Mock exam results to be used as A Level 'safety net' in 'Triple Lock system'

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I know people who never sat the mocks as their college went into lockdown before mocks happened

Absolutely - I think this will be the case for lots of students. Some of our volunteers have suggested that by 'mocks' they may actually mean the CAG grades so we will need to wait and see what the situation is for those students.

Original post by Evil Homer

Right, well this changes absolutely everything.

This is so chaotic. I'm sorry to every student currently going through this absolute rollercoaster tonight!

Delightful leak at 10:30pm - good old Gavin. He is firmly in the bad books.

Reply 21

Theloniouss

Universities Forum Helper

I think I'll wait for the announcement tomorrow before I get overly worked up about this. If the headline is correct I will certainly not be a happy bunny

Reply 22

username4490612

I wonder what will happen to private candidates as they didn’t have mocks?

Reply 23

Charlotte's Web

Original post by Student+

What do they even mean by mocks? Will yr 12 mocks count or is it the yr 13 ones? I hope that it’s year 12 cuz I actually revised for that as it would have decided my UCAS predictions.

This is a super important question. All schools do their mocks differently so we need to really know which mocks will be used, or if it will be an average etc. It has been suggested that actually the teacher assigned grades may be used too but we will really need to wait to see what happens tomorrow.

Reply 24

username3895014

Really feel for this year A-level students. Good luck guys. Not to be negative Natalie but I would’ve hated to get my mock grades. I failed my mocks horrendously but still got above my predicted grades in the actual exams

Reply 25

Blue_Cow

Original post by Student+

What do they even mean by mocks? Will yr 12 mocks count or is it the yr 13 ones? I hope that it’s year 12 cuz I actually revised for that as it would have decided my UCAS predictions.

No one knows yet. Need to wait for the Secretary of State to announce and for his civil servants to release the guidance.

Who knows? Could be an average of Y12-13, most recent mocks within X months, most recent mock, or none of the above because by 'mock' the might mean something else entirely... :dontknow:

Just try to get some sleep and keep an eye on this thread tomorrow.

Reply 26

becausethenight

Original post by SarcAndSpark

Yes, all of this.

There's not even consistency of marking within schools, in most cases. And all schools run differently. And honestly it wouldn't be impossible for a school/student to lie.

On another thread it's been suggested they mean CAGs rather than mocks, which would make slightly more sense.

Yes, exactly - short of asking schools to produce papers, which may well have been lost/destroyed, or faked...

CAGs rather than mocks does make a lot more sense (that's basically what's happening in Scotland, right) and I would support that I think, despite the issues with it.

Reply 27

Wired_1800

Original post by Charlotte's Web

Several news outlets are reporting that mock exam results will be used as a safety net for students whose grade has been moderated down.This will allow students to use their mock result, their assigned grade, or choose to resit.

Unfortunately there is a lot we don't know. It is not yet clear which mock grades will be used, what the reporters actually mean by 'mock grades' or the procedure for subjects where no mock exam was sat.

More information is expected to be released by Education Secretary Gavin Williamson tomorrow.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-53746140

@StrawberryDreams @Evil Homer FYI

So those who performed poorly in the mocks but would have done well in the actual exams are done for. Sad :frown:

Reply 28

SarcAndSpark

Original post by Daniel100499

I know people who never sat the mocks as their college went into lockdown before mocks happened

Yeah, and there are schools that don't do official mocks as such- it's not a legal requirement or anything.

Original post by Student+

What do they even mean by mocks? Will yr 12 mocks count or is it the yr 13 ones? I hope that it’s year 12 cuz I actually revised for that as it would have decided my UCAS predictions.

I'd assume the most recent, but honestly at this stage, who knows?

Original post by Evil Homer

Right, well this changes absolutely everything.

This is so chaotic. I'm sorry to every student currently going through this absolute rollercoaster tonight!

If it helps @PQ thinks they mean CAGs, not mocks. Idk if you would have any thoughts on that?

Reply 29

Anonymous17!

I was one of those students who didn’t try for mocks. In fact I didn’t start trying until during lockdown with my online classes...I will not be using mock grades at all. I will just take exams in autumn instead. I guess one reason for getting to use mock grades isn’t just because of students being concerned about the standardisation but also because if people did better in mocks and can have those grades, it means hundred and possibly thousands of students will not take exams in October, making it easier for test centres to make exams Covid secure as there will be less people taking them and it also means that less students will be sat at home doing a gap year if they miss out on offers. But this whole thing is a big giant mess.

Reply 30

HolaNeinoa

....

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 31

SarcAndSpark

Original post by Wired_1800

So those who performed poorly in the mocks but would have done well in the actual exams are done for. Sad :frown:

Well, not necessarily if you got a good CAG and standardisation was kind to you? And you can still resit?

I know that doesn't help much.

Reply 32

MrSuavetopia

Original post by HolaNeinoa

Why would this news be released at this time?

Panic from the mess in Scotland. As ever, it's a case of make the headline statement now, detail later.

Which of course, isn't helpful for any student currently awaiting results in less than 2 days time.

Reply 33

Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by Charlotte's Web

Several news outlets including the BBCare reporting that mock exam results will be used as a safety net for students whose grade has been moderated down.This will allow students to use their mock result, their assigned grade, or choose to resit.

Unfortunately there is a lot we don't know. It is not yet clear which mock grades will be used, what the reporters actually mean by 'mock grades' or the procedure for subjects where no mock exam was sat.

More information is expected to be released by Education Secretary Gavin Williamson tomorrow.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-53746140

We know this is really worrying and just adds to the uncertainty and stress that students have experienced this year. The guidance thus far is clear that the highest grade will be used so hopefully this will be to the benefit of students and will mean more students get the university place they wanted .

Please try not to panic too much this evening - more information will be released tomorrow and we will be here to keep you updated and informed, and will provide support to anyone who needs it. Please look after yourselves.

@StrawberryDreams @Evil Homer FYI

Reports are talking about a higher mock grade being grounds for an appeal.

an appeal is not a guaranteed higher grade.

the appeals timescales are horrific.

I don’t think this will have much impact on many students to be honest. I think it’s just a tactic to deflect criticism.

Reply 34

Evil Homer

TSR Community Staff

Original post by SarcAndSpark

If it helps @PQ thinks they mean CAGs, not mocks. Idk if you would have any thoughts on that?

The only thing I can really add at this time is this - TSR is often invited to media briefings where journalists working in education are invited to ask questions to help write their pieces around results day, and it is certainly within the realm of possibility that a mix up of this nature could happen given the level of specialised knowledge needed to understand the process.

Saying that, at this time, the breaking news says mocks, and we have to take it at face value until told otherwise.

Reply 35

Charlotte's Web

Original post by Anonymous17!

I am absolutely sure you won't be the only person in the same boat. The guidance at the moment seems fairly clear that the highest grade will be used.

That is a good point about exams - and realistically the likelihood of performing well is limited when students haven't had formal teaching in so long.

I totally agree that this has been very badly handled - but we've got a big team who are staying informed and who are here to support.

Original post by HolaNeinoa

The government is so FU(king dumb. Why would this news be released at this time? This opens up a huge amount of questions. Every school does mocks differently. Which mocks will be used? The latest ones? Schools can change the mock results. Students cheat in mocks. Students don’t try in mocks.

It wasn't intended to be released at this time - it appears it was leaked on Twitter by a BBC journalist and other news outlets have followed.

Those are really great questions and ones we hopefully will have answers to tomorrow. It may be that there has been a miscommunication and they actually mean the teacher assigned grades rather than mocks.