A Level Results Day

Herr Tubthumper · Aug 16, 2024

Cheshire Cat said:
The class of 2024 aced maths. Take an A-level challenge to see how you compare

Pupils in England delivered strong A-level results this summer, with 42% of entrants getting A* or As in maths. Here are three questions to ponder

www.theguardian.com

Can't do any of those. That's my career f***ed after 34 years.......

1) Couldn’t remember what product moment coefficient is.
2) Understand the principle of a binomial distribution but cannot remember the formula.
3) This is a conditional probability. Got.

essbee1 · Aug 16, 2024

Herr Tubthumper said:
1) Couldn’t remember what product moment coefficient is.
2) Understand the principle of a binomial distribution but cannot remember the formula.
3) This is a conditional probability. Got.

Indeed. Half the battle is remembering what these concepts/formulae are. Not much to do with
how good at maths any more than remembering the date of the Battle of bleeding
Hastings in history (1064 before you ask).

Muzzman · Aug 16, 2024

Vaughan Storm said:
Got Distinction* B and C. Which is understandable what I would've hoped for and I also find out I don't think I got the jobs I applied for either. Shit day

tedebear said:
Sorry to hear that re the job, it seems really tough at there at the moment for this age bracket. I think those are great results though, you should be pleased!

That's a real shame VS as those grades are not bad at all. Applying UCAS Tariff you have the equivalent to A*BC or ABB at A-Level. This would get you into most universities, so if you can, I'd shop around and see if there are any other apprenticeships out there that may consider you. Good luck!

Triggaaar · Aug 16, 2024

Pevenseagull said:
UCAS form used to ask what your parents did for a living.

(Bricklayer and school dinner lady)

In '89 that was something of a novelty. When it came to the allocated room in the halls of residence it really came home.

I just lied on my form. Said one was a doctor and the other was a solicitor.

Goldstone1976 · Aug 16, 2024

Herr Tubthumper said:
…my father worked in a factory…

Was it the toolmaking factory that Keir Starmer’s father owned?

“In Volume 18, issue 3 of Barn Theatre News, printed in August 2014, Rod Starmer wrote about his son. He said that before university Keir took a year off:

“The next 6 months were spent in my factory operating a production machine…DEAD BORING…..Keir!! At Leeds, Keir obtained a first in Law, LLB and a Scholarship to Oxford for a second degree, BCL.”

“

Starmer’s Father Admitted He Was the Owner of Toolmaking Factory

Starmer has made a huge amount of his Dad working as a "toolmaker". On Wednesday's highly-watched Sky News Leaders Event he said: "I accept I earn a lot

order-order.com

Herr Tubthumper · Aug 16, 2024

Goldstone1976 said:
Was it the toolmaking factory that Keir Starmer’s father owned?

“In Volume 18, issue 3 of Barn Theatre News, printed in August 2014, Rod Starmer wrote about his son. He said that before university Keir took a year off:

“

Starmer’s Father Admitted He Was the Owner of Toolmaking Factory

Starmer has made a huge amount of his Dad working as a "toolmaker". On Wednesday's highly-watched Sky News Leaders Event he said: "I accept I earn a lot

order-order.com

Ha ha. No, it was a furniture factory in Newhaven. Just as well my bother and I found alternative careers; being useful with our hands was not passed down a generation.

stewardxxx · Aug 16, 2024

Keen to understand if anyone needed to call UCAS yesterday what the experience was like - long wait times etc?

Muzzman · Aug 16, 2024

stewardxxx said:
Keen to understand if anyone needed to call UCAS yesterday what the experience was like - long wait times etc?

There were long wait times yesterday, I would expect it to be busy in the first hour today 9am-10am, then traffic should drop off. UCAS tend to employ extra staff during this period, so you shouldn't have to wait too long.

Iggle Piggle · Aug 16, 2024

A level results day wouldn't be A level results day without Jake Humphrey reminding the world how successful he is despite ballsing them up. This year I'm pleased to say is no exception

Springal · Aug 16, 2024

Doesn’t look like he was very high performance as a child

Muzzman · Aug 16, 2024

Springal said:
Doesn’t look like he was very high performance as a child

He patently never turned up to classes or his exam. Scallywag.

Peteinblack · Aug 16, 2024

Muzzman said:
He patently never turned up to classes or his exam. Scallywag.

One of my pet hates - students who don't turn-up for classes (but complain about "lack of contact hours") or don't do any reading for 3 years (too busy drooling over TikTok), but then complain about not getting high marks for their assignments, or not graduating with a 1st or a 2:1 degree.

Also, parents who phone complaining that Tarquin or Jocasta didn't get a better degree result, and that they should get a partial refund on their fees!

Angry, sweary, father shouted (on phone) at me a few years ago that my teaching must be shit, because his darling daughter had only graduated with a 2:2. When I pointed out that 76% of my students graduated with a 2:1 or a 1st, and that the fault must lie elsewhere, the entitled twat hung-up

Problem is that in the case of any complaint, however frivolous, university managers usually take the side of the students/parents to avoid negative publicity or litigation; so academic staff are often hung out to dry by cowardly management - we're trying to maintain academic standards with our hands tied behind our backs, and absolutely no support from university managers.

