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Did you sit a GCSE(s) early?

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Reply 80

Muse

Did Maths a year early and got a A*.

Reply 81

calcium878

R.J.A

Why would you take GCSE if you were already fluent??

To gain a qualification - it seems that nowadays you need a grade on a piece of paper to substantiate your knowledge. Even on here, many people seem to take their language(s) early - such as A(S) levels in Year 11.

Reply 82

RJA

yes but a GCSE certificate undermines your ability if you are already fluent. to an employer, that would say that you speak Language X to GCSE level, and not that you are fluent...

Reply 83

Cataclysm

R.J.A

yes but a GCSE certificate undermines your ability if you are already fluent. to an employer, that would say that you speak Language X to GCSE level, and not that you are fluent...

Yes but employers want proof that you are competent enough and a grade dictates that you are fluet/confident in the language, even though you may be fluent you need to proove it and an extra qualification doesn't hurt.

Reply 84

RJA

A GCSE doesn't prove you are fluent (in fact it implies that you are alot less than fluent)

Reply 85

Berto90

R.J.A

A GCSE alone doesn't prove you are fluent (in fact it implies that you are alot less than fluent)

I woulod have to agree with that. You would want to highlight the fact that you are fluent in a language as well as stating the qualification.

Reply 86

RJA

But as soon as you say you are fluent the GCSE loses all importance (mother tongue qualifications are often ignored by universities/employers) - so why even have the GCSE?

Reply 87

Cataclysm

R.J.A

But as soon as you say you are fluent the GCSE loses all importance (mother tongue qualifications are often ignored by universities/employers) - so why even have the GCSE?

Yeah...all the colleges I applied to (total of 1) stated they didn't recognise Mother Tongue Qualifications...

Reply 88

Excalibur

R.J.A

But as soon as you say you are fluent the GCSE loses all importance (mother tongue qualifications are often ignored by universities/employers) - so why even have the GCSE?

True. But as others have said, it's just showing a qualification for a skill that you have, and if you say elsewhere on your CV that you are fluent in xyz, then they will know that you are far above GCSE standard. Basically people take mother tongue GCSEs to gain an extra A* :wink:

(including me, shamefully) - the question isn't really why, but why not. Also, having a mother tongue A level would probably be a lot more impressive than having a GCSE in it - even if it doesn't count, it could perhaps give you just a slight edge.

Reply 89

Leigh

I did my Maths a year early. My school wasn't particularly academic, and three of us took Intermediate in year 10. We all got basically 100%, so B's. We were the only three who took Higher in year 11, so were neglected for the whole of that year as 'we already had our GCSE and the majority aren't doing the same stuff you need to know'. So all in all it was a waste of time, but meh, was nice to say I'd done it at the time.

Reply 90

arabellaweir

I sat my French and Spanish early and got 2 A*s. Glad in some ways that I did since it meant that I didn't have to go to class but I think my spanish suffered a little bit as a result. Ar well :biggrin:

Reply 91

Liar

^^
I like the random sheep at the end of your post arabellaweir :p:

Reply 92

seashellstar

My school never let anyone take anything early.

Reply 93

arabellaweir

Haha thanks. I think it's so cute!! Completely off topic buuut... I would love to have a pet lamb I could keep it in my garden and it could look cute and wooly!! Anyone else share this amazing fantasy? No? Ok.. I'll shut up.

That's unfortunate about not being able to sit GCSEs early. However the fact that so many people are doing nowadays goes to show that my mum is right when she goes on about how a C "in my time" was really good.. Exams have ovb got easier (I refuse to believe people have got smarter!!)

:sheep:

Reply 94

RJA

(I refuse to believe people have got smarter!!)

Reply 95

kellywood_5

No, and as far as I know, no-one in my school ever has in anything. I personally don't see the point unless you're very confident you can get an A*. For one thing, resitting in Year 11 would be a waste of time and money, and secondly, if you wanted to take the subject at AS, the gap where you didn't study it would be a disadvantage. I took an AVCE in ICT early, simply because my teacher asked me to and I had to do a qualification in it anyway. I wasn't bothered about it though, so I got a D :redface:

Reply 96

Excalibur

Yeah, unless you start the AS course early or do something similar, the yearlong gap may make you forget some things, especially for languages. I don't think you should sit any exams early unless you are certain you will be able to achieve your full potential, because you'd always think that "if I had done it in Year 11, I could've got xyz".

Reply 97

Me :)

Citizenship 1/2 in year 9
Maths in year 10
V.glad i did both coz it's 2 less results to worry about this summer :redface:

Reply 98

Happy1

did Maths early but i wouldnt reccommend it - out of 60 of us that took it early, only 5 got A*s, and we were meant to be top sets... I would have probably done better with the extra few months to revise.