn't bad at all, most universities will love you. People are different, you may not be naturally cruising through school, but you are better at other things that your cousin isn't fo sho, even if it doesn't seem like it. You jsut work your butt off, do your absolute best and when you finish, you will get your perfect grades. Not perfect, YOUR perfect.

Reply 17

suedonim

If you really worked hard you have nothing to apologise for.

Exam technique and getting the right words in the answer seems to be important at A level so look at marks chemes and see what they give marks for. You'll be concentrating on subjects you're good at, I expect, so may do better at A level.

Reply 18

Mindless Behavior

Original post by geokreig

For Biology, ask your teacher for advice on which textbook/revision guide is the best for your exam board. Read the textbook (a few times if you need to) and make sure you understand everything. When you've understood everything and remember it, do EVERY SINGLE past paper there is. A lot of questions are repeated and doing past papers improves your exam technique by a great deal. You could know the content inside and out but if your exam technique is not up to scratch you won't do too well.
It's the same for Maths and Chemistry. Make sure you understand everything as you go along and do a little bit of revision when you finish each topic and if you use notes (I didn't), make them as you finish each topic so that near exam time you don't have too much to do apart from learning them. Do all the past papers (some of my friends did every past paper multiple times) until you know what the examiners are looking for. Examiners reports are really good for this as well.

And don't feel jealous. Just work as hard as you can and don't worry about everyone else. I wasn't really happy with my GCSEs but I've done better at AS level than most people I know who have better GCSEs than me.