Please tell me what do you think of this?

Question

My daughter always gets straight As in everything she dows. Her GCSE results were 11 As and 1 B in Physics. She got a B and not an A which is what she was expecting having had As in all her Physics course work, because her teacher LOST one her written course work submitted months before the final exams. The final grade was a mixture of written course work and the final exam. We have complaied to our MP to no avail (we were told BS by our MP) we wrote to the examining board who didn't care. We appealed to the school itself and the head teacher who obviously wants to HUSH the whole issue as it is their teacher's fault for losing the written course work. Tha teacher has since left the school and cannot be traced. Nice way of teaching a youngster that adults really are responsible people. We have since given up and she does not get the A she earned. Your thoughts ? Thank you.

You are right, I was not clear regarding ONE thing the teacher concerned approached my daughter 3 OR 4 days in June before the written exams were due to start and told her he could not find her written work she had submitted 5 months before. and could she submit a coy. My daughter told him that she did not have copy because that had been done 5 months ago and besides she was about to start her exam sitting in a few days . The teacher said "Ok then, don't worry about it !" --- and she didn't !!! This sounds like a store from a banany republic country !!

To all who asked, yes we have contacted the education authority and the result was "pass the buck" -- we were given advice on what we should do, tough ( ie. no help at all).

"sylvestercheese" -- you are right... it is so INCREDIBLY UNBELIEVABLE if you pardon the pun. The head teacher school did not reply to my letter. MP gave what can be called USELESS adive. Examining board EDEXEL did not reply to us but simply told a unior clerk of the school to tell us to GET STUFFED, basically !! "Their answer was "EDEXEL said no, they will not review the case and the B stands" -- It is not the point that she got lots of As. It is the fact that she kills herself to achieve As on all and then this happens.

sylvestercheese - not Cambridge but ENFIELD ! A catholic school ! And yes, my daughter has moved to another school. Sheis not in a selective school based on her academic results.

claire - yes, she cried a little when she got the B. II took her to see the results. She came back to the car with a tear in her eye. I went in to a rage... so all your replies have been BRILLIANT and so SUPPORTIVE !! Thank you all !! She is doing her A levels now and the As are, so far, still coming ! I promised her a laptop as a reward, I am far from being rich but those £600 on the lap top were so well spent. My son, also clever... but as a far as school goes, well, HANDS UP THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE SONS !? If he had had a B in Physics I would be jumping with joy, ha ha ha

marix -- the final grade depends on the joint grades of the exame sitting AND the course work set by EDEXEL and submitted during the year. There was a failure to submit the course work (by the teacher not by my daughter) so, on the basis the of the exam sitting alone, she got an overall grade B. She was treated as NOT having submitted the written work. Her exam sitting must have had a superb grade (A?) for it to result in B over all !

CurlyQ -- I really hope you come back and read this --> for your information, as an antidote to your stupid use of words (ie "dim" ) I am a law graduate with a reasonably senior professional position.

LET ME JUST ADD THIS -- My daughter has just told me that the teacher HAS ADMITTED that he lost it the course work. So unprofessional, so wreckless, so professional and criminaly negligent.
There may be procesures one can follow BUT UNLESS WE ARE INFORMED OF THEM, we can't follow them. Many of the things aid here I have heard them for the first time... Unless the school is prepared to tell us where the teacher lives we cannot contact him, fr example. The teach shold have noticed the missoing work by MARCH but he told us nothing until a few days BEFORE THE EXAM sitting sstarted !!!

Elizabeth -- I have enourmous support from all of you. I just find it astonishing that a situation as clearcut as this cannot be solved fairly in favour of a child of 16. Instead I had INACTION from everyone concerned. The head teacher refused to reply. EDEXEL said "NO" -- EVEN THOUGH THE TEACHER ADMITTED TO LOSING THE WORK. England isn't a third world country but my kid was given a lemon for a grade.

Answer 1

Firstly, many congratulations to your daughter for getting so many excellent GSCEs.

It is really bad what has happened with the B grade, the school and teacher should be ashamed of themselves. However, you mustn't let someone else's mistake ruin what is still a momentous achievement - you don't want your daughter to become a bitter person do you? The only other thing i can think of trying, if you really wanted to take it further, would be naming and shaming in your local paper - but that could be embarrassing for your daughter, depending on her personality.

One last point about the lesson your daughter has learnt. Unfortunatly a lot of adults are NOT responsible people (one look at some of the answers/questions on here shows that) and that is a very important lesson. She must learn to judge everyone on their own merits and develop a healthy level of cynicism in this less than perfect world.

