Can you re-do coursework like you can resit an exam?

[S Brooks]

The situation is that last year I got an A in Business Studies, and this
year I'm on the way to totally messing it up.

I chose to do the coursework on the title of "Is there scope to set up X new
business." It was basically a bad title to choose and I've found it hard to
make my project good. I regret the title I chose, and a booklet from the
exam board that was only handed out last week reccommends not choosing a
broad title like my one*.

* Thanks for telling me that, teacher, when you checked my title at the
start of the year :)

Now the important bit - is it possible to re-do coursework like you can
re-sit an exam? Exam board is OCR.

[Stuart Williams]

Post by S Brooks
The situation is that last year I got an A in Business Studies, and this
year I'm on the way to totally messing it up.
I chose to do the coursework on the title of "Is there scope to set up X new
business." It was basically a bad title to choose and I've found it hard to
make my project good. I regret the title I chose, and a booklet from the
exam board that was only handed out last week reccommends not choosing a
broad title like my one*.
* Thanks for telling me that, teacher, when you checked my title at the
start of the year :)
Now the important bit - is it possible to re-do coursework like you can
re-sit an exam? Exam board is OCR.

Has it been submitted already? We don't submit ours until next term.

SW

[S Brooks]

Post by Stuart Williams
Has it been submitted already? We don't submit ours until next term.

The deadline was today, and I handed it in for the deadline. I just know
it's not very good.

I did speak to my teacher today and he said that I can re-do the coursework,
but he also said it's harder to improve your marks because they seem to mark
coursework more strictly in the summer. Anyone know if this is true?

He also said that retaking it isn't what they advise and wasn't a good idea
for this reason and that. He was actually very against me re-doing the
coursework, but unless the coursework is a B (very, very unlikely) I will
re-do it.

If I did re-do it and messed it up even more, the previous and better-graded
coursework still counts, right?

Thanks, and if anyone can confirm that I can actually re-do it I would be
grateful.

[Stuart Williams]

Post by S Brooks

Post by Stuart Williams
Has it been submitted already? We don't submit ours until next term.

The deadline was today, and I handed it in for the deadline. I just know
it's not very good.
I did speak to my teacher today and he said that I can re-do the coursework,
but he also said it's harder to improve your marks because they seem to mark
coursework more strictly in the summer. Anyone know if this is true?

First, did your teacher understand you correctly? I guess from your
previous post that you meant "redo completely". Although that might be a
good idea, I can imagine your teacher would not be at all keen on marking
an entirely new piece of work. (And do you have to have an initial
proposal accepted by the Board before you even start it? - I think that's
the case in a number of other subjects/Boards anyway.)
As to the belief that Summer marking is harsher - well, the official line
is definitely not, but I have heard of at least one other subject (Maths,
for example) that more or less admits that the January modules are marked
less severely than the June ones (though in Maths that probably doesn't
make much difference). Even so, if you could shift your project from 60%
to 80%, even harsher marking would leave you better off.

Post by S Brooks
He also said that retaking it isn't what they advise and wasn't a good idea
for this reason and that. He was actually very against me re-doing the
coursework, but unless the coursework is a B (very, very unlikely) I will
re-do it.
If I did re-do it and messed it up even more, the previous and better-graded
coursework still counts, right?
Thanks, and if anyone can confirm that I can actually re-do it I would be
grateful.

Or you could always ask to be entered for the alternative paper - the
coursework isn't compulsory, after all. You might have to teach yourself
to some extent, though.

SW

[John Porcella]

Post by Stuart Williams
As to the belief that Summer marking is harsher - well, the official line
is definitely not,

Agreed.

but I have heard of at least one other subject (Maths,

Post by Stuart Williams
for example) that more or less admits that the January modules are marked
less severely than the June ones (though in Maths that probably doesn't
make much difference).

I used to believe this to some extent. I thought that since a lot of
candidates would only have studied for one term or are people retaking due
to previous poor performance that the standard of candidate performance
would be lower, so markers would be more impressed with a paper that in the
summer would not impress them as much. However, last January I took an
economics paper alongside a talented student from my college and we were
both predicted easy grade As by the teacher. Neither of us managed it
despite us both thinking that the paper was reasonable. When we retook in
the summer, with no further study, we both aced it easily.

Mind you, there was a paper in ICT in January for which I got an A. I
retook it in the summer to get a higher UMS mark and I only got a C grade!!
I took it again the following January and got 100% though I did no further
study! Go figure!

