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jan mocks a levels

i just got my results back from my mocks that i did recently (last mocks before actual exams) and i got CBB, really gutted because i thought i did better and i ideally want A*AA in my actual exams. is there any possibility of improving it to this? i take politics, french and drama

Reply 1

Original post
by accelirr
i just got my results back from my mocks that i did recently (last mocks before actual exams) and i got CBB, really gutted because i thought i did better and i ideally want A*AA in my actual exams. is there any possibility of improving it to this? i take politics, french and drama

Hi Accelirr,
Going from CBB to A*AA is a tall task. While you can absolutely improve, most people gain one or two grades in the timeframe you have, which is about four months.

The most practical thing to do is really ask yourself if you need exactly A*AA, because chasing unrealistic goals can lead to burnout and harm your mental health.

In terms of revision, the point of mocks is to show gaps in your understanding and exam technique, so go over each question carefully and identify whether it’s a content issue, an exam technique issue, or timing. Focus on areas of weakness compared to your strengths.
Compared to general revision, at this point so close to the real exams, you should always try to revise under timed exam conditions, even when doing targeted questions. This will help you stay focused and condition you for the real thing.

Hope this helps,
Ulaw Alfred.

Reply 2

Original post
by UniofLawstudent2
Hi Accelirr,
Going from CBB to A*AA is a tall task. While you can absolutely improve, most people gain one or two grades in the timeframe you have, which is about four months.
The most practical thing to do is really ask yourself if you need exactly A*AA, because chasing unrealistic goals can lead to burnout and harm your mental health.
In terms of revision, the point of mocks is to show gaps in your understanding and exam technique, so go over each question carefully and identify whether it’s a content issue, an exam technique issue, or timing. Focus on areas of weakness compared to your strengths.
Compared to general revision, at this point so close to the real exams, you should always try to revise under timed exam conditions, even when doing targeted questions. This will help you stay focused and condition you for the real thing.
Hope this helps,
Ulaw Alfred.


i try to send my teachers timed essays for them to mark or give me feedback on and they never reply, so its hard to see where im at during my revision.

Reply 3

Original post
by accelirr
i just got my results back from my mocks that i did recently (last mocks before actual exams) and i got CBB, really gutted because i thought i did better and i ideally want A*AA in my actual exams. is there any possibility of improving it to this? i take politics, french and drama


Hi!

First of all don’t panic, mocks are not the final thing and loads of people improve between mocks and the real exams. CBB is honestly not bad at all, especially if that’s your starting point before proper revision kicks in.

Going from CBB to A*AA is definitely possible, but it’ll take a proper plan and consistent work from now until exams. The good thing is you know where you’re at now so you can actually target your weak areas.

For politics it’s usually exam technique and structure that makes the jump, not just knowledge. Practise timed essays, get your teachers to mark them and actually apply the feedback. That’s where most people gain a whole grade.

For french it’s about consistency. Do a bit every day, vocab, listening practice, speaking practice. Small daily work makes a huge difference over a few months. And for writing, memorising strong phrases and structures helps push you into the higher bands.

Drama can be quite subjective but again it’s about hitting the mark scheme exactly. Look at examiner reports if you can and see what they’re actually rewarding.

You’re not capped at your mock grades. They’re a checkpoint not a prediction. If you lock in now and work smart rather than just hard, A*AA isn’t unrealistic. It just depends how serious you are about changing how you revise

Goodluck and don’t give up!

Anthony
Student rep

Reply 4

Original post
by accelirr
i try to send my teachers timed essays for them to mark or give me feedback on and they never reply, so its hard to see where im at during my revision.

I see,
Yeah that does make life much harder, especially since I assume most of your subject's are essay heavy?

Best thing you can do is use self-marking at this stage, make sure you've got all the low-mark (memorise the markscheme type) questions completely in your bag. Even for the essay questions you should find rough guidance on the markschemes?
E.g how knowledge and anaylsis should be split, what points are they mainly looking for each topic, etc.
Plus, you still have the feedback from the mocks themselves.

I'm not sure what it's like for french, politics, drama when it comes to the essay's but in my A-levels, psychology and biology, even if you only got 11/16 or 15/25, you could still get an A by doing really well on the lower mark questions.
(edited 2 weeks ago)

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