Answer 2

To be honest, from your question it's unclear why your daughter got a B in Physics. Is it because she had to redo the missing piece of coursework in a hurry, resulting in a B for that particular piece, when all the others were A? In this case the overall mark for the coursework portfolio would still be A, albeit in the lower range of the band.

Now, if a piece of coursework is missing the portfolio is marked 'incomplete' but that should NOT affect the overall mark for the coursework - in other words, if all the other assignments are grade A then the overall mark is A. It is not downgraded because of the missing piece, provided there's a good reason - as it is in your case.

I'm sorry but it sounds like your daughter didn't produce A standard answers in the exam, otherwise this issue would not have affected her final mark the way it did. Don't mean to sound harsh, but without knowing the full details and actual coursework marks all I can say this is the way it works.

One final thing: losing students' coursework is just as terrifying for teachers as it is for students, trust me, but provided it's dealt with responsibly, honestly and timely it should not cause problems. Bells should have been ringing in spring before your daughter took her exam, as the coursework submission deadline for the boards is usually around March. It should have been sorted then, BEFORE the exam. As you've found out yourself, unfortunately there is nothing you can do now.

Answer 3

Aha, more info than your previous post. :) If the teacher admitted having lost the work, then the ethical thing for the teacher to do would have been to omit that particular grade when calculating the final. I've made that mistake before- a student corrected work & I forgot to change it in my gradebook. I simply did not calculate that assignment into his grade. If there is still time, I would propose the same solution to the school if you're really that hung up on it. If that's not an option, consider it a life lesson, as so many people have suggested. Many professors are able to give students grades at their own discretion, so your situation isn't the worst.

Answer 4

Write to your local papers. Its not your daughters fault a teacher and a school are not able to do there job properly. Tell the school you are going to the papers and you are going to keep on until they admit they are wrong and change her results. She done really well even with the 1 B but I know what you are saying she done all the hard work and study for A's she deserves them. Tell the school you will not let it rest until they find that written piece of work and remark her. I also would be mad as hell for that. The school must be-able to trace that teacher somehow! Don't let this go you and your daughter deserve the full set of A's and a apology from the school fort cocking up. Good luck, and congratulations to your daughter. Keep us informed how you get on.

Answer 5

I was with you all the way until you stated, "The teacher cannot be traced."

The most idiotic statement as, I promise you, your daughter may be bright but you must be dim.

Teacher's records are written in stone and you won't need the Salvation Army to trace the teacher you are referring to.

I read your preamble again and your approach appears to have been more than a little irrational. If all you say is true then there is no way you would say, "We have since given up."

Are you a mouse or a man/woman?

Red Chrome: I read your reply. Since you are a LAW Graduate I am even more surprised you are not aware of the avenues open to you to trace the teacher concerned.

If the term 'dim' offended you then I offer my apologies. The idea was to prod you into taking a more positive approach. You can do better than 'giving up'.

It is not for me to advise you HOW, but there are a number of ways YOU can move forward with this problem.

Answer 6

Have you contacted the education authority in your area? They should be able to help. Other than that, your daughter could resit. But, as it's only GCSEs (and not A level on which a university place could depend) I wouldn't worry. She's done remarkably well. Concentrate on the positive aspect of her results and let the B go. Well done your daughter!

Answer 7

This is important on two counts. First, your daughter 'knows' she deserves an A, she knows she's right. Secondly, let her know you will not give up the fight to get what she deserves. This will confirm to her that not all adults are stupid idiots. In the past, I have fought and not given up to get what I believed was right. It took some time but I did get what I wanted. British Bulldog spirit is needed here. Sink your teeth in and don't let go. Good luck.

Answer 8

I think that its really unfair for your daughter that she didnt get that A she deserve.and it was really careless of her teacher to lose her written course work,and what makes it even more unbelievable is that the examining board and the head teacher dont even bother to look into this matter.what kind of school is that? if I were you I'll transfer my daughter to another school.GCSE results huh,I'm thinking you might be from...cambridge?

but anyway,I guess its better to forget about it,coz it will only make your life miserable.its not fair thats what I think

Answer 9

Have you contacted you local education authority. I imagine you have but thought I would ask.

I think it is horrible the way she has been treated. I can understand your frustration and your daughter's upset. I think it is one of life's knocks, I imagine they would have been more helpful if she had got a D and not a C as that would reflect on the school.

It sounds as though you have explored every avenue you can.

I hope she can put it behind her and enjoys the other A's she got.

Answer 10

demand the grading board pass her results to an A. i know this is a bit extreme take her out of school and tell the papers untill some attention is brought to the matter