In conclusion, from my own experiences I do not think that it is possible to
make a sweeping judgement about whether summer or winter is easier.

[Samsonknight]

Post by John Porcella
Mind you, there was a paper in ICT in January for which I got an A. I
retook it in the summer to get a higher UMS mark and I only got a C grade!!
I took it again the following January and got 100% though I did no further
study! Go figure!

Yeah tell me about it, I used to fear the ICT exams, not because they were
hard but because they were so harsh at giving marks....Even if you wrote
what they were looking for , if you wasn't concise enough and waffled jus a
bit, you would get 0 marks!
Time and time again, I would come out from the exam thinking thst I have got
an A easily , when usually I would have ended up with Bs or in a few
instances Cs! I was one of the lucky ones, some of the other students got
D/Es regularly in that subject whilst doing the work.

How you got 100% John on ICT1, I just dont know, but that is such a great
result! Did your college issue you with this crappy white text book by AQA,
we were issued by this fat text book that was just so awful! and were told
in A2, that it was just inadequate for the course....which annoyed us!

[John Porcella]

Post by Samsonknight

Post by John Porcella
Mind you, there was a paper in ICT in January for which I got an A. I
retook it in the summer to get a higher UMS mark and I only got a C grade!!
I took it again the following January and got 100% though I did no further
study! Go figure!

Yeah tell me about it, I used to fear the ICT exams, not because they were
what they were looking for , if you wasn't concise enough and waffled jus a
bit, you would get 0 marks!
Time and time again, I would come out from the exam thinking thst I have got
an A easily , when usually I would have ended up with Bs or in a few
instances Cs! I was one of the lucky ones, some of the other students got
D/Es regularly in that subject whilst doing the work.
How you got 100% John on ICT1, I just dont know, but that is such a great
result!

Thanks! I could not believe it myself, since I thought that I had murdered
the paper before more than once, only to find that the marker/board did not
agree!

Did your college issue you with this crappy white text book by AQA,

No, we did not not use any books.

Post by Samsonknight
we were issued by this fat text book that was just so awful! and were told
in A2, that it was just inadequate for the course....which annoyed us!

I think that the reason why I did better on the third go was that I used a
different tactic when answering questions. Previously, if they asked for
two reasons for something, I gave them two. On the 100% performance, if
they asked for two I gave them three, and if they wanted three I gave them
four! This way, if they did not like one of my answers, then I had a
'reserve' that they could give marks to. Since I knew that they are very
prescriptive, then I felt that I had to 'overanswer' to make sure that I
nailed the answer on the marker's official answer sheet.

When I was marking an AS paper for an A level board last summer, out of
about three hundred papers that I marked, only one candidate adopted this
technique in a question, which was lucky for them since the second reason
was wrong, but I gave the marks for the first and third (they were asked for
two).

Mind you, my technique is slightly more stressful since you have to go like
the clappers to make sure that the paper is actually completed!

Merry Christmas!

[Eatmorepies]

Post by John Porcella
I think that the reason why I did better on the third go was that I used a
different tactic when answering questions. Previously, if they asked for
two reasons for something, I gave them two. On the 100% performance, if
they asked for two I gave them three, and if they wanted three I gave them
four! This way, if they did not like one of my answers, then I had a
'reserve' that they could give marks to. Since I knew that they are very
prescriptive, then I felt that I had to 'overanswer' to make sure that I
nailed the answer on the marker's official answer sheet.
When I was marking an AS paper for an A level board last summer, out of
about three hundred papers that I marked, only one candidate adopted this
technique in a question, which was lucky for them since the second reason
was wrong, but I gave the marks for the first and third (they were asked for
two).

This works unless the answers are condradictory. So throwing several
assorted answers down might not do it. It's a good method so long as the
answer that doesn't earn a mark is not actually wrong - just one that was
not considered apposite enough for a mark.

John

[John Porcella]

Post by Eatmorepies

Post by John Porcella
When I was marking an AS paper for an A level board last summer, out of
about three hundred papers that I marked, only one candidate adopted this
technique in a question, which was lucky for them since the second reason
was wrong, but I gave the marks for the first and third (they were asked

for

Post by John Porcella
two).

This works unless the answers are condradictory. So throwing several
assorted answers down might not do it. It's a good method so long as the
answer that doesn't earn a mark is not actually wrong - just one that was
not considered apposite enough for a mark.