I increasingly ask myself why I bother.

BNthree · Aug 16, 2024

Peteinblack said:
One of my pet hates - students who don't turn-up for classes (but complain about "lack of contact hours") or don't do any reading for 3 years (too busy drooling over TikTok), but then complain about not getting high marks for their assignments, or not graduating with a 1st or a 2:1 degree.

Also, parents who phone complaining that Tarquin or Jocasta didn't get a better degree result, and that they should get a partial refund on their fees!

Angry, sweary, father shouted (on phone) at me a few years ago that my teaching must be shit, because his darling daughter had only graduated with a 2:2. When I pointed out that 76% of my students graduated with a 2:1 or a 1st, and that the fault must lie elsewhere, the entitled twat hung-up

Problem is that in the case of any complaint, however frivolous, university managers usually take the side of the students/parents to avoid negative publicity or litigation; so academic staff are often hung out to dry by cowardly management - we're trying to maintain academic standards with our hands tied behind our backs, and absolutely no support from university managers.

I increasingly ask myself why I bother.

Seems to be a result of fees being so high; students and parents think they've paid the money so they should get the degree they want.

Herr Tubthumper · Aug 16, 2024

Peteinblack said:
One of my pet hates - students who don't turn-up for classes (but complain about "lack of contact hours") or don't do any reading for 3 years (too busy drooling over TikTok), but then complain about not getting high marks for their assignments, or not graduating with a 1st or a 2:1 degree.

Also, parents who phone complaining that Tarquin or Jocasta didn't get a better degree result, and that they should get a partial refund on their fees!

Angry, sweary, father shouted (on phone) at me a few years ago that my teaching must be shit, because his darling daughter had only graduated with a 2:2. When I pointed out that 76% of my students graduated with a 2:1 or a 1st, and that the fault must lie elsewhere, the entitled twat hung-up

Problem is that in the case of any complaint, however frivolous, university managers usually take the side of the students/parents to avoid negative publicity or litigation; so academic staff are often hung out to dry by cowardly management - we're trying to maintain academic standards with our hands tied behind our backs, and absolutely no support from university managers.

I increasingly ask myself why I bother.

The Frau works in education and has maintained for many years the parents are often a bigger problem as unruly kids.

Peteinblack · Aug 16, 2024

BNthree said:
Seems to be a result of fees being so high; students and parents think they've paid the money so they should get the degree they want.

Yup, "Here's my £9,000, where's my First Class degree?" The sense of entitlement is appalling, as is the lack of work ethic.

They don't realise they are not paying for a degree; they are paying for the opportunity to study for a degree.

It's like me paying £100s in annual gym membership, but never going to the gym to exercise but instead staying at home eating junk food, and then complaining to the gym that I'm unfit or overweight!

Peteinblack · Aug 16, 2024

Herr Tubthumper said:
The Frau works in education and has maintained for many years the parents are often a bigger problem as unruly kids.

Helicopter Parents we call them!

WATFORD zero · Aug 16, 2024

I'm pretty sure that when I last took exams (GCEs in 1976) the pass/grade boundaries were 'adjusted' to ensure a constant percentage got each grade. This seemed sensible to me as employers etc could tell you were in the top 10% or whatever at a certain subject.

But I notice that each year now, they talk about the percentage of A*/A etc going up and down (highest ever etc). Is my memory playing up, or did they change the way grade boundaries were defined sometime over the last 50 years ?

Sid and the Sharknados · Aug 16, 2024

Cheshire Cat said:
The class of 2024 aced maths. Take an A-level challenge to see how you compare

Pupils in England delivered strong A-level results this summer, with 42% of entrants getting A* or As in maths. Here are three questions to ponder

www.theguardian.com

Can't do any of those. That's my career f***ed after 34 years.......

I'm pretty sure those questions must have come from a statistics paper, because I managed to get through my maths A levels without ever having to understand how to work out distributions.

Herr Tubthumper · Aug 16, 2024

Sid and the Sharknados said:
I'm pretty sure those questions must have come from a statistics paper, because I managed to get through my maths A levels without ever having to understand how to work out distributions.

I took my As in the late 80s and these would definitely have been part of the statistics paper. You could however, combine maths with stats if my memory is correct. There was a mix of things you could do, I did Pure and Applied Maths as a single A and two stats papers for a single 'Stats' A-level. And just to add some more maths I took Physics as well.

Sid and the Sharknados · Aug 16, 2024

Herr Tubthumper said:
I took my As in the late 80s and these would definitely have been part of the statistics paper. You could however, combine maths with stats if my memory is correct. There was a mix of things you could do, I did Pure and Applied Maths as a single A and two stats papers for a single 'Stats' A-level. And just to add some more maths I took Physics as well.

I did pure and mechanics, and then a second helping of pure and mechanics. But the actual A-levels were just called Maths and Further Maths rather than anything more specific. Obviously I also did physics because of course I did. :lolol:

I think there were a couple of modules of decision maths as well, from which I vaguely remember the Chinese postman problem and absolutely nothing else.

I'm loosely aware of probability and distributions because it comes up in civil engineering when people talk about risk or material strengths, but I've never really had to understand it in a proper mathsy sense.

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