MSE News: Guest Comment: Govt student loan explanations 'woeful'
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Oldernotwiser wrote: »Don't you think that doing 50 hours a week on revision and past papers is excessive and just geared to passing the test?
It's at least 50x what I did, but she's facing different challenges and is therefore playing a different game. Her work ethic will take her a long way. Who am I to criticise?I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.
Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.0 -
gadgetmind wrote: »As part of her studying for AS levels (five, all maths/science!) my daughter did dozens of practice papers, which I marked for her. One physics paper was marked out of 60, and she only got 45. OK, it was early days in her revision/practice, but I still thought 75% was a trifle low. She looked up the grading scheme for that paper/year and you only needed 32 marks, or just over 50%, to get an A!
How are A Levels marked? Is it a set percentage and over is an A, or does it vary year to year? I know here it varied (no idea if it still does, they've changed a lot since I left school) year on year depending on the 'difficulty' of the paper, and I also think there was some sort of curving going on.0 -
The_One_Who wrote: »How are A Levels marked? Is it a set percentage and over is an A, or does it vary year to year?
It's immensely complicated, and varies paper-by-paper and year-by-year.
TBH, I think the top 5% of those taking the exam should get A*, the next 5% and A, then next 10% a B, and so on. Universities and employers want to choose the brightest and the best, not have them all mixed in with the also-rans.I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.
Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.0 -
i guess modules make that difficult - i was on the old A level system and don't fully understand the new AS system, but by doing two maths A levels, all the 'double' maths students did a pure module earlier in the year than the single maths students. you'd expect people doing two A levels in it to be better at the subject, so if it was completely marked on a curve, some would lose out unfairly based on when they took the exam.gadgetmind wrote: »It's immensely complicated, and varies paper-by-paper and year-by-year.
TBH, I think the top 5% of those taking the exam should get A*, the next 5% and A, then next 10% a B, and so on. Universities and employers want to choose the brightest and the best, not have them all mixed in with the also-rans.
maybe scrapping modules would help? removing all the retake options and having it all at the end?
the marks you get can be manipulated though - i know a few people who ended up with full marks for a module even though they left some parts blank! to make marks comparable across modules, as some will always be harder than others, sometimes you get marked up and sometimes down.
maybe the best option is a move towards an average mark rather than a grade? a bit like the US GPA? at the very least that can easily be reported in addition to the grade. there's a big difference between an A at 95/100% (which would now be an A*, granted!) and an A at 76%.
i don't know that there's any solution that would be fair to all......:happyhear0 -
melancholly wrote: »i don't know that there's any solution that would be fair to all......
Does it have to be? Is our current "Everyone's a winner!" system really working?I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.
Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.0 -
I suppose it doesn't help that there are different exam boards producing a slightly different syllabus and different papers of different difficulty. Or have I got that wrong? Sorry, the English/Welsh system still confuses me! Modules and a dependence on coursework also complicate the picture somewhat.0
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i don't think everyone is a winner under the current system either. there are lots more exams than under a system where they're all at the end, which some students will find harder. i think the focus on taking exams earlier makes it difficult for students who develop later (particularly in essay based subjects where style matters so much and doesn't necessarily develop in a linear way). the fact that the marking may not be as strict as some would like, doesn't make the system good for all......gadgetmind wrote: »Does it have to be? Is our current "Everyone's a winner!" system really working?:happyhear0 -
melancholly wrote: »the marking may not be as strict as some would like
Understatement! The marking is so generous that many universities and most employers have lost all confidence in the grades and are setting their own entrance/employment tests and exams.
My daughter is now working hard on the UK Clinical Aptitude Tests (UKCAT) and she's finding these *much* harder than AS level exams.I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.
Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.0 -
but even back in the 90s, we practised STEP papers as they made A levels seem easier! there's always something there to stretch the top end, it's just that most schools aren't about doing that - it's about pulling up the bottom end.gadgetmind wrote: »Understatement! The marking is so generous that many universities and most employers have lost all confidence in the grades and are setting their own entrance/employment tests and exams.
My daughter is now working hard on the UK Clinical Aptitude Tests (UKCAT) and she's finding these *much* harder than AS level exams.
i just don't want to go too far because i feel bad for all the students who study hard to get the grades they do, then are told it's all really easy.... because they have adapted to get the marks required by the system.
personally, i'd like to see negative marking in A levels (so something really stupid gets you marked down), but with the number of exam scripts and the relatively short marking turnaround times (with moderation and admin), i can't see how it can easily change. it's logistics as much as anything else.....:happyhear0 -
melancholly wrote: »i feel bad for all the students who study hard to get the grades they do, then are told it's all really easy....
There's a way to fix that - stop making it really easy!I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.
Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.0
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