What are you basing these comments on? Having marked two different subjects
for two different boards I can assure you that this works even when the
answers are contradictory! I remember one paper where candidates had to
discuss the consequences of forecast currency movements. Basically, we were
told to mark everything that was legible, even if it was crossed out; we
were further instructed that there was NO negative marking for wrong answers
(as the Chief Examiner said, candidates punish themselves by wasting time by
putting down wrong answers), but to mark positively what was there. So, for
instance, I remember one candidate in particular who, in the first
paragraph, got all the analysis wrong, so scored nothing. But in the very
next paragraph, then wrote the complete opposite! Since this was correct,
the candidate started scoring heavily, even though what they were now
writing was in direct contradiction to what they had written previously!
The cost to the candidate was wasted time by writing an unnecessary and
wrong first paragraph, so I suppose that there would have been an
opportunity cost by having less time to complete the paper.

[Eatmorepies]

Post by John Porcella
What are you basing these comments on? Having marked two different subjects
for two different boards I can assure you that this works even when the
answers are contradictory!

Consider this;

The question asks for 3 factors controlling the resistance of a length of
wire. The candidate responds with

cross sectional area
length
colour

2 right, 1 not right - but not contradictory. Hence 2 out of 3.

Or this;

The question asks for the changes in a circuit when the light level on an
LDR decreases. The responses are

The current decreases
The resistance increases
The ammeter reading increases

The first and third are contradictory. The second can score a mark. Hence 1
out of 3.


I remember one paper where candidates had to

Post by John Porcella
discuss the consequences of forecast currency movements. Basically, we were
told to mark everything that was legible, even if it was crossed out;

I mark crossed out work if it hasn't been replaced with uncrossed work -
standard for the paper I mark.

we

Post by John Porcella
were further instructed that there was NO negative marking for wrong answers

We only apply negative marking if the error is very bad - e.g. stating that
photons have rest mass; negative marking is rare.

So, for

Post by John Porcella
instance, I remember one candidate in particular who, in the first
paragraph, got all the analysis wrong, so scored nothing. But in the very
next paragraph, then wrote the complete opposite! Since this was correct,
the candidate started scoring heavily, even though what they were now
writing was in direct contradiction to what they had written previously!

This would only work for me if they crossed out the wrong answers.

On my paper we are not completely heartless. We give marks for back credit.
e.g. section (a) requires a particular equation for a mark. If the candidate
writes this equation in another section they can score the mark for section
(a) - unless they contradict themselves or start the section with WP - wrong
physics.

One year we allowed answers to be transposed. In (a) they were meant to
write about electrons and in (b) photons. If they reversed their answers on
the paper - they could still score all the marks.

John

[John Porcella]

Post by Stuart Williams

Post by John Porcella
What are you basing these comments on? Having marked two different

subjects

Post by John Porcella
for two different boards I can assure you that this works even when the
answers are contradictory!

Consider this;
The question asks for 3 factors controlling the resistance of a length of
wire. The candidate responds with
cross sectional area
length
colour
2 right, 1 not right - but not contradictory. Hence 2 out of 3.

Agreed. However, the exact marking for an examination paper will vary with
board, subject and paper.

Post by Stuart Williams
Or this;
The question asks for the changes in a circuit when the light level on an
LDR decreases. The responses are
The current decreases
The resistance increases
The ammeter reading increases
The first and third are contradictory. The second can score a mark. Hence 1
out of 3.

Whilst contradictory, if the first or the third are correct on their own,
then marks would be given in all likelihood.

Post by Stuart Williams
I remember one paper where candidates had to

Post by John Porcella
discuss the consequences of forecast currency movements. Basically, we

were

Post by John Porcella
told to mark everything that was legible, even if it was crossed out;

I mark crossed out work if it hasn't been replaced with uncrossed work -
standard for the paper I mark.

No such luck for us, we had to mark everything that was legible, even if
contradictory!

Post by Stuart Williams
we

Post by John Porcella
were further instructed that there was NO negative marking for wrong

answers
We only apply negative marking if the error is very bad - e.g. stating that
photons have rest mass; negative marking is rare.

Not allowed at all in my subjects.

Post by Stuart Williams
So, for

Post by John Porcella
instance, I remember one candidate in particular who, in the first
paragraph, got all the analysis wrong, so scored nothing. But in the very
next paragraph, then wrote the complete opposite! Since this was correct,
the candidate started scoring heavily, even though what they were now
writing was in direct contradiction to what they had written previously!

This would only work for me if they crossed out the wrong answers.

Perhaps for you, but not for that paper's chief examiner!

[Samsonknight]

Post by John Porcella

Post by Samsonknight
we were issued by this fat text book that was just so awful! and were told
in A2, that it was just inadequate for the course....which annoyed us!

I think that the reason why I did better on the third go was that I used a
different tactic when answering questions. Previously, if they asked for
two reasons for something, I gave them two. On the 100% performance, if
they asked for two I gave them three, and if they wanted three I gave them
four! This way, if they did not like one of my answers, then I had a
'reserve' that they could give marks to. Since I knew that they are very
prescriptive, then I felt that I had to 'overanswer' to make sure that I
nailed the answer on the marker's official answer sheet.
When I was marking an AS paper for an A level board last summer, out of
about three hundred papers that I marked, only one candidate adopted this
technique in a question, which was lucky for them since the second reason
was wrong, but I gave the marks for the first and third (they were asked for
two).
Mind you, my technique is slightly more stressful since you have to go like
the clappers to make sure that the paper is actually completed!
Merry Christmas!

Merry Xmas to you too...I wish now you was a fellow student of mine, as I
would have used the same technique if I had known. My ICT teachers , used
downmark us if we did exactly what you did, saying you would get 0 marks if
you over answered as they asked for 2 points only....a bit annoying now
after hearing that you can overanswer in ICT examinations.

Take care, and btw Alevel maths is going great! I love pure maths!

[John Porcella]

Post by Samsonknight
Merry Xmas to you too...

Many thanks!

I wish now you was a fellow student of mine,

Too kind!

as I

Post by Samsonknight
would have used the same technique if I had known. My ICT teachers , used
downmark us if we did exactly what you did, saying you would get 0 marks if
you over answered as they asked for 2 points only....a bit annoying now
after hearing that you can overanswer in ICT examinations.

Not just ICT, but any AS or AS since they all follow the QCA guidelines,
which I have been told insist on positive marking.

Post by Samsonknight
Take care, and btw Alevel maths is going great! I love pure maths!

Good for you! I am retaking P1 in January as I got 80% the first time
around a couple of years back, and I think that after taking P2 and P3 I can
get at least five more UMS points, or maybe more on a resit! I am retaking
S2. I only got 53% for this which I still do not understand why as the
paper was terribly easy. I had the paper remarked (same score given) and
sent back to me and I am none the wiser as to what they did not like about
it.

Are you taking the old or the new pure maths syllabus?

[Samsonknight]

Post by John Porcella

Post by Samsonknight
Merry Xmas to you too...

Many thanks!
I wish now you was a fellow student of mine,
Too kind!
as I

Post by Samsonknight
would have used the same technique if I had known. My ICT teachers , used
downmark us if we did exactly what you did, saying you would get 0 marks

if

Post by Samsonknight
you over answered as they asked for 2 points only....a bit annoying now
after hearing that you can overanswer in ICT examinations.

Not just ICT, but any AS or AS since they all follow the QCA guidelines,
which I have been told insist on positive marking.

I wonder why we wasn't told this in the firstplace.

Post by John Porcella

Post by Samsonknight
Take care, and btw Alevel maths is going great! I love pure maths!

Good for you! I am retaking P1 in January as I got 80% the first time
around a couple of years back, and I think that after taking P2 and P3 I can
get at least five more UMS points, or maybe more on a resit! I am retaking
S2. I only got 53% for this which I still do not understand why as the
paper was terribly easy. I had the paper remarked (same score given) and
sent back to me and I am none the wiser as to what they did not like about
it.
Are you taking the old or the new pure maths syllabus?

I am doing the new pure maths syllabus in a yr. I am taking C1 (P1) on the
10th and C2 on the 19th. The C1 is module is a non caculator paper , but
from what I have seen isn't very hard. The C2 module is interesting, as they
have introduced a lot of units on radian measure/circles and is mainly trig
based. Hopefully, after aquiring good grades in the above modules, I hope to
complete the Alevel by doing C3,C4,S1,M1 in June.

On the whole maths this year seems to be a lot more positive then 2 years
back, mainly because I have had to spend hours and hours doing it privately.
I have found that being taught 3 hours in a week with a tutor is also very
suffiecient and effective in terms of teaching time and in comparison in
terms of quality, it is much more better then my ex-schools teaching, as I
am able to ask my tutor any problem at all without the fear of being
patronised in the process - something that occured regularly before with
myself and many students.

Ironically, my only pitful in maths is similar to yours in the respect that
I tend to forget important concepts quickly such as binomial expansion -
probably due to the speed I am learning these modules in.

Anyway, I am sure you will pass the P1 module with 100% this time around!
What did you get overall?

Post by John Porcella
--
MESSAGE ENDS.
John Porcella

[John Porcella]

Post by Samsonknight

Post by John Porcella

Post by Samsonknight
Merry Xmas to you too...

Many thanks!
I wish now you was a fellow student of mine,
Too kind!
as I

Post by Samsonknight
would have used the same technique if I had known. My ICT teachers , used
downmark us if we did exactly what you did, saying you would get 0 marks

if

Post by Samsonknight
you over answered as they asked for 2 points only....a bit annoying now
after hearing that you can overanswer in ICT examinations.

Not just ICT, but any AS or AS since they all follow the QCA guidelines,
which I have been told insist on positive marking.

I wonder why we wasn't told this in the firstplace.

If your teacher of ICT had not actually done any marking for the exam board,
then he/she is unlikely to know. It seems like they did not ask around the
staff room since the school must surely have had someone who had done that
tedious job. I suspect that the teacher just took a very literal line and
wanted to discourage students from wasting time on a question when they
should really move on.

Post by Samsonknight

Post by John Porcella

Post by Samsonknight
Take care, and btw Alevel maths is going great! I love pure maths!

Good for you! I am retaking P1 in January as I got 80% the first time
around a couple of years back, and I think that after taking P2 and P3 I can
get at least five more UMS points, or maybe more on a resit! I am retaking
S2. I only got 53% for this which I still do not understand why as the
paper was terribly easy. I had the paper remarked (same score given) and
sent back to me and I am none the wiser as to what they did not like about
it.
Are you taking the old or the new pure maths syllabus?

I am doing the new pure maths syllabus in a yr. I am taking C1 (P1) on the
10th and C2 on the 19th. The C1 is module is a non caculator paper , but
from what I have seen isn't very hard. The C2 module is interesting, as they
have introduced a lot of units on radian measure/circles and is mainly trig
based. Hopefully, after aquiring good grades in the above modules, I hope to
complete the Alevel by doing C3,C4,S1,M1 in June.
On the whole maths this year seems to be a lot more positive then 2 years
back, mainly because I have had to spend hours and hours doing it privately.
I have found that being taught 3 hours in a week with a tutor is also very
suffiecient and effective in terms of teaching time and in comparison in
terms of quality, it is much more better then my ex-schools teaching, as I
am able to ask my tutor any problem at all without the fear of being
patronised in the process - something that occured regularly before with
myself and many students.

Yes a tutor is excellent, if they are good, due to the personal attention
focussed on your issues and problems.

Post by Samsonknight
Ironically, my only pitful in maths is similar to yours in the respect that
I tend to forget important concepts quickly such as binomial expansion -
probably due to the speed I am learning these modules in.

I find that my learning follows the following pattern: I go through a
chapter and then I understand it. I move onto the next chapter and master
that, but forget the first one. I continue until the book is finished. I
then have to revise each chapter again since the newer material learnt has
driven out the older stuff! Then I tackle a combination of Solomon and past
question papers, and the fact that the questions come from all over the
syllabus keeps me from forgetting stuff, and more importantly, helps me to
keep all of the concepts/formulas/techniques in my head in one go. My tutor
is astounded by my ability to forget what he has taught me and has put it
down to my age (41). I disagree! I know from when I am teaching
accountancy that new concepts taught seem to drive out previosly learned
material, hence the essential need for revision and practice.

Post by Samsonknight
Anyway, I am sure you will pass the P1 module with 100% this time around!

I did not think this possible, but I have met one chappie who got 100% for
P1 last summer and he was self-taught!!! I shall be happy with 90%, since
the extra 100 UMS marks will take the strain off everything else, but it
would clearly be better to get 100, but you can get the right answer and
lose some marks for method marks, by not showing a working for instance.

Post by Samsonknight
What did you get overall?

I need to take another paper (probably D1) to finish, but I shall not do
this until next year (2006) at the earliest.